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Your name is Shu, and it’s as you’re standing on the bank of a rapidly-draining lake of brine as dawn breaks across the Fleshscape that you wonder if you might be a little in over your head. The creature that waits mere meters away on the sandy shore is one that bears skills and forethought only a mind honed by months, perhaps years of conflict and careful reflection can grant...a mind too honed to belong to a mere Amalgam.

[This thing's a Daughter] You announce, your silent thought echoing in the minds of your two compatriots. To your right Dorian Gardner stiffens, the artist's immaculate scarlet suit shifting in hue as the liquid it's comprised of fluctuates in time with it's wearer's conflicting emotions. November just sighs to your right, the imposing frame of brushed metal and whirring machinery settling into a soldiers stance as the plates on her left and right arms rack, revealing her paired armaments of shotgun and assault rifle.

"Shit, I could've told you that." The older woman mutters, a series of rapid clicks emanating from the woman's core as her Relic-studded frame re-calibrates. "The way she moves, the way she's attacking...it's not wild. She's smart, too smart by half."

Her Ignition Gantlets creak as she wrests the black-hafted Spear of Dainsleif from where Lepisma's warrior threw it back. The wide, vicious blade end drips with a thin, sticky ichor, wrenched from the chest of your foe in a move that caught her quite off-guard.

"...but she's not invulnerable." November adds, meeting your enemy's black, pitiless gaze. Lepisma's eyes are a pair of black, lightless stones set in a translucent braincase, the interior flickering with dull light like that of a far-off storm. Those cold, damnable eyes are fixed on you, even as her three retainers adjust and re-adjust themselves as they await the order they so desperately crave. In the face of taught anticipation, there is nothing but silence on this desolate stretch of beach as the Obsidian Spire looms above you all.

She watches.

She waits.

For you, and you alone.

Previous Vein: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3765579/

Archive: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Body%20Horror%20Quest

Character Abilities: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15ctgm_liaNO0e0B6zAcIUrmfDN0tWiXds3L4FvogI2M/edit#gid=0

Trypophilic Hive, Ver. 2: https://pastebin.com/SJ5wvFxr

Relics, Ver. 4: https://pastebin.com/c4J9mpPK

Dual Techs: https://pastebin.com/2jZ5Zhyx

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bodyhorrorquest?lang=en
>>
The largest of the three insectile creations stands tall by her Mistress' side, a wide-bladed greatsword held to one side by two of the four arms she bears, claws tight on the grip, knees bent and ready to lunge. To the Royal'ss left a long, dagger-limbed Centipede roils about its own length with obvious impatience, occasionally glancing between you and your allies with a pair of beady eyes before curling back in on itself in irritation. Lastly, the malformed spider, whose refinement you stymied by collapsing the underwater cavern that now gorges on the lake's receding waters...it just sits, balancing on eight spears of chitin, utterly unmoving.

Constructs. Constructs, they have to be. But they're so very unlike your own brood, so irregular...and their faces, their too-human visages frozen in a trio of inscrutable expressions, it's enough to make you wonder if...

Again, Lepisma beckons. For the fourth and final time her talons reach out and curl back in towards her palm, her other pair of mantis-like claws held tight to her chest, the wound they frame almost completely healed and yet not. It still weeps the ichor that coats November's blade, the wound coming almost to a close save for a brittle hole that resists that last little bit of sealing. The owner of the once-gaping wound pays it no heed, betrays nothing of any pain she may be feeling. Instead, all you feel is a calm, quiet assurance in the path she's chosen.

She regards you with the cold, collected confidence of an executioner, of one who's seen this all before...and will live to see it play out again, again, and again.

Until it is done.

But you...you are Shu the Defiant, Hunter of Gods. You’ve slain the gods before…so what’s a royal to you, then? You take a deep breath, an inhalation in time with the lake's exhalation of existence.

You let it out in a long, relaxed breath...and you move to end this.

HP: 1210% (+52% [Dominus: Deactivated], Tractus, Whistle: RHO CUNT)
BIO: 1280% (+90%, 1 Sonar-Jackling, 1 Subversive Swarmling [Armed w/ Contender] 2/30)
CONTENDER: LIONHEART FORM: Fullbore x2, Cicada (Parabellum drilling Centipede, B.33 in Lepisma's left hand, detonation in 2 rounds). LOCATION: 1 Zone away, held by Subversive Swarmling
RAVENOUS MAW: Primed.
HUNDRED-HANDED: Replacing Right Arm.
ACT: 3/3

DORIAN HP: 960% (235%, Interitus [ATK+, SPD+] Caelorum, Gutgrab [ELEC STACKS: 0])
NOVEMBER HP: 2420% (Tier 3 Core, Deliverance, [ATK+ DEF+])
METALL GESCHOSS: Cord Intact.

Threat: Medium range, anticipating your next move. Lepisma & Retainers x3 (Silver Warrior, Grey Rogue, Stillborn Mage)

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
Opponent: Lepisma
Targets:
• Lepisma
• Soldier Construct (Warrior)
• Centipede Construct (Rogue)
• Spider Construct (Mage)
Current situation:

Lepisma, flanked and surrounded by 3 constructs.

Lepisma has the following: Flesh Artisan/Neuromantic hybrid core, ability to scan daughters by touch, Domination Neuromancy from physical contact, and manipulation of constructs by dissection. Her adaptability is key and getting into close range yields dangers in being susceptible to Neuromantic override due to physical contact. Construct creation from raw biomass, works better when using biomasses from Amalgam/Daughter Carcasses. Very picky in her construct creation, but won’t hesitating in dropping a swarm of silverfish drones.

Sword Construct has the following: Fibromancy strength, Electricity Immunity, GreatSword, Acid immunity(?) and 1 level of heat resistance. Full strength

Centipede Construct has the following: Parabellum worm in heart, set to explode in 2 turns(?) Unknown abilities. Rogue archetype means speed, stealth and flanking attacks.

Spider Construct has the following: Half-baked construction, abilities unknown but severely gimped. Possible Neuromancy or Fibromancy shenanigans given the mage archetype.

The Battle’s opening salvos were theoretically surprise initiative potshots from one side aimed at the other. After the events of the current round, both sides are now at a standoff on apparent equal footing.

Current known Enemy tactics:

Uses Silverfish swarm and large bodies as screening and distraction
Can prioritize and disarm relics from Shu’s team.
Will seek to assimilate enemy constructs to develop temporary countermeasures and turn assets (ours) against them.

What Lepisma knows:
Knows Shu’s core ability, guesswork and fighting Shu has allowed her to have a good estimate of Shu’s other abilities and overall fighting power. She knows that Shu has an ability that allows her to still handle her gun despite being disarmed and the bullets fired from the gun are specialized constructs.

Figured out that The Tank is the primary damage dealer and November drives it.

Dorian has a humoral paladin ability that allows him to shred constructs like wet paper. Feels Fear from Dorian so it might clue her in that Dorian’s got investments in an aura based Phantasmal Conduit ability.

1/2
>>
>>3780066
Lepisma’s possible next move:

Considering Lepisma’s playstyle and her title and her current assets, Lepisma is inviting Shu to make the first move so she could analyze and create a proper counter to her ability while proactively making diversion plays to split up the party.

She’s caught a B.33 round with her hand. You can bet Fuzzbuzz's ass that She's gonna take the time to dissect that bullet type and repurpose it into benefiting her. We need to prevent her from completing the dissection ASAP, otherwise we’ll be facing the honey bomb effects from Lepisma weaponizing the B.33 round against us.

Her targeting priorities would probably be in this order: Shu, November, then Dorian.

She would probably send Centipede and Soldier to Tie up Dorian and November while using the half-baked Spider as a defensive bulwark to separate Shu from Dorian and November, and keep the Contender away from Shu’s hands.

Soldier would go in a brawler match against November and force the fight to close quarters, given that Soldier’s got one level of heat resistance and has Fibromancy strength enhancements, it would fare long enough against November to deal heavy damage to her and tie her up long enough to keep November Isolated from Shu and Dorian.

Centipede would probably match Dorian in the speed department so Lepisma would send it after Dorian to keep him away and prevent him from supporting Shu or November.
Its abilities unknown, but I would reckon, Lepisma would also sent Centipede to sabotage the Tank after November’s sufficiently tied up with Soldier.

Half-baked Spider’s not that particularly useful given that it’s incomplete, Given its mage archetype, it's going to have choice abilities that cast utility spells or terraforming bullshit so any functional abilities it has will have to be those that provide Lepisma technical utility in order for her to gain an advantage in battle if it does contribute, otherwise it’s a functional meatshield that can block incoming cannon fire from November’s Tank.

Last but not least, Lepisma. Given that she’s got foremost knowledge of Shu’s core ability and the fact that Shu’s shown most of her hand in the abilities that she has, Lepisma would be fairly confident in taking Shu in a 1v1, with the Contender a secondary worry. Lepisma would be slightly wary of Shu’s skills with Terraforming as it did catch her somewhat off guard, but other than that Lepisma herself would handle Shu. With 3 separate constructs to command, Giving each construct a comprehensive set of orders for each would take up 1-3 Acts from Lepisma’s action economy, giving her at least 4-6 ACTS per round to play with.
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two and a half hours. Expect long voting times today [around two to two-and-a-half hours] to account for both combat planning and an unexpectedly busy work docket on my end. I hope you all had a good weekend, and good luck.)
>>
>>3780061
Shu;
>Blow the whistle.
>as you do, step right and Leash the two constructs to her right, the Centipede and the Spider.
>Once leashed, stun the two of them quickly.
>Spawn a swarm of Banelings. Have them shower the ground under the Royal and her constructs with acid, to melt the Fleshscape under them into a soup to slow them down.
>>All Swarmlings set to Auto-Destruct.

Dorian;
>switch to Creator form and flood the sword-Construct with Paintlings, aiming to glue down her sword arm.
>Switch to Critic Form once Shus has stunned the other two and dash them down, aiming to deal as much damage on the pass as you can.

November;
>Soon as Shu starts, distract the royal and her Sword-Construct.
>Activate the Joker MAsk to get your initiative off first.
>make it seem like you plan to toss the Dainslef into the Royal, only to swing hard at the Sword-Construct when she goes to block.
>Use the Dainslef as a pry bar to force the Sword-Construct to the side.
>Have the Tank unload on royal.

>>3780076
hope work doesn't hit you too hard BHOP!
>>
>>3780078
The baneling soup tactic I don't recommend. her constructs have shown to have the ability to burrow. If anything we should Terraform the Ground to become more solidified.
>>
>>3780086
we cant stun and terraform in the same turn. only one of her constructs would have acid resistance as far as we know, including her. burrowing through acid sounds like a very bad idea, and would take actions aswell as remove them from being able to react properly to anything we throw at her. especially if we get the stuns off, it wont be something the other can afford to do.
>>
>>3780088
>>3780078
Have we tried using the Dominus Bloodline's Dominon Jack feature? We could easily conscript Grey Warrior that way, but we'll need to make more Jacklings in order to strengthen our Neuromancy power.
>>
>>3780069
Good analysis. Let's talk possible actions. Firstly, I think the Kaiser Flare is a good opening move on November's part. Lepisma doesn't know about that ability, so it should catch her unaware. Furthermore, I suspect given her appearance that she's very susceptible to being blinded. Her appearance was stated to be part silverfish, part barreleye. Barreleye anatomy is intended to focus light directly onto the rod cells. That's what that transparent head is about. Lepisma should be pretty easy to blind. Kaiser Flare is guaranteed to cause two rounds worth of blindness at medium range, but with Lepisma's light-sensitivity it might go for the close-range version of three rounds blindness plus increased critical chance.

Secondly, Dorian actually already has a bunch of Inspired Paintlings lurking around. They're hiding in that cave mouth, placed there under the assumption that she'd exit the cave the normal way instead of riding on a sand-worm. While these should obviously be kept away from Lepisma herself, they can be directed at her Retainers. I'd suggest having them attack the spider, take advantage of its incomplete state by piling on crippling effects. Reduced mobility and the SEVERE BLEEDING status should keep it pretty well-occupied, plus they're very difficult to extract from wounds once they've worked their way in there so Lepisma shouldn't be able to pull them out and reverse-engineer them.

Thirdly, I'm still in favor of Dorian dash-slashing the constructs. Prime his Halo counter, have Shu paralyze with Dominus Bloodline, run past the two we've stunned. Even if Lepisma has inoculated them against anti-construct abilities (which I personally doubt she's capable of, because if she could why wouldn't she always have that active?) or our paralysis, that's still four high damage high crit-chance attacks against two opponents. Not bad. Plus he can fire off a lightning bolt against one of the Retainers that isn't Swordie.

Fourth, steal her Retainers, let her have a taste of it. Dominus Bloodline plus Dominion Jack plus Neurotic Halo level two means we should be able to take over one of the Retainers. Not as well as Gina could with Neuromancy level seven, but still effectively. I propose Swordie, knock out the Retainer that is immune to two of our main damage types. Make us not have to focus on it, and gives us a powerful weapon against Lepisma.
>>
>>3780076
Bhop, would this new vein, and the fight essentially being reset to a neutral position despite the opening salvo of potshots we took on Lepisma, would this be considered the beginning of combat again?
>>
>>3780091
i dont think Jacklings are worth it. the swarmlings would have to survive getting close and avoid having to self destruct. best to not do any plan relying on a swarmling to survive, given the circumstances.

as for Domination, Shu doesnt have as good feedback protection, but has little to no risk of such things from the stun. i have a strong feeling these Constructs are Phantasmal Based, and might be much harder to Hijack.
>>
>>3780097
The Jacklings don't have to be on the target, just by existing they give a concentration bonus. Really, given that Shu has infinite range to her swarm and can turn swarmlings on and off as a free action, we should just make a bunch of Jacklings and leave them back at the Lair for a booster whenever we need it. Something for another time. Anyways, as for feedback protection, the Neurotic Halo can provide it. It means turning off Shu's empathic field, though. Possibly worth it, we trust our team, but might be too much of a loss just to knock out Swordie.
>>
>>3780069
I think the one ability of Shu's that the Royal didn't get a glimpse of in action is the Ravenous Maw and maybe the Drill. It will be obvious that Shu has a Gluttonous power with huge mouth filled with sharp teeth on her abdomen, but she probably doesn't know what it does exactly yet.
>>
>>3780092
im fine adding the Flare to Novembers orders sure. she might of made her constructs to cover some of her weaknesses, so i dont want her to move forward expecting it to work as well as we hope.

the Cave is damn far away though, so id not rely on Dorian getting those here in time. you have to remember the Cave is across the lake, we took he fight on the far shore where we first arrived.

ill add Halo Counters to his Orders.

>>3780099
i dont think its worth it. in battle, communication is key, and avoiding spoken communication is even better. we have a better shot with less risk to Shu or team coordination to just aim to kill them, than hijack them.
>>
>>3780094
(It is not, I'm afraid. It's better that it isn't as that would return Lepisma to full strength, as well.)
>>
>>3780103
She saw the Drill. She shouldn't know the extent of its armor-penetrating power, but she knows it exists. What she doesn't know about is the Hundred-Hands. She saw that Shu managed to regrow a severed arm as a chitinous limb, but that could just be a weird regeneration power. And the swarmling holding the Contender is in stealth, Lepisma can probably tell that our gunblade is being held by an invisible swarmling but not what sort of appendage it's using. Granted, I'm not sure we want to use our Hands too much in this, because they're technically constructs. We don't want her turning our hands against us. God, I hate Lepisma. And the Cord does this, too, remember Professor Uzu's notes? So we'll get to go through this all over again in the endgame. I really hope we can get an Augment or Passive somewhere (maybe from Lepisma herself?) to make us immune to this shit.

>>3780106
>the Cave is damn far away though, so id not rely on Dorian getting those here in time. you have to remember the Cave is across the lake, we took he fight on the far shore where we first arrived.
I don't think we did. We're on the lake bed, exposed by the receding waters, with Lepisma ahead of us by the island's shore.. The cave should be right behind Lepisma, actually. Pretty sure. BHOP, care to clarify?
>>
>>3780111
like half the point of our opening plan was to avoid having to cross and fight on the island, so we would have more open ground, nor be caught trapped on the island if things went south.
>>
>>3780115
No, I'm pretty sure we crossed over to the island, we're described as standing outside the cave entrance. And how would Dorian's Paintlings have gotten over to it if we hadn't made that land-bridge? They're liquid, swimming would just dilute them.
>>
>>3780122
they could cross the land bridge without us. i also dont remember that, and if so then BHOP wholly misinterpreted the orders and id never of supported them if we we to do that, which i did specifically as our goal was to avoid doing that.
>>
>>3780061
>>3780078
regardless, some order amendments;

Shu;
>Blow the whistle.
>as you do, step right and Leash the two constructs to her right, the Centipede and the Spider.
>Once leashed, stun the two of them quickly.
>Have your Maw and Tractus ready to help hold the two targets down if immune to stunning.
>Spawn a swarm of Banelings. Have them shower the ground under the Royal and her constructs with acid, to melt the Fleshscape under them into a soup to slow them down.
>Have the Contender stealthily make its way back to us.
>>All Swarmlings set to Auto-Destruct.
>>Prime Halo

Dorian;
>switch to Creator form and flood the sword-Construct with Paintlings, aiming to glue down her sword arm.
>Switch to Critic Form once Shu has stunned the other two and dash them down, aiming to deal as much damage on the pass as you can.
>>Prime Halo

November;
>Activate the Joker Mask to get your initiative off first.
>Soon as Shu starts, distract the royal and her Sword-Construct, opening up on them with a Kaiser Flare.
>make it seem like you plan to toss the Dainslef into the Royal, only to swing hard at the Sword-Construct when she goes to block.
>Use the Dainslef as a pry bar to force the Sword-Construct to the side.
>Have the Tank unload on royal.
>>
>>3780061
>Free action:
>Shu and Dorian prime their halos.

November:
>Activate Joker's mask and use the initiative to make the first move. Nova Lunge towards Grey Warrior only to Kaiser flare and swerve past it, center the flare on Lepisma. Lepisma will take that as Shu's first move and will make her move accordingly.
>use the Dainsleif spear as a spear, but hold it on the side closest to the Grey Warrior to block the greatsword swing. If the sword misses you, take the opportunity to impale Lepisma again. while your free arm takes a swipe at the mage with the Cinnibar Talons during the lunge.
>Your back will be towards them, and if you get flanked by Centipede, Retaliate with appropriate melee countermeasures

Metal Geschoss:
>Fire main cannon at Royal or Stillborn mage, Priority at Royal.

Shu:
>spawn a subversive Jackling carrying one of Escher's Gear's spokes and have it plant the spoke.
>Free action: leave a Crimson Cord Message for Gina with the message [Planting gear spoke down, might need help, I'll signal you if fight gets messy so you can be the cavalry]
I'm going to say we left Escher's Gear back at home and took a Gear spoke with us before we went out on the hunt so our family can teleport in and feast at the killsite as well as coming in as Reinforcements if a battle turns south.
>Spawn Two jacklings, A Rook-Baneling Hybrid, and a bunch of banelings. Have them all set to auto-detonate should they be touched by Lepisma, and 6 platelings to function as boots for Shu's team. Send the banelings to acidify the ground. Subversive swarmling with the gun should return to Shu.
>If the Stillborn mage pulls terraforming bullshit, use Neuromancy to counter that

Dorian:
>Critic to Canvas form and spawn a trail of 2 long-range Fiber wires that unspool behind you and a dozen short range wires at your arms as personal defense, charge alongside November, Intercept Centipede if Centipede makes its move and make a pass, use your free attacks to aim for Centipede's many legs, just aim for the legs of the centipede.


>>3780097
>>3780122
>i have a strong feeling these Constructs are Phantasmal Based
which means they have daughters piloting the meat bicycles, ergo the constructs can "think".
We need to be wary.

Sorry if my vote took this long.
>>
>>3780124
(To clarify, you're on a stretch of open terrain across the lake from the island with the Spire, allowing you room to maneuver.)
>>
>>3780133
>>3780061
>Free action: leave a Crimson Cord Message for Gina with the message [Planting gear spoke down, might need help, I'll signal you if fight gets messy so you can be the cavalry]
>I'm going to say we left Escher's Gear back at home and took a Gear spoke with us before we went out on the hunt so our family can teleport in and feast at the killsite as well as coming in as Reinforcements if a battle turns south.
im vetoing this with a passion. it makes no logical sense IC for us to not have kept an escape option on us, and is stupid, outright retarded, to not have it on us.

those jacklings need to be bane-jacklings, otherwise they cannot detonate. we cannot make a Rook-Baneling hybrid. Platelings could be hijacke,d im highly agaisnt that. everyone already has armor we dont need to slow ourselves down.

we should aim to have Dorian get his auto-destruct off on the two we can stun. not doing so is an outright waste of moves and the abilities we have at our disposal.

im highly, very strongly against your plan.
>>
>>3780135
I must have misunderstood, then. Alright, no big loss.

Also, a question: We can make minor changes to our swarmlings' shape, that's how we got things like the winglings or stiltlings. Can we make what amounts to "shaped charge" banelings? Because I'm looking at these plans to shower the ground beneath Lepisma with acid to leave her in the muck, and I'm thinking "hey, if we're going to have a bunch of banelings down around her feet, ready to detonate if need be, why not make them daisy cutters?". I'm thinking banelings shaped more like a disk than their usual bulbous ovoid, with their chitin spikes shaped so that when they detonate the explosion is mostly confined to a plane. That way if we have to blow them, the flaming acidic shrapnel will all be focused on Lepisma's knees. If we're lucky, we might manage a dismemberment.
>>
>>3780142
(That's possible, yes. Shaped Banelings were how I assumed you took out the cave's support system in the first place.)
>>
>>3780145
Excellent. Let's do that, then, see if Lepisma's combat experience includes getting her knees blasted off by directional mines.

Oh, and another question: how wide is the cone of the Kaiser Flare? Wide enough that if November opened up with it before taking other actions it could hit Lepisma's entire side of the field, or would she have to specify targets?
>>
>>3780148
(You would not have to select a target, as it's quite a wide field.)
>>
>>3780148
im fine with this. i mean, could be implied to happen anyways. though, i kinda didn't want the Banelings to stick around their feet, more like bombing runs to spray out their acid and pull back. they still cost Bio to create and id still prefer to not risk them sticking around the Royal, even if they are set to auto-detonate.

with the number of Banelings id argue they dont even need to get that close either, basically just make it rain down on them and the sheer volume of acid will be enough.
>>
>>3780138
aw come on now, I understand your disagreements, but no need to be that vehement, and its almost as if you basically just hate me for my apparent "stupidity"

Most of my plans in the voting have been geared towards mindgames and long term plans in dealing with Lepisma. Granted I can see the merit in your plan and don't disagree with it.

Dorian unspooling the fibromancy wires is a setup to use his speed to round the constructs up and hogtie them with razorwire in the next round if they continue to stay together while he runs in circles and stays on the move.

November impaling Royal with the Dainsleif (again) is to keep her out of the equation while Kaiser Flare blinds her to the situation and Shu and November work to Conscript the Sword Construct (which I forgot to mention in my vote).
>>
>>3780160
>>3780138
>aw come on now, I understand your disagreements, but no need to be that vehement, and its almost as if you basically just hate me for my apparent "stupidity"
I take back the second half of this statement.
>>
>>3780160
>>3780162
alright, ill admit the 'stupid' comment was a bit much, but mind you, i have literally not used either of those words yet in this quest for very good reason. im using them now for very good reason, and it was aimed only and solely at the Gear idea, not at the plan as a whole or you as a whole. and for better or worse, i stand by using it there.

Dorain has no reason to tie them up if we kill them, which we have a way to do instantly for two of them if he instead focuses on that.

like i said, i dont want November to rely on them not being immune or resistant to it. plus, we have more options. we can have November take out or at least distract the last construct while we still keep Royal busy. her not actually being prepared to face the last Construct will only end in her getting badly hurt.
>>
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>>3780092
>>3780091
>>3780078
>>3780106
The plans outlined here are very, very good, and adding all actiions and contingencies from every plan together seems possible without problem, given action economy. I support them all.

Still, I would place three additions:

> a) Prime our Halo crit-counter.

> b) Hundred-handed grapple + Fear to thread effect Lepisma as in >>3780111
If we grapple her to the ground, maybe adding fear to thread, we will simply overwhelm her. So far, we have won all our combats because Shu is the queen of mobility kills and Kneecap bursting. No foe to date, noty even Isabelle, has managed to resist when we really put our mind into grappling them. Let´s not give up our main advantage.

> c) Send subversive swarmlings to bring the contender to our grasp, set to self-destruct upon control.
Since it is a critical part of our kit and main damage dealer, we need Contender back at any costs. If Lepisma gets to use it (and she has a skillset geared for looting it), we are dead. Conversely, if we get rid of his retainers and we can get 6 fullbores into her face next turn, she is VERY dead. The fullbore is the bane of kneecaps and tested and true Godkiller ordinance.

So in my mind, I think that the important thing is to get rid of the retainers, get the contender back, and then use the Dainslef spear and Shu´s arsenal to grapple her in place, and then get overwhelming fullbore fire, tank and Dorian attacks to shred her to atoms.
>>
>>3780168
True, there's no reason to leave them alive, but should they somehow survive or if something disrupts Shu's stun and prevents Dorian from landing the Critical strike, the Fibromancy will exist as a contingency option to hinder them and keep them temporarily out of the equation.
>>
>>3780154
>im fine with this. i mean, could be implied to happen anyways. though, i kinda didn't want the Banelings to stick around their feet, more like bombing runs to spray out their acid and pull back. they still cost Bio to create and id still prefer to not risk them sticking around the Royal, even if they are set to auto-detonate.
Not much. With the Halo's enhancements they currently only cost 2% Bio to make, Shu can fill her entire cap and still have net positive Bio regen. Honestly, with how quick we can restock and the risk of Lepisma subverting them we might want to not even have them spray their acid. Go right to detonating, get the acid out and on the ground that way. They'll be more like living missiles.
>>
>>3780170
The only thing that I'm worried about is the fact that Lepisma has one of the B.33 rounds in her hand (not the one that's buried in her other hand, I'm talking about the round that she caught out of the air). She'll use the chance to dissect one of our bullet types and then create an appropriate countermeasure Honey traps to use against us.
>>
>>3780170
>Hundred Handed
those are constructs, too risky to use, especially on Lepisma. honestly im worried she added Construct stealing to at least the two finished ones aswell, though it would make most sense for the mage to have it, she hadnt even finished sculpting it much less made it anything but shaped biomass, so she was lucky to even get it active in the first place it has been implied.

>Fear to Tread
we can only do it directly under our feet, we wont be close enough, and it effects allies aswell. no go on that.

>>3780172
that also implies they are even all close enough to attempt that or will stay so. plus, action limits and all that.

>>3780173
that implies they are ever our only cost nor that our regen might not get interrupted. also, its implied spawning constructs still takes up concentration from Shu, and they also then are having to travel from shu to their destination, which is not instant. having them alive and already scattered about allows us to have them react faster and be more likely to react in time, which swarmlings being out of position and too slow has on numerous occasions been an issue before.
>>
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>>3780142
>>3780145
>>3780148
>>3780154

I have to say that I WHOLEARTEDLY approve of the directional landmine Baneling plan. Please make them subversive for extra survival potential, they can be set to squirt acid in bombing runs at their targets knees, and if they get caught, their self-destruct will act as a shaped landmine.

The best of both worls :-)
>>
Also, another thought that occurs to me: November's shotgun should work fine against Swordie. Yeah, Swordie has heat resistance. So the shotgun will deal less heat damage. But the shotgun also does piercing, and we saw from the fight against B'Ni that even with the heat damage being absorbed and used to heal the target, the piercing damage is high enough to still make the shotgun blast pretty damaging. If she gets into melee with Swordie, she should be using her gun, not just her spear.
>>
>>3780182
i dont remember it having heat resistance, only lightning. while she can use the spear one handed, id imagine she can use it much better two handed, especially when shes having to block and counter a giant two handed sword.
>>
>>3780175
Okay anon, I agree with you on the need to remove that B33 bullet prior to analysis; I did my suggestions on the condition that they would not override your previous plans.

To you, >>3780177 anon, isn´t Hundred-handed a GENERATOR ability? This counts as in thunder, fire or acid generator or vitruvian abilities, which means that Lepisma should be unable to counter them.
We are not using one of the best grappling tools on our arsenal based on a misunderstanding, I feel. We NEED to hold down Lepisma before she wreaks more havoc, and Hundred-handed is our best tool left.

Am I right on Hundred-armed being a GENERATOR ability, BHOP, or am I mistaken?
>>
>>3780185
It absorbed one of our Knights, remember? It's heavily implied from how its shell changed to have the Kynar Chitin and Ironblood Brood Augments applied to it, now. So immunity to acid and one level of resistance to heat.

>>3780186
It is a Generator ability, but it still makes constructs. Maybe Lepisma can only usurp Hive Mistress constructs, but that's not something we want to risk.
>>
>>3780182
>>3780177

Personally, I think that the Dainsleif - while a good heavy weapon to be used in blocking the GreatSword, would be better served in keeping Lepisma pinned and impaled...

A thought did occur to me. Would it be possible for November to disarm Soldier and deprive it of its greatsword?

>>3780186
It's a physical type Generator ability, not an elemental type.
>>3780185
It gained heat resistance when Lepisma dissected one of our Knightlings and gave the augments to Soldier.
>Ledisma prowls forwards while it's gaping stomach-wounds stitches itself shut, a tall, armored figure matching their every step and you watch as the soldier absorbs the remains of your Knightling. You watch as its chitinous armor shifts from a dull silver to a glossy green-black, and it hits you with a jolt of realization that its armor is now just like those of your resilient swarm. It leans down, never once taking its dark eyes off you as two of its four arms retrieve a thick-bladed bastard sword from the ground, tearing it free after so handily throwing the Dainsleif back to its rightful owner.
>>
>>3780186
its doesn't matter if it is a Generator ability or not, BHOP has confirmed the arms count as Constructs before. they also have no elemental effect to them. we have three other non Construct grappling methods, and Shus busy focusing on something else that if we dont take care of we wont even be able to get to the Royal in the first place.

>>3780187
>>3780188
oh yeah, i forgot we have heat resistance now. still, that just sounds like less of a reason to use the shotgun, not more.

>>3780188
and i disagree, as she will expect that. so long as the constructs are alive or not distracted, its a foolish move to expect us to get a clean shot at the royal. let her get the Sword-construct taken care of or at least distracted, she has another methods to deal with the Royal.
>>
>>3780186

So to clarify, they are NOT constructs as in hive mistress, but rather part of a GENERATOR arsenal. They should not count as constructs, and hence not be susceptible to hijack.

In addition, LEPISMA needs her hands or Talons to dissect and hijack our swarmlings or constructs. This means that an overwhelming Hundred-handed grapple to all her limbs would render her unable to use her most fearsome weapon, allowing our swarmlings and paintlings to got to town on her.
>>
>>3780194
they have been confirmed to be constructs multiple times in the past and we are not putting constructs near the Royal that cannot auto destruct.
>>
>>3780186
(It is a Generator ability, though the arms still count as constructs which is rather unusual among Generator powers.)
>>
>>3780185
Hey, I just remembered. Dorian's Inspired Critic form lets him deal an automatic critical hit, which procs the Hunter's Fury augmentation and Red Death lvl 6 Construct killing edge.
>>
>>3780193
>oh yeah, i forgot we have heat resistance now. still, that just sounds like less of a reason to use the shotgun, not more.
My point was that it also does a ton of piercing damage, to the point where having the heat damage reduced somewhat isn't a big problem. The shotgun was effective against B'Ni, despite her actually absorbing heat. If the piercing damage is high enough that subtracting the heat damage from it entirely still leaves the shotgun as a decent weapon, simply lowering the heat damage a bit leaves the shotgun as a powerful weapon.
>>
>>3780187
>>3780188
>>3780193
> Wait, we can still grapple Lepisma with our Ravenous maw tongues, right?
We should do that instead of Hundred-handed, no construct involved, and BHOP said that Lepisma is vulnerable to Gluttons
(He said that Alpha, a High level glutton would have been a nightmare to Lepisma)

It also would give us a good follow-up to close quarters should we be succesful. Ravenous maw is level 5-7, I think, and very strong... I think that BHOP may have set this fight as a tutorial for our drill and Ravenous maw use.
>>
>>3780204
So have Dorian insta-kill the constructs, while November shoves Soldier out of the way an kaiser flares, and then Shu follows up with a Grapple lunging bite pass? We could proc the Halo's auto-dodge critical hit and simply decapitate Lepisma that way with the Ravenous Maw's Executioner's Jaw attack.
>>
>>3780201
he would have to forgo using his paintlings and they wouldn't be stunned, thus he would not be guaranteed to hit them. someone would still need to get him a clean shot on them, and Shu is still the best of that, so he has no reason to really use his other ACT like that.

>>3780203
lets let a Question to BHOP decide this
>>3780199
would November gain any advantage by using the spear two handed/ lose anything using it one handed?

>>3780204
and i still think Shus actions are better used elsewhere.
>>
>>3780204
That's probably because Gluttonous abilities are good at taking out constructs. A high-level Glutton could eat all of the Retainers in one go. But Ravenous Maw is a bit atypical for Gluttonous powers in that it doesn't have any anti-construct powers.
>>
>>3780204
(Ravenous Maw's tongue counts as part of your body, not a construct.)

>>3780210
(November would not lose anything mechanically speaking if she were to wield it one-handed, primarily because it's a slotted Relic.)
>>
>>3780194
Yes, they are Generator constructs. Generators are said to have the least sturdy constructs in West's notes.
>>
>>3780211
>>3780204
You know what I realized? There's a key weakness in Lepisma's skill set. She's starving for Bio. She doesn't have much in the way of bio regen. Her main abilities work best if she moulds bio from other sources, be it amalgam corpses or daughter corpses. She might have an augmentation that prevents her from making constructs from her own body.

I'll be leaving soon....for the dentist. I am expecting pain.
>>
>>3780214
>(November would not lose anything mechanically speaking if she were to wield it one-handed, primarily because it's a slotted Relic.)
We should get her a shield, too, let her be a hoplite.
>>
>>3780214
thank you for responding.

>>3780128
>>3780061
more minor order adjustments;

Shu;
>Blow the whistle.
>as you do, step right and Leash the two constructs to her right, the Centipede and the Spider.
>Once leashed, stun the two of them quickly.
>Have your Maw and Tractus ready to help hold the two targets down if immune to stunning.
>Spawn a swarm of Shaped Charge Banelings. Have them shower the ground under the Royal and her constructs with acid, to melt the Fleshscape under them into a soup to slow them down.
>Constructs that must detonate or see a necessity to do so, should aim for the Royal.
>Have the Contender stealthily make its way back to us.
>>All Swarmlings set to Auto-Destruct.
>>Prime Halo

Dorian;
>switch to Creator form and flood the sword-Construct with Paintlings, aiming to glue down her sword arm.
>Switch to Critic Form once Shu has stunned the other two and dash them down, aiming to deal as much damage on the pass as you can.
>>Prime Halo

November;
>Activate the Joker Mask to get your initiative off first.
>Soon as Shu starts, distract the royal and her Sword-Construct, opening up on them with a Kaiser Flare.
>make it seem like you plan to toss the Dainslef into the Royal, only to swing hard at the Sword-Construct when she goes to block.
>Use the Dainslef as a pry bar to force the Sword-Construct to the side.
>If you can get a good angle, try and get the Shotgun unloaded on the Sword-Construct.
>Have the Tank unload on royal.
>>
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>>3780199
>>3780198
>>3780188
>>3780187
Thanks for your kind clarifications, it is true it could turn into pic. related. I proposed Ravenous maw tongue grapple in >>3780204
as a consequence.

It is just that I have a hard time that we will fare well without grappling or crippling Lepisma somehow. Our build is oriented around crippling and mutilating our foes at a distance, suprresing their actions so our family can use our superior action economy to make the kill.
If we don´t get her grappled somehow or kill her attendants, she will have the advantage in action economy...and, seeing how we have used THAT to fell literal gods, I don´t want to be on the receiving end.

Remeber, gentlemen: she has FOUR dozen succesful duels under her belt...if not more. I call on your ingenutity to find a way to cripple/grapple her besides the Dainslef spear, bless her bloodthirsty polearm soul. Kudos to the anons that crafted and kitted it, she´s a BEAST.
>>
>>3780209
>>3780210
>>3780225

Thanks for your support to the Ravenous maw use and its inclusion in the battleplan as contingency, it is really appreciated.

Voting for >>3780225 as final plan in response to >>3780061
>>
>>3780222
Yeah, maybe. We can drain Bio with the Bloodline, but she can just reverse that so fuck us, right? Or Dorian can affect it with his Paintlings, but oh wait Lepisma can subvert those. So again, fuck us. I hate this creature. I will be happy when she is dead.

>>3780226
We're planning on destroying her constructs. We've got Dorian set to dash-slash the spider and centipede, which even if they don't get taken out by his critical anti-construct powers will still be hit by four pretty heavy-damage attacks each, which have good chances to be criticals on their own just from his various boosts, and which will at minimum inflict SEVERE BLEEDING and may also TERROR and cut off limbs (which is admittedly not so useful against a spider and a centipede). Combine that with the spider being half-formed and the centipede having a Ravenous Parabellum in her heart and we're probably good.
>>
>>3780225
Can we add Fibromancy wires to the trailing edges of the Scythes of critic form like streamers? the whiplash of the wires would help deal additional damage with its erratic pattern and might clock another construct in the face. It's only fair that the form switching is a free action while things like spawning fibromancy wires would eat up half an action.

As for November, have her charge and shove the Sword Construct with a Nova Lunge, no need for November to simply walk up and bat the sword construct aside with the Spear. If anything, your proposal of shoving the sword construct aside would work better with the shotgun follow-up by impaling Lepisma again since we're opening up with November using kaiser Flare to blind them and giving them 2 rounds of an accuracy debuff (severe blindness in Lepisma's case)
>>
>>3780225
Supporting.
>>
>>3780235
both are out of Actions, and and otherwise i dont think either would be necessary compared to what we have.

hell actually the Flare uses up 2 ACTs so she already might be past her limit.
>>
>>3780061

I agree to all of this >>3780128 except I'd love to see
>>Spawn a swarm of Banelings. Have them shower the Royal and her constructs with acid.

I think putting more damage on target is better here.
>>
>>3780061
Supporting >>3780225

Wow i managed to get back home before voting was over...
>>
>>3780245
Damn. Didn't know that. thanks for letting me know. Anyways. I must go. Dental pain awaits me.
Plan's looking solid so far. I just wish we have better countermeasures against Lepisma's countermeasures.
>>
>>3780252
Well i Hope it wont be too bad. Hpe you tstill will have a good day
>>
>>3780252
Ouch. Well, I hope it isn't too bad, anon.
>>
(Thank you for the votes and I am writing now, Gentlemen. I appreciate your patience and participation both, and I hope your day is going well.)
>>
am >>3780252

>>3780257
>>3780254
appointment wasn’t that bad. shallow cavity meant minimal pain. but i still had to head for work almost immediately after won’t be back until late in the day after dinner rush. being away from an event like this makes me squirm.

>>3780304
day is going by at a reasonable pace...i’m not going to jinx my day.
>>
>>3780328
(Well given how the day is going on my end, you may not be missing much since I'm down three people at work and it's been inordinately busy.)
>>
>>3780328
We will do our best Dont worry we will push through this challenge
The good thing about Octopath Traveler is that is is turn based so i actually have time to helpo out with planning

>>3780339
That suck sorry to hear that
>>
>>3780339
>down 3 people and the workplace is busy because of that.
big OOF.
I can feel that pain. it hurts me so much to hear that.
>>
>>3780339
oof, yeah if thats how your days going to be, dont be afraid to focus on work BHOP. if this has to wait it has to wait.
>>
>>3780339
Damn. I'm sorry to hear that, BHOP.
>>
>>3780339
Yeowch. Take care of yourself first, dear BHOP. If we have to wait, we WILL wait. Please don´t burn yourself out.
Best luck
>>
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>>3780061

There’s a burst of heat and a screech of metal as the Jester’s Mask howls to life, November’s entire form emanating a dull hum as she readies herself for what’s to come. It’s a drone that’s drowned out by the sound of Amara’s echoed epithet screaming forth from your whistle, your Dominus Leash springing back into existence and binding you to both the Spider and Centipede. The former’s stillness is now due to being frozen by your Neuromancy while the latter darts to your left, your Leash inexplicably failing to grab hold as its target moves with vicious intent towards your Contender. Dorian lunges past, arcing towards the Rogue and Mage when you hear November’s chest-plates shift to reveal her Forge Core, the Warrior shifting her blade to guard her mistress before the entire scene is washed out in a blinding flare.

The ripple of movement through the paintlings that Dorian’s left in the wake of his murderous spree are your first hint at the Warrior’s aims as it lunges past them and towards November, sword locking with the Dainsleif mid-swing as their terrible clash echoes across the draining beach. You’ve spawned a host of banelings to prepare for an aerial bombardment when you glance back towards Lepisma, and you wonder if you’d have as much of a window to react to her being a mere meter away if you hadn’t thought to blow the Whistle, first. You move to block, your arms seizing her talons at the wrist as her mantis-claws dart forth to disembowel you in a singular strike…a plan which fails utterly when your Maw opens wide, snatching her mantis claws with its prehensile tongue and tearing them off with gnashing of teeth.

Even now, the Royal fails to react as her bladeless secondary arms spout clear liquid from their stumps, but still she’s forcing you back with sheer strength alone, angling you towards some unknown goal as her Knight and your Soldier likewise grapple for dominance, the former’s extra set of arms making headway in disarming November of the Dainsleif with expert movements. A pop from Dorian’s location draws a glance as you see the Mage explode in a cloud of ash and debris, Dorian’s scythe-arms halfway through carving the construct in half. He stumbles mid-stride, a series of painful coughs wracking his body as you throw open the empathic channel as you strain to hold Lepisma’s lethal talons at bay.

[Dorian! What’s…!?]

“Paralysis, but I’m not…I’m stunned, it’s not a full-body thing.” He groans, struggling to rise back to his feet as he fights the Neuromantic effects that are wreaking havoc on his liquid form. “Some damage-over-time effect, but not as bad as it could be, Miss Shu.”

A deafening, resounding clang of steel sounds from behind you, and there’s a glint in Lepisma’s eyes as November’s scream of warning tears across the space.

“Shu, look ou…!”

Blinding pain rips through your chest as your world goes white with agony.

(Continued)
>>
>>3780558

Scarlet and translucent blends into a shower of pink that sprays you both as the Dainsleif tears through your back and into her chest. The taste of iron fills your mouth as something wriggles out of the Royal’s wound and explodes, your hijacked B.33 round binding the spear and your bodies together in an agonizing fusion of flesh, bone and honey, your Maw filled with the Dainsleif and the thick, yellowed goo that locks its jaw in place.

You can sense November’s horror as the Knight’s sword is sent spinning down the beach, both fighters deprived of their weapons in a trade that was planned from the start. Having thrown the Dainsleif at its intended target the Knight construct closes the gap to November, only to have the right side of its chest blown apart by soldier’s skillful aim. Its reaction is the same as its Master’s, heedless of the damage inflicted as it struggles to subdue its target hand-to-hand. Dorian rises, and through a mouth still filled with your own blood you try in vain to warn him as the Rogue slithers from beneath the ground behind him. It lunges, capitalizing on his weakened state to deliver a final, critical blow…

…a foolish mistake.

Dorian’s Halo flares with amethyst light as he twists around, his legs and lower torso locked in place as his upper torso becomes a whirlwind of blades that carve through the Grey Rogue as though it were made of the very canvass that Dorian’s so accustomed to. It’s shredded before your eyes even as Dorian staggers to one side, the burst of movement causing him no end of pain, but it’s worth the price he’s paid as the centipede’s remains scatter to the chill winds that waft along the shoreline.

It’s a stalemate, your hands holding hers at bay. The moment one of you goes for the gun, the other strikes. The Metall Geschoss’ barrel is trained on you, but the trigger can’t be pulled without first pulling yourself free. Your eyes meet Ledisma’s, a mix of her blood and yours splattered across her braincase as the substance within flickers with calculations.

Face-to-face, chest to chest, you realize her plan was insane, risky, and brutally effective with no regard for her own safety as she aims solely for victory, at any cost.

There’s something so unnervingly defiant that glimmers in the inscrutable voids that returns your gaze.

HP: 812% (+90% [Dominus: Untethered], Tractus, Whistle: EMPTY) {HALO: PRIMED}
BIO: 1280% (+90%, 1 Sonar-Jackling, 1 Subversive Swarmling [Armed w/ Contender], 26 Banelings, 28/30)
CONTENDER: Fullbore x2, Cicada.
RAVENOUS MAW: BOUND
HUNDRED-HANDED: R. Arm.
ACT: 3/3

DORIAN HP: 960% (235%, Interitus [ATK+, SPD+] Caelorum, Gutgrab [ELEC STACKS: 8], STUNNED, 1 Round, DOWN TO 1 ACT)
NOVEMBER HP: 1963% (200%, Tier 3 Core, Deliverance, [ATK+ DEF+]) {HALO: PRIMED}
METALL GESCHOSS: Cord Intact.

Threat: Melee range, grappling each other. Lepisma & Retainers x1 (Silver Warrior-Stable)

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, my sincerest thanks to you for your patience with my schedule. This wasn't the day I expected, but such is life. Voting shall remain open for the next two and a half hours as I finish out this day, and thank you once again for bearing with me.)
>>
>>3780566
...BHOP, can the Maw be spawned from our regular mouth, even if its just a weaker version? i understand at the moment it has limits, but it feels like our actual mouth might be an exception at least.

also November, sadly, does not have a Halo... unless someone spend the time and Biomass to make her one or something?
>>
>>3780561
Melee range and grappling....
>I think now is the time for a supersonic punching barrage spawned directly form our chest and hitting her point blank..... Extensiona and return in a single act with two doend fists aimed for her head and arms.... one of them will break. And if not the power of the punches will probably rip her off the Dainslef unless she manages to hold on

>>3780574
The Rogue went for Dorain and got annihalated by the critical counter instead fo dealing a crit
>>
>>3780558
Wait, I'm confused. Several actions appear to have taken place before the Kaiser Flare, which shouldn't be possible given the Masque's effect. That was the point of activating the Masque, to make sure everyone on their side was blinded before we made any other move and reduce their ability to respond.
>>
>>3780578
ok? what does that have to do with anything i said?
>>
>>3780580
(Mechanically, the Masque moved November up to first in the cue, allowing her to fire off the Kaiser Flare first. Apologies for the awkward wording, as the Centipede didn't actually start moving until the flare had fired, and was having to rely on tremorsense to navigate fiven that it had been blinded. As far as the Knight goes, a passive was triggered by the status effect about to be inflicted on Lepisma, so that bumped her up in the queue. For the sake of being transparent no pun intended there's a Relic Lepisma possesses that's allowed her to match whoever's first in the cue. She's otherwise rather slow, but it something to even the playing field against speedsters, at a severe cost depending on how many rungs uo the turn order she's forced to jump by its activation.)

>>3780574
(I will rule that it can, though it is quite weak at the tree's current level.)
>>
>>3780561
Orders;

Shu;
>Have the Contender aim and fire off at the Silver Warrior with its full load.
>Transform your hands into drills to drill past Lepismas grip on you.
>Respawn your Maw in your own mouth and wrap Lepismas head up tight and go in for a bite.
>Have the Banelings split their attention.
>Half swarm the Silver Warrior, help Dorian and November to tie it up and hold it down.
>Half swarm Lepisma, keeping a bit of distance, but aiming to melt her joints with acid and blast them off with detonations.


Dorian;
>Spawn long Range threads to wrap around the Silver Warriors neck and noose the fucker.


November;
>Combine Gauntlets and Claws to dig deep into the Silver Warrior so it cannot run away.
>As soon as Dorian sends his Threads around it, Nove Lunge in the opposite direction while grappling it, to help severe its head.
>>If the Silver Warrior is dead, lean towards landing next to Shu, and unload the shotgun onto Lepismas to try and knock her prone.
>>If the Silver Warrior is not Dead, Aim to use your momentum to crush its torso under your weight upon landing, before unloading a Shotgun at her face.
>>
>>3780585
alright, neat. i expected it wouldn't be as strong, but it gives us unexpected options, thank you for responding, despite your busy day.
>>
>>3780585
Ah. I figured she probably had some sort of reflex-enhancement ability. Just checking to make sure I understood what was going on, because for a moment there I thought I had misunderstood how the Masque worked and we could only cut in line on the first round. I was hoping it was just that she had abilities to also go first which lead to a roll-off, so good.
>>
>>3780585
oh, damnit forgot to ask. did our Baneling plan actually accomplish anything? did we see if Lepismas body reacted to the acid raining down on her and building at her feet, even if emotionally she didn't?
>>
>>3780581
Sorry i misinterpreted what you said... I thought it was something you refered to in the text itself and not in the comabt statistics after the text...
>>
>>3780594
fair enough? didn't mean to make it sound like i was snapping at you i just generally was confused in what you meant.

>>3780588
also ill be having Dorian and November spend some health with their Armor aswell.
>>
>>3780561
>>3780588
amended orders;

Shu;
>Have the Contender aim and fire off at the Silver Warrior with its full load.
>Transform your hands into drills to drill past Lepismas grip on you.
>Respawn your Maw in your own mouth and wrap Lepismas head up tight and go in for a bite.
>Send the Cutis Tractis out and around Lepismas Neck, activating its constricting feature.
>Have the Banelings split their attention.
>Half swarm the Silver Warrior, help Dorian and November to tie it up and hold it down.
>Half swarm Lepisma, keeping a bit of distance, but aiming to melt her joints with acid and blast them off with detonations.
>Have our Sonar Jackling terraform the ground under Lepismas, aiming to crush her legs out from under her.


Dorian;
>Spawn long Range threads to wrap around the Silver Warriors neck and noose the fucker.
>>Spend 200% Health to build 600% Strength.


November;
>Combine Gauntlets and Claws to dig deep into the Silver Warrior so it cannot run away.
>As soon as Dorian sends his Threads around it, Nova Lunge in the opposite direction while grappling it, to help severe its head.
>As the Tank can use an ability from November, have it take careful aim with her BAR to take pot shots at any part of Lepismas it thinks it can safely do. Reposition itself if it needs to.
>>If the Silver Warrior is dead, lean towards landing next to Shu, and unload the shotgun onto Lepismas to try and knock her prone.
>>If the Silver Warrior is not Dead, Aim to use your momentum to crush its torso under your weight upon landing, before unloading a Shotgun at her face.
>>>Spend 600% Health for 1500% Speed and 1500% Strength
>>
>>3780561
SHU
>Activate another Fear To Tread. Shu can't be moved by it, Lepisma can, Lepisma being bound to Shu means the spiral will be constantly knocking into her. Like getting tossed around in a drying machine.
>Use the cloth "limbs" of Cutus Tractus to overpower Lepisma and gain control of the grapple.
>Activate Heaven's Drill on both arms. Rev up drills, both throwing off Lepisma's grip and start to drill her arms off.
>Converge Banelings on Lepisma and detonate in sequence, taking advantage of their shaped charges both to prevent fratricide and use Lepisma as a barrier against shrapnel.

DORIAN
>Spend 50% Bio to activate Sloughing Armor, remove negative status effect.
>If this returns ACTS to normal, slash-dash Lepisma and then garrote Swordie with Resplendent Thread.
>If still down to one ACT until next round, only garrote Swordie.

NOVEMBER
>Swap Ignition Gauntlets to Heat damage, dig in to Swordie's flesh with them and Cinnabar Talon.
>Fire left-hand shotgun point blank into Swordie.
>Once Dorian has garroted her, Nova Lunge away to assist in pulling head off.

METAL GESCHOSS
>Swap target from Lepisma to Swordie, fire a shell at her after November is clear of blast radius.
>>
>>3780629
fair point on the spiral, but id think Lepismas will see that coming, and she may be able to use her foot to flesh art the ground and cancel it out. Shus ACTs would be better spent throwing her a curve ball like with the mouth maw. aswell as the fact the maw deal incredible damage and this is exactly the situation it was made for. even a weaker maw will still deal good damage, due to just how high the standard ones is.

also, im unsure that will work for Dorian as its not a subcatenous effect like flesh artisan attacks, but technically an attack on his nervous system, which im pretty sure is different. because of that, it would be better to try and plan for November to aid Shu, not Dorian, as she is much more likely to be able to do it. Dorian would also have to recover first which could slow him down, and is perfectly in potion to surprise the Silver Warrior compared to attacking Lepismas. he also has many abilities and chances that make him better suited for focusing on the construct, no matter the ACTs he has.
>>
>>3780646
also, Dorian will lose the Tormentis aswell if he does that. meaning a loss of alot of protection, and stat boosts. doing that would make it a terrible idea for him to then rush towards the main opponent.
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>>3780561
Supporting >>3780626
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>>3780592
(Lepisma was unhindered by the softened terrain, and she appears to at least have one level of resistance to acid. So you can conclue that she has some sort of movement ability that allows her to easily cross difficult or aqueous terrain.)
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>>3780654
damn, disappointed but not surprising. Acid honestly is a terrible damage type to have late game it feels like. need to get us some anti-resistance acid....
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>>3780646
>fair point on the spiral, but id think Lepismas will see that coming, and she may be able to use her foot to flesh art the ground and cancel it out. Shus ACTs would be better spent throwing her a curve ball like with the mouth maw. aswell as the fact the maw deal incredible damage and this is exactly the situation it was made for. even a weaker maw will still deal good damage, due to just how high the standard ones is.
Yeah, I guess. My focus was more on throwing Lepisma off balance, keep her from dictating the fight (I think we've done a...decent showing of that), but I suppose that you do have a point that she'd likely expect more ground-shaping from us.

>also, im unsure that will work for Dorian as its not a subcatenous effect like flesh artisan attacks, but technically an attack on his nervous system, which im pretty sure is different.
Maybe. It was literally a topical attack, he got it from getting ash on his skin. It might count. He said it was more damage over time than just paralyzing him, which makes me think it's a continuous effect from the ash on his body. He should wash it off somehow.

> Dorian would also have to recover first which could slow him down
It can cost an ACT or Bio, not both. Spending the Bio means that it shouldn't slow him any.

>>3780651
>also, Dorian will lose the Tormentis aswell if he does that. meaning a loss of alot of protection, and stat boosts. doing that would make it a terrible idea for him to then rush towards the main opponent.
That's a good point, though. Crap. Well, there goes that idea. Okay, new idea: Dorian left some bloodlings in his wake. Did any of those survive? Let's have them come back to him and wash the ash off with their bodies.
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>>3780629

We are shackled to her via the Dainslef and the corrupted honey.so trying to off balance her via the spiral will unbalance us as well not because off Fear to tread but because we are shackled to soemthing that is affected by it
So to me it seems like a bad idea, that could lead to the Dainslef being ripped out of Shus boddy and possibly Lepismas Body. The latter would be alright since it would deal a lot of daaamage again but would leave Shu immobile. The earlier would be really bad....

Dorian can just chill until the debuff disappears naturally he does not need to shed his hull for something he can probably not shed at all because its in his nerves instead off his skin....

>>3780658
That is kind of what ironblood is.... I know it just skirts the problem a bit by dealing fire damage... Maybe we can make a relic that can be applied to someone to make their produced acids more agressive
>>
I was expecting Lepisma to be more impressive honestly
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>>3780660
>That's a good point, though. Crap. Well, there goes that idea. Okay, new idea: Dorian left some bloodlings in his wake. Did any of those survive? Let's have them come back to him and wash the ash off with their bodies.
we can try it sure.

>>3780662
well anti-resistance damage/augments do exist, is what i was thinking.

>>3780664
what? shes terrifying. compared to most fights for sure, shes countered a ton of our moves and flipped the tables on us more than once. we currently have our own immovable Relic through us that will deal considerable damage if we remove it and has two levels of things to it preventing that. she also has sown herself to be more than capable in melee range. to be honest its been a 'bag-o-tricks' fight, each side only gaining ground from unexpected moves. the second either side finds something that works solidly they win the fight, and im not sure we have found that, meaning she still has a chance to.

also we dropped a cave on her. if we hadn't done that this fight feels like it would be over in her favor already.
>>
>>3780658
Ironblood Brood means that you actually need to resist both acid and heat to prevent damage from our chemical payload. Lepisma took damage from that attack, I'm sure. But there is a visual effect where the acid bursts into flame if it fails to do damage via corrosion, so we'd still be able to tell from that visual that Lepisma has acid resistance.

>>3780662
>We are shackled to her via the Dainslef and the corrupted honey.so trying to off balance her via the spiral will unbalance us as well not because off Fear to tread but because we are shackled to soemthing that is affected by it
The idea is that with us at the center of the spiral the worst we'd get is turned around, while Lepisma would be bounced about. But I've been talked out on other grounds already.

>>3780664
Her fighting style seems to be based around having the time to come up with counters to anything her foes throw at her. But we adapt pretty fast ourselves, and have a versatile power set, so the best she's been able to manage is this admittedly pretty-clever trick with the Dainsleif. I'm sure she has a plan for when in this close range, but I'm not sure what. She's seen our drills, she knows we can spawn them, so she has to be expecting that we'll transform our hands. What, can she subvert our drills, too? Some power that makes anyone trying to form Calcite weapons when in close proximity to her have backlash? Maybe. But I don't know if we can afford to not make plays like that just because we're afraid of hypothetical counters.
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>>3780664
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>>3780675
BHOP, what damage types does the Autumn Protocol inflict? Heat, obviously, but does it deal anything else? Because I have an idea for something that Lepisma is definitely not expecting, but mostly because it's potentially incredibly stupid.
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>>3780678
id very much prefer to not use the autumn protocol and will already say ill be against any move to use it.
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>>3780679
Yeah, it's probably not something we'll use, but I just want to know if the idea is possible.
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>>3780668
I mean she lost all three of her constructs in one round, she's down one set of arms and she's ALSO got said giant spear in her chest and is stuck to us.

I mean she countered us earlier sure but the deck's been swept clean now and she has a tank, Dorian, November AND Shu on her.

>>3780673
>Clever trick
Dude she impaled herself too and stuck herself to us after getting two of her arms ripped off. This is a terrible position for her. We can just make a drone, produce a hand from it and pick up the contender and shank her.
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>>3780690
i get what you're saying, but you are ignoring she deliberately pinned us together and then also deliberately GLUED us together. she without a doubt has something planned for this. which is why im hoping we can at least get November over here and throw her for a curve ball. hopefully for once in our lives we can cause something of the enemies the try to pull on us to fail, but we'll see.

Dorian also is simply way too hard a counter against constructs, yet she still has managed to tie us and our actions up with them and still is.
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>>3780690
>I mean she lost all three of her constructs in one round
Only two. Swordie is still up and about. So we're a bit distracted taking her out, first, then we can all dogpile on Lepisma. Still, yeah, we've mostly countered everything she's thrown out.

>Dude she impaled herself too and stuck herself to us after getting two of her arms ripped off. This is a terrible position for her. We can just make a drone, produce a hand from it and pick up the contender and shank her.
And yet it's clearly something she wanted to have happen, and she maneuvered us into position quite masterfully. I don't know what her game is, what she's going to do now that could possibly be worth moving into this disadvantageous position, but the fact that she's in it is not a failure of hers. This is going as planned. It might be a really dumb plan, but it's the plan.
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>>3780702
My guess would be she can flesh shape even living/active biomass, if i had to guess.
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>>3780707
Oh, she definitely can. That's how she pulled off our arm earlier. Note that we took very little if any damage from that attack, it was no greater than 50% Health given that that's what our Regen was. I think she softened our flesh, first, that's how she was able to pull it off so easily. So yeah, she's going to try to do something with twisting our meat, but I'm just not sure it's worth it for putting herself in such a poor position. She must have something planned to directly counter anything we might pull off in a close grapple, in order to get the fleshshaping off, but I don't know what. Really, this just says to me that we need to get Francine up to combat-ready fast, so that we can bring her to fights and have her scan opponents' character sheets. Then we won't have ambiguity like this.
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>>3780712
perhaps. but then we would have to have Francine in every fight and thats just not gonna happen.
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>>3780561
>>3780626
a few small changes, though nothing major, so amending orders one last time.

Shu;
>Have the Contender aim and fire off at the Silver Warrior with its full load.
>Transform your hands into drills to drill past Lepismas grip on you.
>Respawn your Maw in your own mouth and wrap Lepismas head up tight and go in for a bite.
>Send the Cutis Tractis out and around Lepismas Neck, activating its constricting feature.
>Have the Banelings split their attention.
>Half swarm the Silver Warrior, help Dorian and November to tie it up and hold it down.
>Half swarm Lepisma, keeping a bit of distance, but aiming to blast off her joints with detonations.
>Have our Sonar Jackling terraform the ground under Lepismas, aiming to crush her legs out from under her.


Dorian;
>See if your paintlings cannot wash the stunning ash off of your form.
>Spawn long Range threads to wrap around the Silver Warriors neck and noose the fucker.
>>If you regain your missing ACT, Rush Lepismas with your Daggers, grappling her and pulling her back as you carve away at her with your scythes.
>>Spend 200% Health to build 600% Strength.


November;
>Combine Gauntlets and Claws to dig deep into the Silver Warrior so it cannot run away.
>As soon as Dorian sends his Threads around it, Nova Lunge in the opposite direction while grappling it, to help severe its head.
>As the Tank can use an ability from November, have it take careful aim with her BAR to take pot shots at any part of Lepismas it thinks it can safely do. Reposition itself if it needs to.
>>If the Silver Warrior is dead, lean towards landing next to Shu, and unload the shotgun onto Lepismas to try and knock her prone.
>>If the Silver Warrior is not Dead, Aim to use your momentum to crush its torso under your weight upon landing, before unloading a Shotgun at her face.
>>>Spend 600% Health for 1500% Speed and 1500% Strength
>>
>>3780745
Sounds good to me.
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>>3780745
Do you suppose maybe she's baiting us into consuming her and has a Neuromancy ability that'll kick in when we do?
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>>3780787
seems likely.
also wtf happened while im at work?
still at work btw,
and mad that i didn’t get to contribute
>>
(Back home and writing now, Gentlemen.)
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>>3780678
(It just deals Heat damage, currently.)
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>>3780795
Huh. So this is a terrible idea, and probably not something we should do, but Cutus Tractus' cocoon mode grants immunity to Heat damage. I don't think Lepisma would expect us to call in a tactical-scale plasma cannon strike on our own position. Wrap ourselves up, fire the cannon, if she's still alive afterwards I'd be very surprised. Downside if that if she's still alive afterwards November would be severely reduced in capabilities (though no longer quite as crippled, thanks to Relic slotting). We shouldn't do it, but it would be quite satisfying if we did.
>>
Back from work....and I see that although the situation's better on the construct side...Lepisma's tunnel visioning HARD on Shu. She's planned to mold and sculpt Shu into her puppet, going so far as to willingly impale Shu and herself in order to get into melee range.

And i see that I've missed the voting window. Just peachy..
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>>3780858
Well, she got a look at our Core. I think between that us using Dominus Bloodline on her, she figured out that we're the party leader with all the support and coordination abilities. She wants to knock that out as quick as possible. Unfortunately, our other party members are still pretty strong, so we've taken out all her distractions and are about to seriously dogpile on her.
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>>3780893
>so we've taken out all her distractions and are about to seriously dogpile on her.
>When Sword soldier retainer is still alive and Lepisma's performing surgical rape on Shu's body.
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>>3780902
Swordie is going to be dead in a moment, and Lepisma has just as many problems being this close to us as we do. I'm not too worried.
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>>3780561

November's speakers can barely voice the scream of of rage that tears forth from them as she burns through her own existence, fueling the strength that drives her fists into the Silver Warrior's chest before it can react. It's frozen in place as Dorian's paintlings swarm over their master's form, and in a fluid motion a pair of strands fly forth as the paintlings collapse to the ground with their creator once again standing tall. The wires form a noose around the Warrior's struggling form, a garrote around its neck that tightens when light flares at November's back, and it's putting up a decent fight until your Contender rings out across the chaos.

One, two, three retorts send your remaining rounds cracking into the Warrior's back, your Fullbores biting into its spine while the cicada just screams at the back of its neck. Concentration shattered, the Warrior's sleek silver form is buried under half of your Baneling swarm as they move as one to assist in your team's effort of execution. November roars one final time as the flames from her boosters go from neon orange to searing white, and you watch as the Warrior's sword flies back to their grip just as its head goes flying into the scarlet sky of dawn. Its decapitated form brings its blade down across November's plating as it scours a jagged, sloppy line down her peerless frame in a final act of defiance. Impressive, but not enough to stop the woman's victorious charge as Dorian's wires withdraw, the thing's own clear blood flicked clean from his immaculate strands with a delicate flick of his wrist before they retreat back into his long, delicate fingers.

Your hands begin to twist in turn, rotating with terrible force as they snap Lepisma's wrists with a satisfying crack. The Royal is helpless to recoil as your jaw hinges wide, your tongue lengthening as you manifest what little of the Ravenous Maw you can from your abominal cavity into your actual mouth. Your foe is trapped in a snare of her own making as your tongue encircles her skull, her shattered hands giving your shoulders one final caress that sends a chill through your core as you plunge your drills into your foe's throat. Ozone fills your nostrils as your warped hands carve past chitin and meat, tearing through the being before you as its head is reduced to a churned, pulpy mass, its shell...

...the shell of the malformed silverfish before you is utterly annihilated under your attack, leaving you alone with the Dainsleif run through your chest, and no sign of Lepisma.

(Continued)
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>>3780918

Your feel the earth rumble beneath your feet as your Sonar-Jackling picks up a fresh set of readings, a host of small creatures tunneling up from the depths with incredible speed. Your Jackling is close, much too close to the emergence zone to avoid the devouring swarm as they bloom from the Obsidian Spire's abyss in a thin cloud of grey, silver, and glossy green-black. Immediately both November and her steed begin a duet of machinegun fire, their twin B.A.R.s meeting the cloud of constructs with a cloud of hot plasma while Dorian begins to dart along the beach, building charges for his own long-range assault.

You turn with some effort, the Dainsleif shifting uncomfortably in your chest as the whirring of your hands dies down, and you look with your Halo-enhanced vision at what approaches. Silverfish, like the ones she sent to overthrow the tank, and yet...something more. There are a variety of new shapes, a host of mutated forms that don't fit the silverfish at all, but uncannily familiar. You recognize them now, as they draw closer, your breath hitching in your throat as you realize what the Royal's done.

Knights, Rooks, Bishops...a host of modified swarmlings flying on silver wings.

Your Ravenous Maw is slowly regenerating off to one side of your wound as you realize your foe wasn't trying to control you, not at all. She was understanding you and your most potent skill, its intricacies and quirks, all in an effort not to merely control, but to replicate, to craft with what she left behind down in the cavern's murky depths. A swarm, a marriage of her will and your skills, spread out to not get caught too easily in the single-target fire she now knows Dorian and November are capable of. Perhaps six-dozen of the newborn brood close in, one or two picked off in the hail of gunfire that shreds through the cool morning air. They're just missing one thing.

Lepisma's not among their considerable number.

She could come from anywhere. Above, below...you have no idea where she'll strike next. She's clever, but so are you. She's taken as many risks as she has hits, and she chose to flee instead of counter you in melee when she saw your arsenal up-close.

Victory's in your grasp, if you can just find an opening...or force one.

HP: 864% (+90% [Dominus: Untethered], Tractus, Whistle: EMPTY) {HALO: PRIMED}
BIO: 1280% (+90%,1 Subversive Swarmling [Armed w/ Contender], 26 Banelings, 27/30)
CONTENDER: Empty.
RAVENOUS MAW: Regenerated, Primed.
HUNDRED-HANDED: R. Arm.
ACT: 3/3

DORIAN HP: 960% (235%, Interitus [ATK*5, SPD+] Caelorum, Gutgrab [ELEC STACKS: 8])
NOVEMBER HP: 956% (200%, Tier 3 Core, Deliverance, [ATK*5 DEF*5])
METALL GESCHOSS: Cord Intact.

Threat: Long range. Possesses your Swarmling sub-classes and augmentations, Lepisma unaccounted for. Dainsleif still embedded in your chest.

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, I shall be pausing here for the evening to try and get an early night's sleep. Voting shall remain open for the next twelve hours, with posting to resume in roughly fourteen. I shall be around for a little while longer to address questions, concerns, or criticisms, and I welcome them all and shall address any I don't get to tonight in the morning. Thank you all for your patience, participation, and enthusiasm. I hope you have a good evening one and all, and rest well.)
>>
>>3780925
(Also, an addendum; Dorian's ELEC Stacks should read 17 instead of 8. Additionally, the Silver Warrior's sword is next to November.)
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>>3780925
how the actual heck did she switch places with a construct while pinned onto something she cant remove herself?
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>>3780920
Huh....I think I get it now. Lepisma's a hive mistress that took the swarm route.

>>3780937
Rook Teleport Swap ability. Remember? She castled herself with a Silverfish, she already got a good read on Shu the moment she closed into melee, and now she's got the entire Hive pastebin in her hands.
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>>3780918
I'm confused. Is the implication that we weren't fighting Lepisma, just a construct in her shape that she swapped out at some point (I guess during the dust cloud from the cluster grenade bombardment)? Because we ate that thing's brain. If that was Lepisma it should be dead, she has not shown the sort of regeneration needed to survive that.
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>>3780942
that felt way to fast but whatever. in that case we're fucked then. all she has to do is keep a single bishop back and we can literally under no circumstances actually confirm a kill, meaning all of this was for nothing. fucking godamned wonderful.
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>>3780937
(Simple; she switched out with a Bishop-class Swarmling. Due to her setup, she's been able to map your Swarmling classes abilities onto her own swarm, the majority of which were down in the dark, spawning from the remains of the Worm as she streamed them technical 'updates' as to their specifications.)

>>3780943
(You were absolutely fighting the real Lepisma, who castled herself with a Bishop the second she realized she was about to die in melee combat.)
>>
>>3780947
Great... There she goes cannibalizing what was supposed to be OUR PREY.

>>3780946
You. Go outside. Take a 30 minute walk, or just walk away from the computer for about an hour and cool your damn head. You're too emotionally involved and have gotten so tunnel visioned that you didn't take into account for the long term mindgames. Lepisma's playing you like a fiddle, that's why you're so frustrated.
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>>3780947
How fast are the silver-lings flying? Do we have enough time for a proper setup?
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>>3780947
>(You were absolutely fighting the real Lepisma, who castled herself with a Bishop the second she realized she was about to die in melee combat.)
Okay, I think I see. Is she making Death Saving Throws, then? Because even before she teleported out (assuming that's the ozone smell), we were already driving our drills into her throat. I'm pretty sure that would cause mortal wounds. Can we just wait out this fight until she bleeds out?
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>>3780952
no, im not, and go fuck yourself with thinking you know what state of mind i am in. what i said is a very obvious and real possibility and if you're gonna ignore it and make a personal attack to brush it aside you are not worth listening to.
>>
>>3780947
Also, wait, Bishop-class? You mean Rook, right? Bishops are the ones that give speed boosts.
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>>3780952
(Also, to clarify; any levels she absorbed from the Worm have been added to what she drops on death, so nothing's been lost. Depriving you of that simply wouldn't be fair.)

>>3780957
(They may have your swarm's abilities, but they're a good bit weaker. Thus, you have about half a round of set-up before they reach you. If they were your Knightlings, then they'd be on you in an instant.)

>>3780958
(She's not making death saving throws yet, but you did deal a considerable amount of damage before her teleport triggered. If she was the talkative sort, she wouldn't be anymore with what you managed.)

>>3780961
(You're absolutely correct, I'm just exhausted.)

>>3780960
>>3780946
(If I may offer a word; I'll never throw you up against something you don't possess the tools to dismantle. I tweak and balance every encounter with your current tool-set and party composition in mind. You and everyone here have shattered my fights and broken the game in ways I didn't even think of. You've got this.)
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>>3780920
Orders;

Shu;
>Have our banelings go low and spread out, becoming a minefield across the battlefield.
>Get the damn Contender back in your hand.
>Try and get a read on her with Halo and Jackling alike.
>Fuck this. You have a large sum of Biomass, and you’re tired of your foe hiding underground. Strain yourself, push your Terraforming to its limits. Harden the earth, shake it up, and force it and anything underground to the surface in a massive cascade of an upheaval plate movement.
>As soon as you find her, Have your Banelings swarm, using your Cutis Tractus to pull you forward on a Baneling while your Maw is ready to snatch her up no matter which direction she runs.
>bring the lionheart against her.
>>all Benlings set to auto-destruct.


Dorian;
>Masque of War the incoming swarm, releasing lighting from inside of yourself to electrocute them all in one big storm cloud.
>Send your Paintlings to spread out and cover the battlefield, so any place she emerges from, you will feel it and and draw the paintlings to that point.
>If you finish off the Silverfish swarmlings, be prepared to burst speed to tackle Lepismas wherever she comes out at.


November;
>Free Shu of the Deliverance as gently as you can.
>only if Dorian needs it, use your BAR and Shotgun to help clear them out.
>Otherwise, Prime your Tank to fire off a tank sized Shotgun blast. IF shu is able to force her to the surface, fire it off to try and knock her prone.
>Then, Nova Lunge for Lepisma, Shotgun ready to try and keep her pinned if she manages to avoid the initial barrages against her.
>Otherwise use the weight of the Dainself to pin her down and to the ground.


>>3780973
a primable teleport upon getting struck taking her all the way back to the cave even Dorian probably couldn't reach in a turn and is caved in to where we cant get to it is a pretty impossible thing to counter.
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>>3780960
I apologize for the apparent personal attack.

I'm sorry.

The tone of the post too similar to the "doomposting" spree we had back when Isabelle counter-backstabbed Ozmas, And I sorta tunnel visioned on that "we're fucked then" and the "meaning all of this was for nothing" part.

In any case, I think I can see a silver lining here. If Lepisma's abilities require her to get a complete scan of the enemy, then being forced to spawn a massive wave of swarmlings using bio from her own abilities and that of the corpse, then she'll be starving for Bio the moment we survive.

>>3780973
Bhop...Are we fighting Body Horror's equivalent of a literal Necromancer? Because she pulled the equivalent of pic related.
>>
>>3780973
>(You're absolutely correct, I'm just exhausted.)
I'm sorry to hear you had a rough day. I'll try not to keep you up too long with my questions. Here's my big one:

Things moving fast through Dorian's mist form disrupt it, right? Is that enough to count as "attacks"? Because I'm thinking, at ten levels of CHARGE Dorian counter-zaps anything that attacks him. We have him rush over to the swarm, build up another three stacks of CHARGE in the process to bring him to an even twenty, then turn into Masque of War. He becomes a big red thundercloud, zapping the first twenty (I assume with their mass movement they'd all get resolved at once instead of on a per-unit basis and therefore make him stop when he gets down to nine CHARGE) swarmlings, any further that he catches take damage from Masque of War and are confined. Lepisma hasn't seen Dorian use Masque of War yet, she's not prepared for it.
>>
>>3780979
(Ha, essentially yes. If the nature of her constructs seems a bit obtuse, it's because she has three Hybrid abilities as her main tool kit, all of which are spliced with a Hive Mistress skill tree and which have interaction effects with the others along with a host of bizarre Augmentations that play into them. It's a very odd solo-play build, definitely niche.)

>>3780987
(No worries, it comes with the territory and regarding your question, I'm always happy to help. Yes, that would trigger it.)

>>Lepisma hasn't seen Dorian use Masque of War yet, she's not prepared for it.

(Indeed. There's a good bit about your secondary skills that she's blissfully unaware of, to say nothing of your allies.)
>>
>>3780991
If we have perfect vision, do we have an exact headcount of the Swarm composition of Lepisma's Silver-lings? How many of each type?
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>>3780994
(There are seventy Faux-Swarmlings; Forty-five Knights, fifteen Bishops, and Ten Rooks.)
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>>3780975
I generally like this plan, but I would like to make some amendments as I have a few creative ideas that involve keeping the Dainsleif embedded in Shu's chest, but it's dependent on which way the spear is pointing.

>>3780991
Also, which way is the Dainsleif's spearhead pointing? Is it pointing out from our stomach and ahead? or are we seeing the blunt end and the spearhead is behind our back?
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>>3780991
>(Indeed. There's a good bit about your secondary skills that she's blissfully unaware of, to say nothing of your allies.)
Yes. Yes, there is. Alright, bit of an odd question here, but...how many Hundred-Hands would we need to spawn to grab every single swarmling out of the air and bring them together into a tight ball for Dorian to envelop in the Masque of War? Just create this huge branching fractal of limbs like one of Hans Moravec's bush robots, that then retracts instantly to pull them together and recycle the biomass. Lepisma isn't up here to potentially hijack our hands, we're free to go wild. Shu has 1280% Bio, that's enough to spawn 426 Hands. Get Dorian into position in the center of the swarm, use Hundred-Hands level five to spawn them off him, pull them all together. Oh, wait, even better: Can we spawn the Hands off of his mist form, or does that not offer a solid enough purchase?

>>3781001
It entered through our back, it's pointing forward.
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>>3781001
(Looking down, you see the speartip. It went through your back and out your stomach.)
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>>3781001
you're gonna have to explain yourself pretty good to convince me to keep a spear that prevents Shu from moving or properly reacting in her stomach. because that sounds like one of the worst ideas possible.
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>>3781003
(His mist form is not quite solid enough to generate Hundred-Handed constructs, I'm afraid.)
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>>3781010
Okay, but we can generate them when he's solid and have him turn to mist after the swarmlings are in position. Do we have enough Hands for that?
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>>3781004
did we manage to stand up with the Spear still stuck in our gut or lying down? Because if I remember the wording correctly, the strength requirement to lift or even pull it out involves Fibromancy strength augments. Does that still apply when you have a spear stuck inside your gut? and Can we move around properly with the Dainsleif stuck inside?
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>>3781003
>>3781014
dude... we are not doing that. Hundred Hands are CONSTRUCTS. literally all but 10 of them probably have the corruption gunk inside of them, or have a strong possibility to have it. we are not giving her the chance to turn 426 hands against us.
>>
>>3781017
Hundred-Hands are also bullet-fast. We'll reel them in before they can spew any goo.
>>
>>3781019
if our own Banelings can auto-destruct why couldn't hers. hell fucking no man, thats an absolute terrible plan that could easily horribly backfire and get us overwhelmed insanely quickly.
>>
>>3781015
(Basically, without Lepisma helping to support one end the tip is basically in the ground and angled to keep you standing.)

(...it looks rather ridiculous, actually.)
>>
>>3781023
Exactly, our banelings can self-destruct faster than they can be infected. Which means that our Hands, which are even faster, can retract faster than they can be infected. I'm not even convinced Lepisma can infect the Hands, actually. She didn't when she was grappling with Shu. Our right hand is a Hundred-Hand right now, it's fine.
>>
>>3781000
>10 rooks.
Thank you for the information.
>>3781024
>>3781009
I intend on returning the favor on the shenanigan Lepisma pulled.
Snipe down the 10 Rooks. We impale Lepisma by impaling ourself onto Lepisma by slingshot latching onto her with hundred handed constructs and then reeling her in. If she has no rooks to castle with, she can't escape Shu's Maw.

Having November waste an action to extract the spear is a waste on November's part.

For now, we focus on mowing down the 70 silver-lings.

>>3781019
I have to say I'm vetoing your proposition for having Shu spawn hundred handed arms from Dorian as an origin point. That would defeat the purpose of having Dorian go out and become a cloud of construct murder. with November providing clean-up.
>>
>>3781030
>I have to say I'm vetoing your proposition for having Shu spawn hundred handed arms from Dorian as an origin point. That would defeat the purpose of having Dorian go out and become a cloud of construct murder. with November providing clean-up.
Not really. He goes out, the Hands spawn and retract near-instantly, then he turns into a murder-cloud. The Hands are a Generator ability, they're really fast. And November won't be needed for cleanup if Dorian has got all the constructs on lock.
>>
>>3781024
Hey Bhop, I have a question. is it possible to perform an impromptu dual-tech on the spot with Dorian? Because I'm thinking of creating the Fulgurbug Faraday field dual-tech to help Dorian mop up the silver-ling swarm.

>>3781033
It's a waste on Shu's action economy. Shu has 3 actions. Ideally we want to spend 1 action focusing on our swarm, another action on bringing Lepisma out of hiding, and then spending our final action tagging grabbing Lepisma and putting her in a position where she can't escape.
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>>3781037
>It's a waste on Shu's action economy. Shu has 3 actions. Ideally we want to spend 1 action focusing on our swarm, another action on bringing Lepisma out of hiding, and then spending our final action tagging grabbing Lepisma and putting her in a position where she can't escape.
We don't spend actions on our swarm unless we're spawning new members. We're near full on Banelings, so we're not going to be doing that. We've got an ACT free.
>>
>>3781028
>>3781033
she may of not known it was a construct and up close she doesn't seem to have the bile, the bile seems to oddly be something she has access to via our acid.

we also cant in any way guarantee our arms retracting can outpace her infecting them. this is an outright terrible plan that could easily, easily backfire horribly compared to anything else we have tried. its both an unnecessary risk and a massive one, with the benefits not at all outweighing the possible negatives.

>>3781030
i highly disagree. we need to be able to cover multiple avenues, and Shu cant do literally anything so long as this spear is inside of her. she would rely on November being in position to draw her towards her, which is a terrible plan that makes November unable to actually go after Lepismas properly and makes Shu unable to actually properly react to her movements. taking the spear out of Shu is not a waste, its the best move we can do to ensure victory.

im also still against risking putting HHs near her.
>>
>>3781041
yes, we do. commanding the swarm still takes an ACT, it just takes a single ACT for the entire swarm.
>>
>>3780918
>>3780920
Well I'm glad SOMEONE is making use of the teleport abuse we're capable of but never seem to employ.
>>
>>3781042
>she may of not known it was a construct and up close she doesn't seem to have the bile, the bile seems to oddly be something she has access to via our acid.
She's shown the ability to infect via a touch, she was touching our hand. We're good.

>we also cant in any way guarantee our arms retracting can outpace her infecting them. this is an outright terrible plan that could easily, easily backfire horribly compared to anything else we have tried. its both an unnecessary risk and a massive one, with the benefits not at all outweighing the possible negatives.
Yes, we can guarantee it. The Hands fire and retract near-instantly. If we have the time between contacting the goo and infection kicking in to detonate Banelings, we have the time to retract our hands. And the benefits are huge, it gets rid of the entire swarm all at once.

>>3781045
Pretty sure you're wrong, but whatever. Doesn't matter if it's right. We don't need to do things with the swarmlings if we've got the enemy swarm knocked out.

But fine, you don't like it, let's look at other ideas. BHOP is clearly hinting that there's an ability we're not using that would be really effective here, so if you're so determined it's not the Hundred-Hands let's try to brainstorm uses for others. Let's see...does establishing the Dominus Bloodline actually take an action? I can't remember. If not, is there anything to stop us from lashing the entire swarm two by two, attaching and disconnecting in sequence to inflict them all with the bleeding it causes?
>>
>>3781046
Since we got it we've only been in fights where we were either pursuing a highly mobile target or in a confined space. This is the first time "teleport away from the fight" wouldn't be counterproductive, and we didn't have any Rooks out precisely because we didn't want Lepisma to hijack them. Turns out that she just needed to touch us to steal the blueprints, but we didn't know that at the time.
>>
>>3781037
(You could certainly jerry-rig something on the spot, but as far as a full-blown Dual Tech the chances of unlocking one mid-combat are quite rare, I'm afraid.)
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>>3781056
Eh, "teleport out of the way of incoming damage" has been useful the whole time. Exactly the way Lepisma's using them.
>>
>>3781042
Point made.

>>3780975
We don't have a seismic jackling active, the one that we had before was destroyed by the silverling hive. We'll need to make another one.

Can we convert some banelings into jacklings? If we're going to pull the equivalent of Old Faithful in Yosemite and flush Lepisma out with a combination of Earthen Mind and Hydroformer in a geyser eruption, then we'll need some more jacklings to boost our concentration and make our move more bio-efficient.

>>3781046
Don't worry, we'll come up with ways to abuse that. I've already got a good idea involving merging a baneling with a Rook and having that Rook auto-self destruct immediately after teleporting, essentially a teleporting suicide swapper.

>>3781060
I think I've got something that could suffice as a substitute, but it'll involve FuzzBuzzes and banelings. Very Fluffy Fuzzbuzzes and banelings. Give the Banelings the fluffiest down fur and have them all stick to Dorian, the rubbing fur will accumulate the rate in which Dorian gains his electrical charges when he has half a round for the setup, and the baneling aspect will have them auto detonate the moment Dorian goes Masque of War, which will stem the incoming shower of corrosive goop. In fact, have Dorian create Fibromancy strings so the Fuzz-banelings can accumulate more charge by latching onto the wire with more surface area and sheer air friction.
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>>3781062
No, it hasn't been, because the Rooks are slow and we'd have to leave them behind in our highly mobile combat. We wouldn't just teleport out of danger, we'd teleport to the other side of the battlefield. Something we haven't been able to afford. We've only been able to use them when we either had the battlefield prepared (that aborted ambush against Lara) or to get around an enemy in a confined space (trying to get past Phalanx Vulthat's defense grid). Spamming them to escape danger hasn't been practical.
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>>3781052
>She's shown the ability to infect via a touch, she was touching our hand. We're good.
no, she hasnt, anything she has done vie herself has involved a process of rearranging the construct into her own, not only via touch.

>Yes, we can guarantee it.
no, we cant, and we have other, less utterly retarded and risky options to take care of them.

>Pretty sure you're wrong, but whatever. Doesn't matter if it's right
BHOP has mentioned it several times. its an Ability, using an Ability costs an ACT. its not that hard to wrap your brain around. and it does matter, as we have limited actions and we still have uses for our swarm.

>does establishing the Dominus Bloodline actually take an action? I can't remember. If not, is there anything to stop us from lashing the entire swarm two by two, attaching and disconnecting in sequence to inflict them all with the bleeding it causes?
its based on the leash and the leash specifically states its a free action ,so no. using any other effects through it that arent automatic is however would. i dont think it actually inflicts bleeding though, only drains REGEN, or rearranges stats a bit. its doesnt actually deal any damage itself. i also think BHOP has said theres a limit to how many times we can switch it in a single turn, and id think its far below the number of swarmlings present.

its also unnecessary to have Shu help take care of the enemy Swarmlings. or more importantly, Shu has the best ability to draw Lepisma out and deal with her, and Dorian without a doubt is the best suited for focusing on the Swarmlings.

>>3781067
worse case we have a swarmling slot open.
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>>3781067
>Can we convert some banelings into jacklings? If we're going to pull the equivalent of Old Faithful in Yosemite and flush Lepisma out with a combination of Earthen Mind and Hydroformer in a geyser eruption, then we'll need some more jacklings to boost our concentration and make our move more bio-efficient.
If we bring them in close. We still need contact to convert up, we can only convert down at range. So bring in a bunch of Banelings, turn them into Jacklings. Want to make them Sonar-Jacklings again, to get a better sense of Lepisma's position underground and be better able to flush her out?

>>3781072
>BHOP has mentioned it several times. its an Ability, using an Ability costs an ACT. its not that hard to wrap your brain around. and it does matter, as we have limited actions and we still have uses for our swarm.
Spawning the swarmlings is an ability. Commanding them is not necessarily. Like, okay, spawning clones via a Phantasmal Conduit ability takes an action. We've never seen it take an action off the original to command those clones. Why would Hive Mistress be different?

>its also unnecessary to have Shu help take care of the enemy Swarmlings. or more importantly, Shu has the best ability to draw Lepisma out and deal with her, and Dorian without a doubt is the best suited for focusing on the Swarmlings.
No, he's not. Not on his own. The Masque of War only covers a medium area, and the swarm was specifically mentioned to be dispersed and widespread to avoid them all being caught by one attack. Dorian will catch some, but most will go right past him. That's why I want to concentrate the swarm. Fine, you don't want to do it with the Hands, even though it should be safe. Can you think of any other ways to lure them in?
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>>3781072
I've got an idea for bringing Lepisma out into the open easier. Instead of wasting time and bio to perform a Seismic Earthquake, why not use all of the lake water that's conveniently drained into the underground lake and then Hydroform it? We have half a round to prepare before the silver-ling horde is upon us.

The issue of course is getting a swarmling there in the first place, but I've got you covered. We create a soundling with a Jackling modifier, and a Knightling with the Gurrenling modifier, then fuse the two to create a Gurren-Seismic-Jackling Knight. Have that hybrid tunnel deep into the earth with its drill and get into the cave where then once it makes contact with the lake water, Shu can use her Neuromancy to Manipulate as much water as she desires, creating a water prison that literally flushes Lepisma out.
>>
>>3781067
i do have to say though the idea of Shu stuck on the spear as it flies back to November is a hilarious image, and yes, if we COULD properly line it up i could see there being worth, but unless we could ensure Lepismas is already pinned and cannot dodge the Shu Kebab it would simply give her too much of an avenue to dodge, and Dorian and Shu really have the best ways to do that, but couldnt in this situation.

>>3781068
>>3781067
also, both of you were talking about something odd BHOP was trying to point out. might not be all of it, but he randomly for no reason pointed out where the Silver Warriors sword was to us. personally i havent seen it do anything spectacular but it is random like i said for him to point it out.

>>3781077
>Spawning the swarmlings is an ability. Commanding them is not necessarily. Like, okay, spawning clones via a Phantasmal Conduit ability takes an action. We've never seen it take an action off the original to command those clones. Why would Hive Mistress be different?
you mean Amaras clones that literally as PART OF THEIR ABILITY SHEET GIVES THEM THEIR OWN ACTS? something Hive Mistress does not say and has never done, while BHOP has multiple times confirmed commanding the swarm takes an ACT?

>No, he's not. Not on his own.
its almost like he has aid and can move still while in that form. you do realize she specifically is using them as a distraction to draw our attention away from her next attack, right?

>>3781080
i dont like that. we could potentially deal alot of damage to her with earthen Terraforming, and BHOP specifically said she has some advantages with liquid terrain. im fine throwing in Hydromancy, already did actually, but I dont at all trust it by itself. plus, she seems to most likely be coming back. if she doesn't, we couldn't reach her in time anyways, but its implied shes put too much into this fight to at least at the moment just retreat anyways. and again, if that is her plan, we already lost.
>>
>>3781068
You're exaggerating pretty hard. They've still got at a minimum 1 Movement Zone per turn, that's plenty enough to act as a route of withdrawal in most of the battles we've been in.

This is beside the point right now anyway though.
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>>3781085
>also, both of you were talking about something odd BHOP was trying to point out. might not be all of it, but he randomly for no reason pointed out where the Silver Warriors sword was to us. personally i havent seen it do anything spectacular but it is random like i said for him to point it out.
Yeah, I don't know what that's about, either. I can't see how it would be useful in this instance, unless it's something like we can jack into it to get access to the swarm and take them over or something improbable like that. I guess it's a nice sword, we might as well pick it up.

>you mean Amaras clones that literally as PART OF THEIR ABILITY SHEET GIVES THEM THEIR OWN ACTS? something Hive Mistress does not say and has never done, while BHOP has multiple times confirmed commanding the swarm takes an ACT?
I was actually thinking about B'Ni, she didn't need to take actions to direct her clones. Or her weird memory constructs, either. But fine, maybe it's possible that Phantasmal Conduit abilities are just different from Hive Mistress powers. I don't care. We need to get rid of that swarm.

>its almost like he has aid and can move still while in that form. you do realize she specifically is using them as a distraction to draw our attention away from her next attack, right?
"November can shoot a few swarmlings, I guess" is not Dorian being aided. Not sufficiently. He moves very slowly in cloud form, most of the swarm will get past him. And it doesn't matter if it's a distraction if it's also sufficiently deadly. Hell, Lepisma is the less deadly thing right now. She's got no arms left. The swarm was what she was building to this entire fight, it's her trump card and the thing we should worry more about. Can we at least have November fire off a cluster grenade instead of trying to take the swarm out with her machinegun? We've got half a turn before these things are on us, the machine gun will not clear them fast enough.
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>>3781060
hey BHOP, whats the limit to Dorians threads when it comes to numbers and spreading them out, and id also imagine just like the Hands he cannot keep the formed while in Masque form? or does them being his own ability loosen the rules on that?
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>>3781102
Yes, it's enough to act as a route of withdrawal. My point is that we didn't have the opportunity to withdraw in the fight against B'Ni. We had to press the offensive constantly, so we didn't use them there. But we did use them against Phalanx Vultha, in the more confined space. We've made as good use of them as we could given the circumstances.
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>>3781107
November has actually been shown to be incredibly capable at taking out large construct counts due t her BARS sheer rate of fire.

but whatever, we clearly are not going to agree, and ive got a question to BHOP that will settle how i plan this anyways depending on his answer.
>>
>>3781107
>>3781115
Cluster Bomb takes two ACTS. she might already be at her limit without that.
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>>3781110
Are you implying what I'm thinking? Fibromancy wires charged with Accumulating charge electricity?
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>>3781115
What, you want to have him whip around the Threads and have them slice through swarmlings outside the range of the Masque? That might work. Or is it more of a net you're thinking of?
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>>3781119
>>3781121
i was thinking more he ropes in any that he cant reach, but i mean, any of that works yeah. BHOPS answer really just changes whether he needs to spend more time cutting and roping them in before hand, and if he cant keep them going while in a cloud, some might escape, but i think even if he can only use the Threads before he switches to Masque it will still work and will still corral them enough to make them not much of a problem.

>>3780920
>>3780975
Amendments to orders;

Shu;
>Have our banelings go low and spread out, becoming a minefield across the battlefield.
>Get the damn Contender back in your hand.
>Spawn a new Jack-Baneling.
>Try and get a read on her with Halo and Jackling alike.
>Fuck this. You have a large sum of Biomass, and you’re tired of your foe hiding underground. Strain yourself, push your Terraforming to its limits. Harden the earth, shake it up, Flood its crevices with water, and force it and anything underground to the surface in a massive cascade of an upheaval plate movement.
>As soon as you find her, Have your Banelings swarm, using your Cutis Tractus to pull you forward on a Baneling while your Maw is ready to snatch her up no matter which direction she runs.
>bring the lionheart against her.
>>all Benlings set to auto-destruct.


Dorian;
>Intercept the swarm, spawn as many Threads at what length you need to draw them into your second phase of the attack.
>Masque of War the incoming swarm, releasing lighting from inside of yourself to electrocute them all in one big storm cloud.
>Send your Paintlings to spread out and cover the battlefield, so any place she emerges from, you will feel it and and draw the paintlings to that point.
>If you finish off the Silverfish swarmlings, be prepared to burst speed to tackle Lepismas wherever she comes out at.


November;
>Free Shu of the Deliverance as gently as you can.
>only if Dorian needs it, use your BAR and Shotgun to help clear the enemy swarm out.
>Otherwise, Prime your Tank to fire off a tank sized Shotgun blast. If Shu is able to force Lepimas to the surface, fire it off to try and knock her prone.
>Then, Nova Lunge for Lepisma, Shotgun ready to try and keep her pinned if she manages to avoid the initial barrages against her.
>Otherwise use the weight of the Dainself to pin her down and to the ground.


>>3781060
as you do seem to possibly be asleep, do take into account
>>3781119
>>3781121
aswell, if you dont answer the question and me update the orders in time with your response to my question on the threads limitations.
>>
>>3781127
Wait. If Dorian's a cloud in Masque of war Form, can't he change the shape of the general cloud of his Masque form? instead of being a giant sphere or a circle, have him transform and expand outwards like a net or a cone.
>>
>>3781132
im very unsure of that, and it might still be locked to medium range at the moment. could help a bit but would need alot more info on how that actually works.
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>>3781132
I'd think that if that were allowed it wouldn't specify that he affects a medium area, though. He probably has to retain a certain amount of concentration to be effective. Maybe it would work, though.
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>>3781127
We need a sonar-jackling to get a better read on Lepisma's location. Sonar-lings got better sensory when it comes to underground activity, and Lepisma might be underground. change that Jack-baneling into a Sonar-jackling.
>>
>>3781152
cant, if its not a baneling its a liability.
>>
>>3781110
(THe strands can be active during Masque of War, yes. Also, their number is somewhat dependent on the amount of BIO you're willing to spend on their creation, as they scale to that.)

>>3781127
(Also, if something exists as a reasonable conduit for the electricity, such as strands of any sort, linked limbs/bodies, or conducting terrain, then Dorian's Accumulating Charge would absolutely go through it, much like how the Silver Warrior's sword was able to disperse the attack earlier.)
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>>3781156
I'm not sure how much of a liability it is. It will be burrowed into the ground, isolated from any subversion goop. And if Lepisma did get her hands on it, the worst she could do through it is use her touch-based Neuromancy through it instead of at touch range. But since we'll be up in her face anyway I don't think that matters.
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>>3781171
Also, couldn't we just have one of the Banelings hang out next to it, if we're that worried? Its blast would be big enough to take out the Jackling, too.
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>>3781174
>why would it be underground?
Better immersion in the medium it's scanning, was my thinking. Didn't we have the Jackling that we're replacing underground?
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>>3781178
no? it was just jacked into the ground, which with neuromancy id argue is just as good, but without trapping it by making it have to dig.
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>>3781174
>Free Shu of the Deliverance as gently as you can.
Don't you mean Dainsleif?

>>3781178
said jackling was at the entrance to the cave near the spire. said jackling was destroyed by the 70 silver-ling swarm.

>>3781181
I just had a thought. What if we had November fire another Kaiser flare? We've got a swarm of bugs heading towards us. Us firing a giant flash bomb would disorient the fuck out of them.
>>
>>3781181
Must have misunderstood, I thought we had it burrowed into the ground a bit. Ah, well, doesn't matter. Either way we should be fine, as you say it's got more than enough senses to not really need it.

>said jackling was at the entrance to the cave near the spire. said jackling was destroyed by the 70 silver-ling swarm.
That's right, it was underground because it was in a cave.

>I just had a thought. What if we had November fire another Kaiser flare? We've got a swarm of bugs heading towards us. Us firing a giant flash bomb would disorient the fuck out of them.
If we can get the swarm and Lepisma in the same arc of fire, otherwise I don't think it's worth the two ACTs it would take.
>>
>>3781185
Don't you mean Dainsleif?
happy now?

>>3780920
>>3781127
Amended Orders;

Shu;
>Have our banelings go low and spread out, becoming a minefield across the battlefield.
>Get the damn Contender back in your hand.
>Spawn a new Sonar-Jack-Baneling.
>Try and get a read on Lepismas location with Halo and Jackling alike.
>Fuck this. You have a large sum of Biomass, and you’re tired of your foe hiding underground. Strain yourself, push your Terraforming to its limits. Harden the earth, shake it up, Flood its crevices with water, and force it and anything underground to the surface in a massive cascade of an upheaval plate movement.
>As soon as you find Lepisma, Have your Banelings swarm with intent to shred her with shaped charges, using your Cutis Tractus to pull you forward on a Baneling while your Maw is ready to snatch her up no matter which direction she runs.
>bring the lionheart against her.
>>all Banelings set to auto-destruct.


Dorian;
>Intercept the swarm in Masque form, using a mix of as many threads as you need and your lightning charges decimate the swarm and hold them off for the rest of your team. Focus down the Rooks first if you can.
>Send your Paintlings to spread out and cover the battlefield, so any place she emerges from, you will feel it and and draw the paintlings to that point.
>If you finish off the Silverfish swarmlings, be prepared to burst speed to tackle Lepismas wherever she comes out at, holding her in place with your Daggers.


November;
>Free Shu of the Dainsleif as gently as you can.
>only if Dorian needs it, use your BAR and Shotgun to help clear the enemy swarm out.
>Otherwise, Prime your Tank to fire off a tank sized Shotgun blast. If Shu is able to force Lepimas to the surface, fire it off to try and knock her prone.
>Then, Nova Lunge for Lepisma, Shotgun ready to try and keep her pinned if she manages to avoid the initial barrages against her.
>Otherwise use the weight of the Dainself to pin her down and to the ground.


>>3781185
>What if we had November fire another Kaiser flare?
not worth the two Acts, limited range, shes needed elsewhere, if Dorian pulls his thing off it wont be necessary at all.
>>
>>3781174
(As the meme goes; "God has cursed me for my hubris, and my work is never finished.")
>>
(I am headed to bed, finally. I wish you a good evening, and an even better night's sleep.)
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>>3781196
fair enough, have some artwork ive been meaning to post for like a day to soften the sleep deprivation.
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>>3781198
night BHOP.

think im off then too. think the plans more than solid, or at least as solid as we can be given the situation. theres only one possible issue we could try and cover but its not actually something we have a means to prevent so its a moot point.
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>>3781196
And now we know BHOP's true identity: Bryan David Gilbert. This whole quest has just been the setup for an episode of Unraveled.

Sleep well, BDGHOP.

>>3781199
That's some great art. You do that yourself?
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>>3781207
sadly no. art is not something i have a talent for.

https://jubeimuffins.tumblr.com/
https://twitter.com/BizarroDumpster

took me a sec to remember where i found it at, but here you go. never looked at the rest of their, has a sorta futuristic biopunk feel to it.

anyways, really, my lord im feeling the hours. night.
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>>3781228
Thanks for the link.

And yeah, I'm getting drowsy, too. Good night, everyone.
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>>3781191
Why don't we send a few banelings to target any concentrations of enemy banelings we see to set off chain explosions in their ranks?
>>
>>3781291
>>3781291
See >>3781000
>(There are seventy Faux-Swarmlings; Forty-five Knights, fifteen Bishops, and Ten Rooks.)
I see zero Banelings, nor see

Worth a shot however, but given the fact that each and every one of them have the Kynar Chitin, we won't be having much luck getting a proper chain reaction going. The Knightlings maybe...but banelings...It's a hard sell.
>>
>>3780920
Supporting>>3781191
>>
>>3781191
Supporting. Just whatever EXCESS banelings go to help>>3781291 and >>3781294 plan, as long as it doesn´t compromise >>3781191 MAIN plan.

As a side note, I love how infuriating Lepisma is to fight. I wouldn´t mind her being a bit harder to beat, she´s a cunning and worthy foe, and she still must have leftover tricks under her sleeve I wish to see.
No matter the frustration, it is actually good to come back to the "no holds barred" old style fights we had at the begining of the quest, where team member death was a very real posssibility.
Remember we have a "REVIVE" function in the engine and can recover dream daughters, even in a TPK scenario we get a "round two" rescue mission with the rest of the family next session.

Let´s kick down the stress a couple of notches, shall we? BHOP going "D&D Tomb of Horrors" on us would be interesting, given the failsafes involved. s long as it is only Shu and not more family mebers than the engine has charges, and there´s the "SACRIFICE QUACK" option for that...
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>>3781191

I am VERY glad about the Terraforming+Hydromancy inclusion to perform a MIGHTY YELLOWSTONE geiser attack. Boiled SilverFish dish is trending high right now.
Regarding the plan, when she inevitably survives and surfaces? Lepisma is the Gopro, we are the Nokia. We must be some of the most stupidly hardy and persistent daughters left in the fleshcape, it is only fitting that THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE.

Let´s McLeod the f***cker!
Satyrical Soundtrack while we dogpile Lepisma: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0WQOGVLLGw
>>
>>3781504
We have one revive
One in the engine until we have to recharge it. Which we have no idea how to do it safely without damaging the engine
A TPK would be very bad
>>
>>3781504
I could not disagree with the entirety of the sentiments and points of a post more than i do this one, so congrats for that i guess.

This is an outright terrible and horrible way to think about any situation, aswell as is just wrong on so many levels.
>>
>>3781504
Also on the point of a rescue mission

Lepisma might consumed Shu for her versatile Abilitys
That would loose us our dreamdaughters we have inside Shu. They will die and Shu herself might not be able to be revived due to her situation of her not actually being a person before the crucible

November would be destroyed outright by Lepisma. Not worth it for the silver fish to try and search for Biomass in a body powered by a Forgecore. She would be lost to us with no hope of recovery due to her body being shattered

Dorian.... She might use him as fuel for a new construct and maybe would consume him to bolster her speed. But that is not guaranteed to get him into her head so we might loose him as well unless she takes his core. Which she probably won't do since her entire schtick is to take over constructs not outright destroy them. We would also loose Dorians Hexxane headbudy

And the whole difficult fight thing. Sure a challenging fight us more fun. But the fight against a truly intelligent opponent(a daughter even) was not something we wanted too much. The entire thing was to test out the tank and Dorians new abilities on this hunt. And while we can do that it would have been nicer if we could have just had a normal Amalgam as a first opponent. But we chose this fight and we are gonna win it. Not with relish but with gritted teeth. I do not want to see anymore of her tricks. She just stole our own tricks so she is probably mostly spent on those.

Have you played the Tomb of Horror? I read the module a while back and it's a fucking corpse treadmill. Not at all what this quest is about. Reviving someone is a considerable effort.

Also talking about Dr. Fran like that is incredibly demeaning and reduces her from a person to an object.
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>>3780918
>>3780920
I fucking knew we had this in the bag the moment we slaughtered two of her constructs in one turn.

>>3780946
Bruh, what are you so worried about? She's half dead, Novemeber is unscathed, Dorian is damaged but has space to heal and absorb biomass and she's been so fucking shook that she had to send a swarm of bugs we can mince at us to try and buy time.

Where will she run to? Away from the worm? Then we get it and we pursue her. Towards the worm? We kill her there then. She has lost a MASSIVE investment in this fight, with three constructs dead, her silverfish swarm almost deleted and she had to waste a bunch of the worm.

Jesus if this is the worst BHOP "fucks" us, it's nothing compared to Dark Lord Quest or Joker Quest.

Hey, is there any reason we shouldn't just send some banelings into the silverfish part of the swarm and melt them to slag? We can have our knights and rooks clean up the knock off of our rooks and knights she made.

Keep November on overwatch with her insane priority. Have Dorian heal for this turn and maybe help out our swarmlings if we don't manage to kill them all.
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>>3780920
Oh and remove that fucking spear already.
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>>3781607
Actually can't we just castle out of the spear as well?
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>>3781604
>Hey, is there any reason we shouldn't just send some banelings into the silverfish part of the swarm and melt them to slag? We can have our knights and rooks clean up the knock off of our rooks and knights she mad

The thing us those guys produce a compound she can use to take over our normal constructs
Also her swarm has copied our swarmling sheet and is presumably immune to acid and heat. So Banelings are little more than shrapnell to kill them

It also is not a question if the royal has lost or not. The Question is will she run or will she try to go for the consolation prize by killing Shu and then running away with her corpse underground
She can burry very well and aside from Shu no one can actually get to her below ground.

She could also try to go for November's Tank from below and since we lost surveillance of the ground we can not tell where she is and where she is burrowing
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>>3781604
if she decides to teleport away with a rook she has in the cave or has flown away to some undisclosed location we have no way to track her or catch up to her properly. if she decides to escape she has the means to do so and get away with doing it, and making the entire fight pointless. i mean, she might, but really theres no reason for her to not choose life and losing her investments here, than trying fruitlessly to win.

Also November just took a very hard hit to the back, and unlike normal daughters cant just mend her flesh back together. her swarmlings are a hard counter to ours, immune to anything ours can throw at them while being able to corrupt and force ours to auto-detonate. Dorian has multiple methods to make him the best at taking out the swarm as a whole.

also i dont know anything about either of those quests and honestly am tired of people trying to compare quests to others. i dont care. it doesn't matter, or change the context of this quest when compared to itself and how things have gone within this quest. whats considered to have becomes reasonable to expect from this quest has nothing to do nor changes when comparing it to another. whats fucking the playerbase over or not in one quest is completely different than in another. as far as im concerned honestly keep your comparisons to yourself.
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>>3781636
I thought it was only her banelings that can do that? Can every single drone she makes do it? Also, her silverfish haven't shown immunity yet and shoe no visual indicators of any changes.

>kill Shu
What? We have 800+ health. We aren't even below 60% yet.

Am I just fucking crazy? I don't get why people are so concerned.
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>>3781645
she makes the corruption gel via changing the fluids in our drone types. both our banelings and knights have acid she could and has shown herself to change. the bishops too easily could have that.

these are copies of our swarmlings we have already been shown have anything our swarmlings do, including acid and hat resistance.

yes you are being unreasonable to have absolutely no concerns and to be throwing caution to the wind. we have seen damage dealt in this of over 400% health in a single turn. it is still entirely possible any one of our team could be killed.
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>>3781191
I want to add an amendment to this. Use the Yellow Stone Eruption to take out the Silverling swarm. Have Dorian protect Shu and November and the Tank from the strays that survive the initial eruption. And have Shu be lifted by a knightling and stay off the ground when she does her Eruption attack, that way Lepisma can't figure out where Shu is through Tremorsense.
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>>3781649
im vetoing this.
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>>3781651
all of it or part of it? because the part where Shu stays off the ground via knightling makes sense to me to prevent ambush while the Jackling searches for Lepisma. And the Eruption also uproots and exposes the cave that Lepisma is hiding in while taking out the silverling swarm.
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>>3781644
She's been crippled horrifically from this fight though; if she fights an undamaged, semi powerful Daughter now, she's fucked. Not only that, what else were we going to do after killing her or checking her besides check out the worm? This seems like pointless worrying. She's overcommited to this fight so much even if she did try to get away she'd probably die.

November took out her biggest gun and has one wound to show for it while having the Masque on giving her incredibly high priority. She doesn't heal normally but she's also much harder to hurt and she absolutely pulverized the knight. Not only that, we haven't seen her silverfish adapt to anything and these may have been some she finished earlier and brought back now or else they're adapted. In either case, we have a fuck ton of banelings to use to kill her force and I've only seen her banelings be able to covert ours; just send a single banelings after each of hers or tell Dorian to target them first and then we can shred the horde with our own.

>I don't want you to compare quests
That's stupid as hell. For one thing, what else are you to compare a quest to besides another quest? Secondly, OP has always been open that he was inspired by Joker Quest and we have a relic literally based off of it now. The very first thread of this quest was presented almost identically to the first thread of JQ. Not only that, that wasn't an indictment of OP but me telling the other anon 'this isn't harsh GMship compared to other quests'

We're in a pretty great position right now as long as we keep one party member on the look out for Lepisma and hunting for her. Giving her time to hide and cover us in mooks is foolish.

Alternatively, we could try to bait her into an attack but I'm not sure how to go about doing that. Should we maybe probe with the Halo to look for her? It's not like she can steal anymore from our mind, OP said so
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>>3781648
She has silverfish in there. Her normal silverfish. I'm saying go for those with our drones while our banelings kamikaze hers and her knights and Dorian picks them off.

And how is she going to do over 400% damage this turn? She's lost her constructs, which seem vital to her fighting style. She's lost her Mantis blades. She's had both wrists broken. She's been impaled by Dainslef twice. She's had her head winged by one of our bullets. If she had had a big, high damage attack, she'd have used it last turn. The amount of damage she's taken is crazy and she's taking additional debuffs from her relic which keeps forcing her slow ass to keep up with Novemeber's boosted Masque
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>>3781636
>Also her swarm has copied our swarmling sheet and is presumably immune to acid and heat. So Banelings are little more than shrapnell to kill them
Technically it's just resistance to heat. You use the worse of your acid or heat defenses to see if you can avoid damage from our acid, so they'd still be hurt by it. But yeah, I don't see it as particularly efficient, either. I've been satisfied in my desire to kill the swarm by wirestorm Dorian, I think that will probably catch a wide enough net to get it done.

>>3781648
>yes you are being unreasonable to have absolutely no concerns and to be throwing caution to the wind. we have seen damage dealt in this of over 400% health in a single turn. it is still entirely possible any one of our team could be killed.
I mean, to be fair, she only managed that because of Swordie throwing the Dainsleif through our back. Lepisma's shown very little personal combat ability, she's pretty dependent on her constructs. And without her Retainers, she's left with just the silverfish swarm, which are quite weak unless she happens to have the good fortune to be fighting a Hive Mistress she can copy off of. The more I think about it, the more I feel certain that Lepisma actually has a really inefficient gimmick build and that she's only doing as well as she is (Retainers all dead, limbs lost, huge hole in throat) because we've been put off our usual game by denying us swarmling support.
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>>3781651
at least give me a good reason why you're vetoing this instead of not stating a reason, otherwise I'll get the wrong impression that you just don't like my ideas.
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>>3781658
>>3781663
Yes all of it.
I just woke up, just had to deal with the other guys, was trying to find a moment to go get breakfast, and only had 5 minutes before voting closed. Once im home in 20-30 minutes sure ill explain myself but at the moment I did not have time.
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>>3781664
thank you for letting me know. I hope you'll explain what about the amendment clashes with your overall plan that you need to veto it.
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>>3781566
I was referring to the EVIL Dr. West and its cornucopia of terminator clones, not our dear Francine; that was why I termed her "the QUACK".
I would point out that if there is the need of recharging the engine, Dr. West has over 200 amazingly evil daughter copies, so they are prime fuel for it in a desperate situation.

Besides, I point out that Isabelle situation and dream Chrystal Tech demonstrated you could recover the dream daughters of somebody consumed. So, while of COURSE we play tout win, there should be a bit of confidence, enough to be able to enjoy the challenges in our path.
Remember that Lepisma made gala of a twisted sense of fair play when she gave back the spear at the end of ther previous thread.
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>>3781659
>>3781661
oh my god you are so off the mark and so fucking retarded im not even sure where to begin.

look i already know how this is gonna go, we're going to argue pointlessly with neither one of us even changing eachothers mind on even a single, minor point. you;re not worth the effort and im not worth yours. we're going ot disagree here and thats not going to change, and honestly it already looks exactly like to me you dont want that to change or would be willing to change, and im tired of having circular arguments in this quest where no one will budge and everyone keeps rehashing the exact same arguments over and over.

>That's stupid as hell.
hardly, and the fact you think that just shows you arent worth the effort to try a conversation with.

>For one thing, what else are you to compare a quest to besides another quest?
itself and if it itself brings you enjoyment on its own.

>>3781669
we cant be certain the "eruption" will even reach that high, nor such an uncontrolled event could have the accuracy to hit her constructs. Dorian pulling back to protect them instead of rushing to intercept only leaves them more exposed to the swarm and possibly allows more of them to get by, not less. i was specifically intending to see if we couldn't bait her into going after Shu or November, instead of staying away from us and pulling another trick out or her sleeve. if she wasnt going to go for us, the the knightling would be a moot point anyways.

>>3781678
the isabelle situation was specifically because Gina had neuromancy and time to prep the halo to do that.

it goes against our morals to use anyone, even West, as fuel like that. your way of thinking is exactly how you lead yourself to disaster. fail-safes only work as intended if you go forward as if you dont have them at all.
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>>3781680
>we cant be certain the "eruption" will even reach that high, nor such an uncontrolled event could have the accuracy to hit her constructs
It's also very dependent on Lepisma being in exactly the right place. If she's not beneath the swarm, it won't help. We can't rely on that. I mean, if our eruption happens to hit some of her swarm, great. But I don't think it's something to plan for.
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>>3781680
>we cant be certain the "eruption" will even reach that high, nor such an uncontrolled event could have the accuracy to hit her constructs. Dorian pulling back to protect them instead of rushing to intercept only leaves them more exposed to the swarm and possibly allows more of them to get by, not less. i was specifically intending to see if we couldn't bait her into going after Shu or November, instead of staying away from us and pulling another trick out or her sleeve. if she wasnt going to go for us, the the knightling would be a moot point anyways.

Fair points. Can we alter part of the "eruption"? Because the way I read the Terraforming movement was more akin to a Geyser Eruption and a Fissure opening up at the same time. So I figure that having parts of the earth break apart and having the salt-water spray lift them up to deal damage to them would be a giant anti-air attack and would wipe out a good chunk of the silver-ling swarm while exposing the subterranean caverns to the surface and Lepisma...if she's down there that is...
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>>3781686
id prefer not to.
and at the very least she has shown no ability to fly and at the moment doing so would actually heavily expose her, and similar with walking. plus, if shes on land, the terraforming will still easily find and hit her. her best and safest travel method is tunneling, and she most likely isnt expecting us to dump this many resources into digging her out of the ground.

and if she hasn't come back to the fight at all? then honestly its all a moot point anyways and we're gonna have alot of extra actions to help Dorian with the swarm, i guess.
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>>3781692
so how much bio are we dumping into plate tectonics and recreating Old Faithful Geyser? I reckon a good 900%-1000% bio would do it.
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>>3781695
ill admit i have no idea, only that terraforming is not on the cheap side. i still think its worth it mind you, only BHOP has never given us guidelines on terraforming costs to even begin estimating with.
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>>3781692
Come to think of it, I don't think she knows we can terraform. She saw us slap down a spiky Fear To Tread, but she could have easily confused the spikes for just part of the Flesh Artistry. Shu suddenly grabbing hold of the entire local landscape and wrenching it hard should give her a nasty surprise.
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>>3781703
>>3781698
>Shu pulling the Terraforming equivalent of a tableflip

Ye Gads, imagine Shu and Gina both doing the same action together and combining their bio to Flip an entire mountain upside down.
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>>3781703
very possible. the good news is, some things are hard to deal with even if you see it coming, and id imagine this is one of them.

>>3781704
hah. yeah that would be terrifying.
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>>3781698
This seems unnecessary. We've already peeled away most of her defenses and we aren't sure exactly where she is underground. Why are we making a giant flesh geyser that will use up almost all of our biomass, and a ton of our defense, to nuke an area we are standing on and our allies are standing on because of the possibility that she's near us? Seems massively wasteful and it won't let us replenish our build.

>comparing something to it's inspiration and the system it's based off of, nechronica, is dumb because I say so
Wew

>>3781703
She read our mind; I'd say she might have an inkling. Also, didn't we terraform the ground with our drills when she was pinned by the dainslef and she barely got away?

I still think we're better off just munching through her swarm woth ours and having Dorian pop the acid carriers. If she interrupts or fucks with us while we try to make a flesh geyser and we get caught in the explosion, it could be disastrous.

Wait. Could she be going for the tank? We haven't seen what's been happening to it. Would she be able to seize control of it? I'm at work and can't read the rules about it right now.
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>>3781711
She can't really seize control of the Tank. November's in it and tethered to it. Nothing can happen to the tank without November's consent.

>>3781708
>I'm safe in my underground batcave
>It may have water problems, but fortunately they can't swim!
>And 60 silverfish with the Defiants Design is a marvel. Shame I can't consume her...oh the designs that she had...
>why is the water glowing pink OH GOD FUCK
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>>3781713
Well should we at least not use the geyser because of the tank then?
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>>3781708
>very possible. the good news is, some things are hard to deal with even if you see it coming, and id imagine this is one of them.
Yeah. She doesn't seem to have the power set to effectively counter this. Actually, her attempting to counter it would only help us. Say she tries to liquefy the ground to get it out of our control. She can't affect as large an area as we can, so she'd liquefy the ground immediately around her, making just a bubble of lubricant as we squeeze her out.

>>3781711
>She read our mind; I'd say she might have an inkling. Also, didn't we terraform the ground with our drills when she was pinned by the dainslef and she barely got away?
BHOP said that she only got a look at our Core that way. Our Neuromancy should be beyond her knowledge. And that terraforming was the spiky Fear To Tread that I'm talking about. She does not know the limits of our ability to reshape the terrain. All she knows is that we can make ground-blenders.

>Wait. Could she be going for the tank? We haven't seen what's been happening to it. Would she be able to seize control of it? I'm at work and can't read the rules about it right now.
Not unless she can get inside it. The tank is very hard to subvert without actually piloting it.
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>>3781718
>>3781711
(She was limited to analyzing your Core, so she does not know your other skill trees.)
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>>3781718
>>3781713
technically with hydroformer wouldn't we still be able to control that ground anyways? though i suppose it depnds on how control works, and she would have a more direct and focused hold on controlling it, if hers is even like terraforming and she can have a constant hold on it at all.
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>>3781722
yeah. it would still be within our domain, But I'm not sure who would get the trump. It's also why I proposed making more Jacklings, to have them boost our concentration and dominate in the Terraforming.
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>>3781725
fair point i suppose. just feels like it probably wouldn't be necessary is the thing i guess.
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also, just found this image, and realized it would be a very terrifying way for a Hive Mistress to spawn her constructs. i mean, just imagine getting tackled by her and then giant spiders start to crawl out of her mouth to attack you.
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>>3781749
Honestly, I find Shu's method creepier. Coming out of your mouth doesn't worry me, because there's storage space in there. There's supposed to be. Coming out of a hive in their spine? Nope. Holes are not supposed to be there. Gross. I am so glad Shu has covers for them, now.
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>>3780920

I think I'm late to the voting, I'm happy enough with >>3781191. I do want to do the geyser though, mostly because I'm concerned that she has a way to heal, or regain biomass, while she sends her silverfish at us.

Why does this fight give me Aviator's Paralyzed vibes? We're just so evenly matched, it's like counter-counter-counter-counter moves.
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>>3781752
you do make a very good point. do you think they were like that one frogs type, or like little waxy hexagonal openings in her back, to fit the bee theme?
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>>3781758
Oh god just when i had managed to forget that picture. Time to get back for another session in the Mindcleanser
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>>3781759
to be fair, this is not the quest to be in if you wish to never have a chance to run into disturbing bodyhorror imagery.
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>>3781763
The rest is not that bad but that one picture gets me every time no matter what kind of fucked up shit i have seen already
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>>3781758
Hahaha, there isn't a power in the universe that can make me click on that spoiled image and risk seeing a Surinam Toad. Those things are nasty.

My image of Shu's hive is that it started as just irregular holes in her back, to fit the name Trypophilic Hive ("trypo-" literally means just "hole", but is usually used in the context of trypophobia, the fear of irregularly-spaced holes. It's more common than you'd think, despite sounding so specific, and is a major component of a lot of body horror). But as she leveled up the skill it got more and more regular, eventually becoming a nice geometrically-placed honeycomb pattern before being covered up by the chitin plates once she started getting visible Corruption. I think BHOP said the plates are even hexagonal, so definitely a bee hive sort of thing now.
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>>3781766
the image is BHOPs original example, its a human with amphibians coming out its back, than the toad thing, though clearly based on it.

yeah thats about how i imagined it.... oh... oh dear lord... i wonder if she has honey in her hive? i mean, Julia needs to get honey for the tea from someplace...

>>3781765
i suppose its contextual, everyone has their thing that unerves them.
ive seen alot of shit on the internet, but the only thing that still gets to me is severe self harm. cut a person open? whatever. cutting yourself open? thats just not right to my brain for some reason.

also, have a possible evil shu image.
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>>3781784
Shu definetly can produce honey... she has done son when we wanted a bees knees form Dorian while talking to Jackie at the party

Evil Shu... huh Doenst look all that bad. more like an overly protective mother of many children
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>>3781786

Gets creepy when you realize in this world... those are all her dream daughters. The angry one is Rath.
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>>3781766
I think Shu's hit a sweet spot in the body horror corruption where her body horror corruption meter (just random gaping irregular holes in her back and spine) veers into sexy monstergirl territory when she hits lvl 10, which I highly expect to take one step on the bishonen line before reverting back to monstrous amalgam bodyhorror.

Come to think of it...I could easily see that somehow some Daughters might make it a point to turn their corruption aesthetics into a "fashion statement", where they would groom their abilities and their corruption and make it look fashionable.

Ivey fashioned her Hyena and reptilian corruption to make her look like a punk goth biker with assless chaps.

Mara just cheats because she's turned her true body into a fucking goddamn dragon and spent a hefty investment in being able to create a human avatar phantasmal construct based on her human appearance and play cosmetic barbie doll.
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>>3781784
>yeah thats about how i imagined it.... oh... oh dear lord... i wonder if she has honey in her hive? i mean, Julia needs to get honey for the tea from someplace...

She does. We made honey from our hive at the party, used it to sweeten our gin for a Bee's Knees. Kind of odd when you consider the bees just concentrate nectar into honey, they don't make it themselves. Then again, we're not really a bee hive, so I guess we can cheat.


Also, I'm not getting an evil sense from that image. Sure, the nun's face is a bit creepy, but she doesn't seem to be malevolent. She's taking care of a bunch of sleepy babies, she's probably a nice lady. Those babies don't seem upset to be with her, it's all good.

>>3781789
Nah, the bishonen line comes after the body horror. You snap back to being a pretty human with only a few monster bits after you get strong enough. We're nowhere close to that.

And yeah, there's definitely Corruption fashion statements. We might be freaky, but we look cool. There's a fun to be had with that, the Corruption is only as disfiguring as you let it be. Find an aesthetic that works for you and you're golden.
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>>3781786
>>3781788
>>3781793
phantasmal daughter constructs was my thought aswell. that, and dont trust a face like that. that, and using babies as weapons sounds very evil to me.

>>3781789
i can see it, though, i do wonder how much its necessary? Abilities already very slightly form to the user anyways. nothing massive and certainly implied not to be to the same level as Humoral Cores alter abilities, but still to a degree. Daughters also already have their core based on themselves, and probably to a decent degree pick abilities based on their likes. if you're not a fist fighter you probably wont take Phantasmal Limbs, for example.

combine that with the Crucible already purposefully trying to consolidate and themeize corruption, and it seems like you wouldn't really need to put any effort into fashionizing your corruption too much.

>>3781793
actually, theres a type of Bee that makes honey out of rotting meat, so its 100% possible we arent even cheating, but making our honey fully naturally.
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>>3781645
Nah, other anons are creeped out by the enemy so they’re overestimating the threat. It’s a considerable threat, but not Shu-ending by any means.
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>>3781844
Yeah, I think Lepisma actually has a pretty poorly put-together build, and it's only because we've been forced out of our swarmling-based comfort zone that we've had trouble against her. If Shu had any other Core but Hive Mistress, Lepisma would probably have been dead somewhere around turn two. That said, I still want to prioritize killing Lepisma, because even if she's not some huge threat she's still incredibly annoying to fight and I want to kill her and eat her brains already.
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>>3781844
>>3781848
if we hadn't dropped a cave on her and didn't have Dorian with us this fight would've gone a very different direction. even then, the Halo is still the only reason his build even worked so well here. id say it's amiss to say her build is poorly put together, hell the fact shes been able to do this much despite both of those caveats says quite the opposite.
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>>3781851
Eh, the fact remains we and our allies have received really very little damage especially in comparison to what we’ve dished out.

If she hadn’t had a cave dropped on her I think the damage dealt to received ratio would be more equitable, but I don’t think we’d be losing.
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>>3781848
It is not a outright bad build just one with a massive weakness to anti construct attacks. Without Dorian i think it would also have been bad for us since we couldnt jsut have killed her retainers or the worm. She is a Hive Mistress taken to the extreme. She is powerful both with and without her constructs

We were just a pretty hard counter with the rest of our team to her.(Especially Dorian This fight was something he was made for to win)

But we can not underestimate her. Always treat your enemy like they are capable of killing you. Otherwise they will pull something unexpected and will kill you in the end because you were careless and stepped into a trap, yo ucould have easily avoided and thought about your actions more carefully.

Hell she outmaneuvered us once already who says she cant do so again.

Just dont let your guard down against an obviously intelligent opponent.

I would also like to take her shit. It will be a great boon (to Shu and Gina especially. The Neuromantic Dominance is gonna be sweet. And Hijacking constructs as well)
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>>3781859
Hell, we even underestimated her intent. She was hell bent on attaining temporary augments to her silverfish swarm by eating lots of face damage just to get a complete enemy scan on Shu's core ability. Her retainers were meat shields that she could recreate.

We sort of figured that She was prioritizing Shu, but we didn't know her true intentions.
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>>3781857
eh, i disagree, but its not something either one of us can confirm. we have no idea just how much more biomass she may of had to throw around, as it was implied quite alot was left behind. thats not just more silverfish, but possibly more phantasmal constructs too, which already showed signs of being able to lessen even Dorians anti-construct abilities. we got them down so fast due to their numbers compared to the number of auto-kills on constructs we had, depending on many factors without the cave-in, this could've been alot worse.

but again, depends on alot of what-ifs we cant really confirm at the moment. that, and i highly dislike how much people are willing to jump the gun and celebrate. a fights not over til its over, simple at that.
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>>3781851
I strongly disagree. She's demonstrated no ranged abilities, no battlefield control abilities, and poor melee. She is entirely dependent on her constructs, and her construct-generating abilities are not good. The Retainers take a long time to produce and can not be replaced in combat, and her lesser swarmlings are completely undifferentiated and can only gain real use by copying the adaptations of other Hive Mistresses. Her build sucks.

>>3781859
>>3781865
Sure, she's got some noteworthy skill. I won't deny that her managing to last this long despite having such a garbage power-set isn't impressive. But that doesn't change the fact that her build is bad. If anything, she's probably so skilled because her build is terrible, she's had to git gud or she'd have died a long time ago.
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>>3781872
and i completely disagree with all of that. she has pretty good battlefield control actually, burrowing and flesh-crafting it both could do wonders, its just no match against actual terraforming. her melee actually is excellent, if it was her flesh crafting that took off our arm. the Maw is just really good at close range so was a good counter to her claws. her ability to hijack other constructs is a massive boon, and being able to siphon parts of enemy skills to add to her base constructs she can actually spawn at a distance, not just from herself, is critically deadly.

if we hadn't interrupted her in the middle of forming something that probably took alot of biomass out of herself too, this may of gone very differently. but whatever. again, you are just ignoring the other sides points like everyone does and we are already both repeating ourselves. this literally wont go anywhere. we disagree, leave it at that.
>>
>>3781872
Eh, she’s pretty good in melee when she can catch her foe disadvantaged. She scalpeled our arm off and we barely got the chance to react to her this turn, if she’d caught us before we could block we’d be in bad shape.
>>
>>3781881
She has shown no battlefield-control uses of her flesh-crafting, despite that being advantageous, just mobility enhancement. Her melee is not good, she got off one decent surprise attack and then was thoroughly bodied by Shu (not a melee-focused character) to the point she had to teleport out. And hijacking constructs is useful, but not something you can rely on for all fights. Unless she has a suitable enemy Hive Mistress to copy, her own swarmlings are terrible. That leaves her with just any Retainers she's crafted, which she can't replace in the middle of combat. Anti-construct abilities are not that uncommon, relying entirely on constructs is not a great move.

And yeah, interrupting her when crafting certainly made things easier, sure. But she can never rely on not being interrupted when she's already been weakened by crafting. That's why crafting-focused builds aren't suitable for solo play. The fact that Lepisma is making it work regardless is very impressive. The girl's got skills, I'm not saying she's not dangerous. I'm saying she's dangerous because of her intelligence, not because she's so incredibly strong. We certainly have to be wary for her doing something clever. But that doesn't change the fact that in general her build is pretty inefficient.

>>3781889
Fair enough on her reflexes. That's due to a Relic, according to BHOP, but she's smart for realizing she needs it and acquiring such. Again, I think she's dangerous because she's smart, not because she's strong.
>>
>>3781872
>>3781881
>>3781889

Bhop equated her to the Fantasy equivalent of a Necromancer. And Necromancers are the deadliest when you don't know where the Necromancer is and are just busy focusing down on the Necromancer's Minions. But when the Necromancer is exposed and their minions taken down easily, that's when they're at their weakest.

In this Scenario, We've forced Lepisma to surface and eat a lot of damage while interrupting her work, not only that we've forced her to spend lots of bio creating constructs to distract us as a defensive measure.

It's not that her build sucks, it's just that we've been forcing her into an up close and personal playstyle that she didn't expect to suffer that much damage after witnessing us make quick work of her constructs she planned on using to stall us out. I think she originally planned on keeping Dorian and November busy enough for Lepisma to overwhelm Shu in close combat, get a good enemy scan of Shu's core ability and then make a very hasty retreat. But ate too much damage in the process.

She's also good at melee having a few personal melee defenses to keep her enemies at bay with constructs while she skulks about in her lair.

But right now, her mantis arms have been torn off by our maw, her arms have been broken because of our drill arms, and all of her powerful constructs that she's constructed beforehand have been decimated and recreating the powerful retainers takes time and bio which she's desperately trying to buy by sending 70 silver-lings with our hive mistress template to distract us.
>>
>>3781896
yeah, no, i disagree with you and nothing you have said is correct or new information ive not already given a counter to.
>>
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>>3780920

November’s at your side in an instant, taking the Dainsleif by the blade and extracting its length from your torso as gently as she can. With a final, resolute tug it comes free, the blunt end falling into the sand as you give a deep, groan of pain. Screwing your eyes tight, a newly-modified Jackling squirms out of your hive, a silent command urging your Banelings to spread low across the beach as you rise to your full height. Dorian’s a blur of scarlet mist and white-hot sparks as he charges to meet the silver swarm head on while you survey the beach, scanning with your eyes and the sonar’s vibrations that thrum through your hive. Your teeth grit with pain and frustration as you feel your chest knit itself back together, your legs still slick with the slurry of your and Lepisma’s blood.

In that singular, rage-filled moment, a single thought occupies your mind.

Fuck this.

You fall to your knees, fingers digging into the sand of the beach as your forearms flicker with a furious blend of amethyst and viridescent light. A deep, throaty rumble begins to shake the shoreline as you can feel your biomass burning off, fueling an act of terraforming that costs nearly everything you have. You can sense Lepisma in the caves below, trying to angle into a position to catch you off-guard by emerging from underneath you, pausing as she feels the earth tremble around her. Flinging your hand to the heavens, your subversive swarmling drops the Lionheart Contender into your waiting grasp, and as your fingers curl around the handle you give a final, decisive pulse of Neuromantic power.

It’s with immense satisfaction that the ground a few meters ahead of you explodes forth in a shower of gore, sand, and salt water, the geyser carrying Lepisma skyward as November’s armor flares with heat, her boosters carrying her forward with a gout of howling flame. She soars straight up as the boom of the Metall Geschoss’ cannon reaches your ears in the same instant hot plasma carves through Lepisma’s helpless form, her limbs flailing like a ragdoll. Rath’s Aunt hurtles past her, turning mid-flight to fling the obsidian shaft of the Dainsleif once more through the Royal’s chest and sending her plummeting back to the Fleshscape. Your Banelings meet her halfway, detonating in a series of shaped bursts that coat her form with acid before she comes crashing down to the hard, unforgiving sands…and right where you want her.

She’s struggling to warp the very material of the Dainsleif when you fall upon her, the Contender’s peerless blade carving through her right arm in her futile attempts to stop the inevitable…to stop what you’re bringing to her, for the first time in years. It’s with a flicker of form and a burst of ozone that her teleportation fails, a resounding peal of thunder echoing across the frigid beach from where Dorian’s torn through her swarm with enough volts to turn sand to glass.

(Continued)
>>
>>3781905

Lepisma’s left arm unfurls, straining to reach you across her mess of a torso before November’s shotgun roars in defiance, the superheated payload ripping through the offending limb, reducing it to a burst of hot flesh and smoking fluid that sprays next to the Royal’s expressionless face. The smell of burning chitin hits you, carried on the chill breeze that buffets you in the wake of Dorian racing back to your side.

“Permission to be blunt, Miss Shu?” Dorian asks, folding his hands behind his back as his single blue eye stares coldly down at your mutual foe’s prostrate form.

“Happily granted.”

“Fuck her up, if you’d be so kind.” He clips back, and November’s resultant chuckle can be barely heard over the sound of her shotgun racking with a freshly-primed load.

"Heh, here I was thinking you had some reservations about killing, given how you reacted to finding out she's like us." November asks, her barrels aimed squarely at Lepisma's softly flickering braincase.

"Oh, she's nothing like us, and reservations are best left for a good restaurant." Dorian growls, he fingers of each hand fingers fusing into a pair of am wickedly curved scythes. "Any hesitation I had was thrown away the moment she turned the Dainsleif on Miss Shu."

You turn from your allies back to Lepisma as her void-like eyes meet your gaze, seemingly devoid of intent or malice…though you can’t say the same for yours. She was clever, to be sure. Possessing skills that carried her far along with a mind to use them to their fullest, it’s almost a shame she had to meet you when she did. The half-formed remnants of a Chitinous Stalwart copy lies about her, your second interruption of her crafting having spoiled her plans for a melee, you suspect. Maybe if things had gone differently, if she’d had time to set up like you possessed, or if you hadn’t caught her in the middle of re-creating her constructs, then perhaps you might have lost. Now, as you loom over Lepisma’s broken body, you’ve given her the one thing she never thought she’d have, despite her greed.

You’ve given her the gift of defeat.

>>[LEPISMA DEATH SAVING THROWS: 1 Success, 2 Failures]

HP: 954% (+90% [Dominus: Untethered], Tractus, Whistle: EMPTY) {HALO: PRIMED}
BIO: 183% (+90%,1 Subversive Swarmling [Armed w/ Contender], 1 Sonar-Jack-Baneling, 15 Banelings, 17/30)
CONTENDER: Empty.
RAVENOUS MAW: Primed.
HUNDRED-HANDED: R. Arm.
ACT: 3/3

DORIAN HP: 960% (235%, Interitus [ATK*5, SPD+] Caelorum, Gutgrab [ELEC STACKS: 0])
NOVEMBER HP: 1156% (200%, Tier 3 Core, Deliverance, [ATK*5 DEF*5])
METALL GESCHOSS: Cord Intact.

Threat: Nullified, Making Death Saving Throws.

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next one and a half hours.)
>>
>>3781911
Well, gentlemen, this fight has been a doozy, that's for sure.

Now let's use Ravenous Maw on her to get that max HP upgrade, gather together all of the biomass that we can, bring it back to the base and call it a day.
>>
>>3781911

Shu;
>Jack in and Stun her. Best to be safe. Keep your Halo primed too, of course.
>Run the Contender through her skull. End this.

Dorian and November;
>Be prepared for any last tricks up her sleeve. She seems to have none, but being prepared to strike never hurts.
>>
>>3781911
>Write in


>she might be unconcious but there might be automated defenses eunnign in her mind. Run the Contender through her head and kill her
>"You were a worthy foe. Rest now we will probably see each other again soon"

Dorian November:
>Keep your eyes out for any surprises she might have left

After she is dead:
>Gather all the usable BIO(levels) and then get the hell out of dodge. This fight is going to attract some attention and we dont want to be here when it arrives to pick off whoever was the victor.
>>
>>3781911
Yeah, I'm with the rest of the party. Finish her off. Maybe we technically struck first, but she quite clearly expressed the intent to harm us despite our attempts at peaceful communication. Neuromancy solves a lot of ethical conundrums when you can actually know intent and not just actions. Hell, thanks to how the Dreamscape works we can execute prisoners and incarcerate them in a secure and comfortable prison all at once.

>Have Dorian and November ready to cut/blast her to pieces if she tries anything
>Bite off her head with the Ravenous Maw

>>3781918
I wouldn't jack in, she might try one last trick along the Neuromantic connection. And I like the idea of using the Maw to get the Health boost, no reason not to.
>>
>>3781911
The option to finish off a defeated enemy always makes me uncomfortable. Well, we have no beef with her other than starting a fight with us when we went after the big monster, as she could've just remained hidden and let us move on with our haul or come out to talk instead of attacking. Being hunger-mad or not wouldn't change things.

I say finish her with the Ravenous Maw to get the health upgrade.
>>
>>3781911
>>3781918
>Once dead, send some drillings to see if any biomass is left in the cave.
>Otherwise, gather and condense what biomass we can find down to transport on/in the tank, and get the hell out of here.
>Rest up and get on with the hunt, once everyone's a bit more in shape.


>>3781920
good point

>>3781924
i dont like the idea of leaving her to her own devices, and maybe shes hoping we throw something fleshy at her, not something more solid like a blade.

fights not over til its actually over, like i said.
>>
>>3781911
>"For what it's worth Lepisma, you've put up a good fight."
>Ready an Amethyst Cord, Jack it into Lepisma. Paralyze her and rob her of her remaining act.
>"But since you're so eager to see what I'm made of, I'll grant you your last request before sending you off."
>Insert Cord into Lepisma, give her a good glimpse of Shu's character sheet, our other abilities, and our passives.
>"Goodnight."
>Stab the Contender through the neck or use the Ravenous Maw to Decapitate Lepisma.
>After Lepisma is dead, release a heavy sigh.
>"Well, expected to hunt a worm, turns out the worm was bait for the "Silver" Fish we caught instead. Lets wrap this up. Grab her corpse, put her in the tank, lets clean up this place of any harvestable bio quickly and get out of here. We've caused too much of a ruckus, Especially with the cannon fire and the Geyser that I just pulled."

>Delegate the clean-up and harvest.

>November Loots the sword and grabs the Constructs, Lepisma's corpse, and any other Relics that Lepisma may have on her person.

>Shu goes on overwatch. A ring of 9 Sonar-jacklings and 9 Sight Enhanced Swarmlings secure the area by placing themselves 4-6 movement zones away from the kill sight in a circular perimeter.

>Dorian's Paintlings and Dorian himself go and Harvest what remains of the Worm Corpse and see if there's any usable relics or bio left inside that cave.
>>
>>3781935
yeah no im vetoing talking to her or dragging this out, especially showing her more of our sheet.
>>
>>3781935
>Ready an Amethyst Cord, Jack it into Lepisma. Paralyze her and rob her of her remaining act.
She could still have Neurmoantic defenses runnign around in her head that still function jsut ki8lll her first and safe any speeches for when we meet her in the Dreamscape

>Insert Cord into Lepisma, give her a good glimpse of Shu's character sheet, our other abilities, and our passives.
Can we not do that please? We can have conversations with her all we like AFTER we consumed her. She will end up in Shus Head most likely anyway

And shit i forgot the sword in my write up
>>
>>3781940
if you're that worried Shu can go into Halo isolation mode for a few moments.
>>
>>3781927
>i dont like the idea of leaving her to her own devices, and maybe shes hoping we throw something fleshy at her, not something more solid like a blade.
She didn't show much ability to prevent getting her head bitten off before. But maybe she's got one last push she was holding in reserve, so alright. Actually, she was trying to warp the Dainsleif, too, so even the Contender isn't totally safe. Let's have November just shoot her in the head, I doubt she can subvert plasma.

>>3781911
>Have November shoot her in the head. Two in the dome, it's the only way to be sure.
>Us and Dorian standing by in case Lepisma tries any last tricks, us with Halo primed.
>After she's dead, get to work looting spoils. We search body for any Relics then concentrate corpse as much as possible. November hauls in Swordie and sword, Shu concentrates any suitable portions of Swordie. November then goes to assist Dorian in checking Wurm for edible bits/butchering its corpse. Shu sends sonarlings to search cavern for anything remaining.
>Store everything in/on the tank, drive off a fair distance just to get away from the scene and any scavengers, then drop a spoke and teleport back to Lair to drop off the haul.
>Teleport back and resume hunt.

>>3781940
Yeah, I'm agreed. Don't waste time on speeches now, we can talk to her later. If we're paranoid enough that we're not going to bite Lepisma just in case she can subvert our teeth, let's not give her a connection to our brain until after she's dead.
>>
>>3781911
Amending my vote from >>3781920
to:
>"Dorian November keep an eye out for any kind of surprise she might have left."

>Go into momentary lockdown mode while you link to her and paralyse her before sinking the contender into her Head and killing her with it.
>"You were a worthy foe. Rest now we will probably see each other again soon"

>Lift Lockdown

>Novmeber go and get all the relics
The Sword especially Dual Wield that shit with the Dainslef

>Shu goes on Overwatch with Sonar-.Jacklings and sends several of her Drilligns to help out Dorian

>Dorian get down into the cave with your paintlings and Shus constructs to search for any relics and BIO left there

>Compress the BIO as much as possible and get the hell out of dodge
>>
>>3781948
The Contender is a legendary weapon with its own personality created by Charon as a Masterpiece. The Dainslef is nothing compared to it.

>>3781942
Thank you i forgot about that setting of the Halo
>>
>>3781940
>>3781938
I'll relent. It just seemed thematic for Shu to give some last words for those she fights before finishing them off. We've had last words for our past opponents. We've established Shu as the sort of person that will try to make people who are dying or killed by our hand to die a comfy or at least dignified death. Johanna may be the exception since at the time we were mad as hell and wanted to make a witty bond one-liner against her "I'm a god" philosophy, but I'm getting off track. I'll amend my vote.

>>3781935
>>3781911
Amending my vote:

>"For what it's worth Lepisma, you've put up a good fight. If you're that eager to see what I'm made off...I'll see you in the dreamscape."
>"goodnight Lepisma."
>Give November the signal to execute her.
>After Lepisma is dead, release a heavy sigh.
>"Well, expected to hunt a worm, turns out the worm was bait for the "Silver" Fish we caught instead. Lets wrap this up. Grab her corpse, her constructs and her relics, put her in the tank, clean up this place of any harvestable bio quickly and get out of here. We've caused too much of a ruckus, Especially with the cannon fire and the Geyser that I just pulled."

>Delegate the clean-up and harvest.

>November Loots the sword and grabs the Constructs, Lepisma's corpse, and any other Relics that Lepisma may have on her person.

>Shu goes on overwatch. A ring of 9 Sonar-jacklings and 9 Sight Enhanced Swarmlings secure the area by placing themselves 4-6 movement zones away from the kill sight in a circular perimeter. 10 Grapp-lings and 2 Knight-ling go assist Dorian, with Dorian himself riding a Knightling.

>Dorian's Paintlings and Dorian himself go and Harvest what remains of the Worm Corpse and see if there's any usable relics or bio left inside that cave with Shu's swarm assisting.

>>3781955
Okay, just for bonus swag points, I want to have November equip the Silver Sword in her off hand. The sight of Dorian, November, and Shu power walking with the tank rumbling behind them, Shu with the contender, Dorian with the GutGrab Daggers, and November handling two heavy melee weapons. would make for a powerful and impressionable entrance when we return home.

And really. This fight was just the tip of the iceberg the real fight will soon begin...when bhop announces it's time to to the Party level up vote, and we have to make proposals for what upgrades or consume options we want to give to our family, especially Francine since she's such an empty slate.

Ready your proposals, we might be here for 7 hours this time before it concludes.
>>
>>3781984
>Ready your proposals, we might be here for 7 hours this time before it concludes.

Do not kid yourself good sir. / hours will be a good time to start.(I just hope its over the weekend as otherwise i will have to skip out on that vote quite heavily)

Maybe we will hunt a bit more. A couple smallfries maybe.Just to relax
>>3781984
While i would like to do that she is simply too dangerous(in my opinion) to give her more than a scentence or two.... sadly
>>
>>3781984
we have left plenty of enemies without final words. more than not without a doubt, especially if we thought the risk was not worth it.

still vetoing talking to her at all.
>>
>>3781984
>>3781994
yeah i want to get more hunts in before we go back. we need more than just one fights worth of levels here by alot(even without Fran but she certainly makes the issue worse), and i dont trust going back with only one kill to do anything but throw us off track. that, and it'll work better to stack all our kills options together, both in choices and overall distribution.

plus, it actually hasn't been that long, and it would be good to give the research team alot of time, especially when you remember anyplace new the clones are walking to. more time has its drawbacks, but for Amara and them gathering info, more time will only help significantly.
>>
>>3781995
>Remembers Penny Dreadful and Sobbing Sasha, didn't leave a word when fighting her to rescue Kosi
fair point on Penny Dreadful and Sasha, but amalgams don't count.

>>3782003
I don't want to risk losing the harvest that we got from raiders and thieves. Best we offload our kills at home early before heading out again. And keep in mind, We're getting the levels that we would have gotten from hunting the Behemoth class Worm and the levels gathered from Lepisma on top of that. It's an amount of level up points that we don't want to have simply sitting in our tank.
>>
>>3782003
There's also the risk that we might over-hunt the Molar/Mushroom Wastes. Salt Lake Spire was south of the Mushroom wastes as a notable landmark, but it's a significant part of the biome.

Another thing that i would like to point out is that Behemoth class amalgams are basically the largest class we've seen to date, it's basically the largest game that we just hunted and game like that attracts lots of "vultures" when they die.
>>
>>3782010
Agreed. I'm uncomfortable walking around with this many levels unconsumed. At least bring them to a safe stash. We don't have to stop now, we can pool together multiple hunts worth of meat before we eat so as to consolidate the voting debates, but let's get the haul someplace safe before we move on to the next one.
>>
>>3781984
>>3781911
Amending my vote a final time:

>Give November the signal to execute her.
>After Lepisma is dead, release a heavy sigh.
>"Well, expected to hunt a worm, turns out the worm was bait for the "Silver" Fish we caught instead. Lets wrap this up. Grab her corpse, her constructs and her relics, put her in the tank, clean up this place of any harvestable bio quickly and go back home. We've caused too much of a ruckus, Especially with the cannon fire and the Geyser that I just pulled. We leave when the first 'vulture' reaches the perimeter."

>Delegate the clean-up and harvest.

>November Loots the sword and grabs the Constructs, Lepisma's corpse, and any other Relics that Lepisma may have on her person.

>Shu goes on overwatch. A ring of 9 Sonar-jacklings and 9 Sight Enhanced Swarmlings secure the area by placing themselves 4-6 movement zones away from the kill sight in a circular perimeter. 10 Grapp-lings and 2 Knight-ling go assist Dorian, with Dorian himself riding a Knightling. While Shu is on overwatch, she uses her perfect 1km vision to try and locate the nearest accessible waystation

>Dorian's Paintlings and Dorian himself go and Harvest what remains of the Worm Corpse and see if there's any usable relics or bio left inside that cave with Shu's swarm assisting.

>Spend as many actions harvesting, condensing and and gathering all the corpses and loot that we can. before leaving on the tank and heading back east towards the nearest waystation when the first "vulture" reaches the perimeter.
>>
>>3782010
>>3782016
>>3782025
i dont care nor think overhunting is a worry that much. i also disagree it will still be enough nor on ending out hunt yet.

i also dont think raiders are really a thing nor something to worry about. i highly doubt theres thieves. anyone that comes for us will be coming to kill and consume us, nothing else. a tank is also super defensible.
>>
>>3782028
>>3781911
Amending this
>Spend as many actions harvesting, condensing and and gathering all the corpses and loot that we can. before leaving on the tank and heading back east towards the nearest waystation when the first "vulture" reaches the perimeter.

to

>Spend as many actions harvesting, condensing and and gathering all the corpses and loot that we can. before leaving on the tank and heading towards the nearest accessible waystation.
>>
>>3781911

BHOP, with the nails, could we teleport all this stuff back home?
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>>3782030
Well Raiders are probably a problem but not a problem for us...

>>3782025
>>3782016
Seriously people that want to fight with us will try to kill us and not just steal our shit. If we can compress it down enouhg maybe to the size of a marble or a box of ammo. people that want our shit will be out of luck since they will ahve to fight us. Our reputaion alone will keep all but the strongerst raiders at bay

That does not take a lot of space and could be stored inside the tank
>>
>>3782039
reputation alone might keep the raiders at bay but what they won't keep at bay is the legions of swarming fangirls that want to snuggle up to us like parasites and questionable motivations.
>>
>>3782034
Let's avoid waystations. We don't need to use them, better to get in the habit of not going to them for when Charon starts hunting again.

>>3782039
>If we can compress it down enouhg maybe to the size of a marble or a box of ammo
Yes, "if". We don't know how small we can compress this down, and people sure seem to be assuming that it won't be able to all be stored in the tank given the discussion of storing it on top. I'm not worried about someone going directly for it, I'm worried about stray fire. It will take five minutes to get it all home, I don't see what the fuss is. So what if something happens when we get home that would distract us from further hunting? If something like that happens, then we shouldn't be out hunting.
>>
>>3782042
Well we can keep ahead of those at least for a time

And if they show up we should be able to see them coming one way or another(the fangirl screeches will give them away before they make it into 50 Meters)
>>
>>3782047
We are on /qst... everything can distract us. It would jsut need Amar making Puppy Eyes at us to convince most people that we need to spend soem more time with the family
>>
>>3782039
raiders would only be a threat to a settlement, unless you are talking about simply daughters willing to hunt other daughters, but thats still just a threat to us as a whole, not our biomass, and is nothing new nor to be unexpected.

>>3782028
>>3782047
i agree waystations are a bad idea unless absolutely necessary.

>>3782047
no, see, my worry is its something you folks will refuse to ignore because none of you actually trust our family to do things on their own, not something that Shu herself can ignore safely. if something major had happened that Shu NEEDED to come home for, they can and would contact us over.

>>3782042
id like to say this might not be a problem... but i can totally see it being a problem.
>>
>>3782054
I was using raiders as a general term for any daughter willing to actively hunt other daughters for levels and will seek them out either in the fleshscape at large or in certain enclosed spaces (like settlements)

I have to say i trust our family. I trusted in Gina in our first engagnemt with Isabelle and later in Dorian when it cam e to running her down
>>
>>3782036
(You absolutely could, and it wouldn't take any time at all. Additionally, Gina and the others are out on a research hunt, so they aren't home at the moment. No worries about getting distracted by puppy-dog eyes from Amara...or Gina, for that matter. )
>>
>>3782065
So can we make that part of the gathering order and then just dump the stuff without really spending any time inside the lair?
>>
>>3782054
>no, see, my worry is its something you folks will refuse to ignore because none of you actually trust our family to do things on their own, not something that Shu herself can ignore safely. if something major had happened that Shu NEEDED to come home for, they can and would contact us over.
Yeah, that's not true. We trust them to do things on their own. As I recall, you started banging on about this because we wanted to leave useful Relics to our family while we went out hunting, which has nothing to do with trusting them to handle themselves. Wanting our loved ones to be well-equipped has as much to do with trust as wanting ourselves to be well-equipped. It's not that we don't have faith in their competence, we just wanted them to be have the right tools.
>>
>>3781911

I'm good with almost all of this:>>3782028 except no waystation, we should take the nail express and bamf back and forth with the delicious biomass back home. Between all the -lings we can get everything together and get it home to share among our little family.
>>
>>3782065
Rath could probably pull off puppy-eyes too if she ever really wanted to.

>>3782071
yeah no its entirly true, no ones voting habits at past times has ever proven otherwise, and i had to argue to even trust them with what we are trusting them with now.
>>
>>3782065
thanks for letting us know.
>>3781911
Amending my vote a final time to add the final amendment:
>Have the bio harvested to be sent back home via Escher's Teleporting express.
>>
(Gentlemen, to clarify something for myself before I resume writing; you're voting to finish Lepisma, take the biomass and Relics back home to examine and divvy up later, and then continue the hunt from the beach?)

>>3782079
(True, especially where Relics and guns are concerned.)
>>
>>3781911
Hmm, combat hasn’t ceased so there’s still the chance it could flare up.

I’m still suspicious of a neuromantic abolity being activated if we [Consume]
>>
>>3782084
yeah we want to finish her and then put the biomass back home and the relics maybe except for the sword....
I personally want November to have it right away
>>
>>3782084

I'm proposing execute > gather > divvy up the spoils with the family as long as the other teams are in a position to have a "lunch" break > continue the hunt.
>>
>>3782084
so long as we continue the hunt ill relent on dropping the stuff of, so yes. only thing i can think is technically no on the beach? people want to continue the hunt but want to move away from the battlefield to avoid getting caught up in any attention it draws.

unless im misunderstanding you, and you mean hunt in the same area, in which case im not sure anyone cares specifically where we continue the hunt.
>>
>>3782094
Why? divvy up that will cause us to stop dead in our tracks and cause us to start bickering about it

Also the Research Team is out so ther is no one to divvy up with anyway
>>
>>3782095
(You'd warp back to the beach, and then the vote would open up to see where you'd like to go from there.)

>>3782094
(As I mentioned earlier, the rest of your family is out for the moment, so you'll all reconvene later to level up.)
>>
>>3782101
i think people would prefer to move to a more safe location first, before dropping the levels off. that way if the battle did draw any attention, we dont warp back into the middle of an ambush or fight or anything.
>>
>>3782079
>yeah no its entirly true, no ones voting habits at past times has ever proven otherwise, and i had to argue to even trust them with what we are trusting them with now.
When would our voting habits have had the chance to? Up until recently, we haven't had multiple tasks to take on at once. This is the first time that's happened, and no, you didn't have to argue to get us to trust them with this. I'm the only one who raised any objection on the team assignments, and after you clarified your position on what the intel team was doing I agreed with you. I am looking at that thread, there was no argument. I'm the only objection, and I came around quickly.
>>
>>3782103
This is why I have Shu keeping Overwatch over the killsite November and Dorian will do the Teleporting and harvesting, while Shu like a protective parent, keeps watch and when someone breaches the perimeter, we either get the hell out of dodge, scorch the earth and get the hell out of dodge, or pack up what we can't teleport onto the tank and get the hell out of dodge, or stand our ground and defend our kill.
>>
>>3782103
Agreed. Let's drive off back to the rock that A gave us as a landmark to navigate to the lake with. We can drop things off there.
>>
>>3782108
nah, id still prefer to just get out of dodge before we do that. Shus also still going to be recovering. Teleporting still takes extra time, just pile it all on, drive off, then teleport it all at once.

>>3782107
thats not the only time ive had to convince people, its just the only times it been something major.
>>
>>3782109
that sounds counter productive, as isnt that rock on the island? all that would do is isolate us and make us have to drive back through anything that came to check things out, via a skinny pathway.
>>
>>3782099

Personal preference to ensure everyone is as fit as possible while out and about. It's not something that is vital to me though. Definitely want to get the biomass back home though.

I'm fine with relenting on the divvying up now.
>>
>>3782117
>>3782109
to clarify, i could've sworn said rock was the gigantic spire on the island, and we just saw it from a distance as a signifier due to its height.
>>
>>3782127
I interpreted it as two separate rocks at the time but looking back I think you're right. Alright, then, let's just go halfway back to the mushroom forest. Open ground around us on every side, plenty of directions to head if we want to.
>>
>>3782130
>>3782101
>mushroom forest
this came to my mind.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPUn6aWec_g
>>
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>>3781911

An amethyst jack snakes from your off-hand and into Lepisma’s throat as you raise you blade, meeting her pitiless gaze with one of your own. There’s an understanding in her twin voids, a resignation that watches as you plunge the Contender between her eyes. They fade from obsidian to slate grey almost instantly, her skull casing flickering one, twice, then going dark.

Even in death…she’s completely, utterly silent.

>>COMBAT: CEASED

“Grab her corpse and put her in the tank. We’ll clean up shop and get out of here.” You say brusquely, withdrawing your blade and flicking the silver liquid off it with a sweep of your hand, tossing it to the sand at your feet. “Between the geyser and the cannon fire, we’ve caused too much of a ruckus to be ignored for long. November, could you pack as much biomass into the tank as you can? I can get my swarm to help, if you need it.”

“Much obliged, Ma’am.” She replies with an audible smile as you summon a fleet of scouts to ensure you’re not taken by surprise, turning to Dorian as you continue.

“I need you to make short work of those caves, to see if there’s anything we’ve missed down there that’s salvageable.”

“By your leave, Miss Shu.” Dorian bows, speeding off in a blur of motion as the last of your swarmling scouts take flight from your aching hive. Within the span of fifteen minutes or so you reconvene at the Metall Geschoss, November having successfully packed the biomass into the hull as elegantly as she can manage, while both she and Dorian bring four Relics of note to your attention. The Silver Warrior’s Sword is clutched tight in November’s right hand, while in her left a sharply-angled cube drips with ichor, having been ripped from Lepisma’s remains. Dorian meanwhile reveals a pair of curious objects he found in the caves; two tightly-capped jars, one of which holds a jet-black substance and proves to be unusually heavy, while the other appears to be quite empty, the nature of the almost perfectly clear liquid inside only becoming apparent when held up to the breaking light of the false dawn.

The brief stop home reveals the Dragon’s Roost to be expectedly empty, Gina and the rest of your family still out researching as you deposit your haul in a container you summon and subsequently seal tight from the Core Console.

>>LEVEL-UP POINTS AVAILABLE: 24
>>RELICS: 4

You congratulate your allies as you pile back into the tank, the Geschoss’ hull distorting around you as you teleport back to the shade of the Fungal Forest’s edge, well away from where you had your showdown with an unexpected Daughter.

The only question now is where to go from here.

>>Go back into the woods to hunt down what else resides in those shadowed depths.

>>Continue exploring along the beach, heading westward as you go.

>>Choose another area entirely to explore (Write-In).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two hours.)

>>3782137
(That's actually the music I was listening to when writing that section. Nicely done.)
>>
>>3782165
>Continue exploring along the beach, heading westward as you go.
>give yourself a moment to recover, but once you can, send out 15 stealthlings, 10 to scan the immediate area for amalgams, 5 to sporadically head much further out, to see if anything a bit more random and farther away might find anything interesting, amalgam or not.
>Ask Dorian and November about the fight. where they think we did good, where they think we were lacking.
>Ask them in general their thoughts about how things are going for the group, and if they have anything else they have on their mind to discuss.
>Give Marco a scratch on his head for doing such a wonderful job helping November during the fight, even if she looks at you funnily.
>>
>>3782165
>>Continue exploring along the beach, heading westward as you go.
>>Write-In
>Re-establish our swarmling sensor net.
I think we'd probably do better out of the woods. More room to maneuver and fire our big tank gun.

So twenty-four levels among seven people. Four more points makes that an even split. Eleven more lets us still make it even at five each. Let's aim for eleven, I think we'll probably easily overshoot four.

>>3782181
Yes, definitely supporting giving Marco scritches. He is a good solfugid and should not let those mean internet memes get him down.
>>
>>3782165

>Head along the beach and continue westward

> Have a small conversation while using your swarm to scout.

>"Your body holding out November?"

>"What did both of you think about the fight. I think you were quite the hard counter to her abilities. I dont want to know what they would have been capable off if you hadnt maged to deal with them so quickly"

Dont go into the woods There should be little there as Lara probably hunted most things before she wanted to leave.

>>3782171
Do we have the sword with us did we store it in the Lair?

24 LevelUp Points.... a nice start
>>
>>3782181
We've already got 9 Sonar jacklings, 9 Sight-enhanced Swarmlings, 2 knightlings, and 10 Grapplings out in play. No need to make more, but we can recycle our existing swarmlings and repurpose them.

Also, I'd like to have at least one waystation location unlocked further west so that we can drive the tank back home. otherwise we'd be having to do a long drive back home.
>>
>>3782193
i think he meant the fungal forest, not laras memory woods, but i still agree with
>>3782191
on keeping to ground better suited for the tank.

>>3782197
it was implied we just recycle them and dont keep any swarmlings we dont need.

also we are heading west(or so is what my vote is saying and everyone else so far has voted) and have swarmlings scouting. i doubt BHOP wont tell us if we find a waystation while scouting. we... we also literally just teleported the entire tank back home and then back to the forests edge. i think BHOP just made it very clear we do not need a waystation.
>>
>>3782197
The Geschoss is small enough to be taken with us when we teleport, we can just drop a spoke.
>>
>>3782165

BHOP, just to be clear, there's no chance of losing Lepisma while she's in cold storage? She deserved death in the end, but many who are freed of the flesh turn out to be... at least decent... in the dreaming. Also, if she is a Phantasmal Conduit, is there a chance of helping those daughters she consumed at the same time as someone took on the Conduit powers?

>>Continue exploring along the beach, heading westward as you go.
>> Gauge how the group is feeling after that battle. I'd love to hear November's A.A.R. on that fight especially.

Also, totally seconding >>3782181
Marco scritches for sure. Marco best spider.
>>
>>3782165
>>Continue exploring along the beach, heading westward as you go.

24 Points among seven people, that's 3 points each with 3 left over.

Do we want Shu and Dorian to absorb their points now, to make whatever fight is up ahead a bit easier?
>>
>>3782211
>>3782209
oh thank goodness for that.

>>3782217
We wait. It wouldn't be fair for us to grab our level ups this early.
>>
>>3782217
Nah that will just turn into a clusterfuck later on

Just do it all in one go to make sure dont miss anything or mess up on something we would want on them later on form other prey
>>
>>3782214
(She's fine in storage. If she wasn't, I would have clarified that before hand.)

(Also, I'm afraid the Daughters within her are lost upon her death, as she did not have enough levels in the ability to keep them active in her Core upon her demise.)
>>
>>3782217

I think we do it as a family. Also, we should probably give the 3 extra to Francine to help boost her up. I wouldn't be opposed to knowing where way stations are though, as we may need them when split up, due to only having the one Escher wheel.
>>
>>3782231

Thanks BHOP. As it's the first time we haven't immediately consumed a daughter foe I wanted to make sure.
>>
>>3782217
no, we wait. besides fairty like was said, it also complicates matters, especially with cores and whatnot and trying to keep everything straight. also interrupts the flow. plus, we already dropped it off, its much too late now.

also;
>>3782165
>>3782181
adding in;
>see if we cant help November out with that gash on her back. maybe use a combo of Chitin plating, Drill rivets, and a mix of Shu Honey and Dorian Paintling glue, to give her temporary repairs, so she doesn't have a giant gash in her back? maybe use our heat acid very gently to reshape any jagged metal left over too?

i doubt its that big a deal, but hey, better than not trying id imagine.
plus, considering everything, isnt that like her clothes being torn in a way? not that November seems like the type to get embarrassed though.

>>3782233
lets see how many levels we can rack up and decide that then. maybe we can even snatch a whole extra(but quick) kill just for her. id personally like everyone to get an even 5 minimum at LEAST from our hunts first though.
>>
>>3782193
(As for the sword, you have it with you. Its stat block will be posted at the next update.)
>>
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>>3782240

Agreed on getting Francine boosted up. Ye goddesses, we really are Fools, and I love every bit of it.

I'm also game to help November if she wants it. Probably would have to follow her guidance through the emotional link anyways as I don't think Shu is really the right person for that job. Glad Rath is hard at work, but dang she'd be better at it.
>>
>>3782211
>the tank teleports when the gear is used
Oh god, the Combat potential. Hot-dropping a Tank via teleporting would surprise the shit out of our enemies if we weaponize it by using multiple gear spokes.
We could pull a Inverse scene of the Delorean Time Travel sequence except with teleportation and the Tank coming out of Teleport mid-Nova Lunge.
>>
>>3782240
>plus, considering everything, isnt that like her clothes being torn in a way? not that November seems like the type to get embarrassed though.
But she's wearing Sui Tormentis, too, on top of her chassis. I guess that makes the gash like having your bra snap?

>>3782257
We might give her Lepisma's Core. On the one hand, the necromancy theme fits Francine's threads and mad science stuff, and the Core boosts would be very useful for her stats. On the other hand, having Lepisma in her head might not be great for her mental state. Depends on what we can read about Lepisma from her Core's description, but I have my doubts they'd be compatible.
>>
>>3782240
5 minimum sounds pretty good, that way, it feels as though we're getting a substantial boost instead of a trickle of power.

Split seven ways, that comes to 35 points total, meaning we'll need another 11 points at least. I'm not sure how much the next hunt will yield, but I'm assuming we'll receive at least that, if not more so.

>>3782257
I agree completely with giving Francine the extra points. She needs them, right now she's like a level 5 character against our level 40 or 50s.
>>
>>3782266
Lepisma might actually be better for Shu than Francine. Her ability to control minions and modify them on the fly was insane. The power to take aspects of an enemy Hive Mistress and apply them to our own constructs? Devastating in Shu's hands.
>>
>>3782326
She could also be useful for Gina to augment her already quite capable undermining of other peoples constructs/minds.

I would guess many of the powers she posesseswill make it into Shus and Ginas Moveset.
>>
>>3782344
>>3782326
Francine needs some good head friends.
>>
>>3782326
Something I'm really hoping we can grab is a Passive or Augment that makes us immune (or at least heavily resistant) to having our constructs subverted like that. Professor Uzu's notes said that the first few floors of the Cord had an effect that turned any newly-spawned (though not ones you brought in with you) constructs against you, and we're a pretty construct-heavy party. I don't want to go through this again in the endgame.
>>
>>3782357
But i am not sure Lepidissma is a good pick for her first friend

Sure she needs people up ther but maybe not the emotionless silverfish person.

>>3782361
I am not sure if we can get something that will be powerful enough to override the cords fieldeffect

We can try but we should maybe create some constructs that we take in while they are inactive so we only have to activate them instead of creating them
>>
>>3782367
>We can try but we should maybe create some constructs that we take in while they are inactive so we only have to activate them instead of creating them
That might work, if we get the time to build up forces before entering. I'd put even money on us having to get in quick and slam the door behind us before we're followed in. Though if we do get the chance to prepare, I almost feel bad for the Cord. The Joyous Many will probably be at or near max level by then, imagine what level fifteen Many with time to exponentially double would be like.
>>
>>3782380
The Cord will be drowned in 7 year old Ninja Cat Girls supported by an Army of explosive Bees that have massive arms build for lifiting.........

Did that statement sound wrong to anyone else?
>>
>>3782394
You're forgetting the tiny homunculi made of animated blood.
>>
>>3782394
(This is the way the Crucible ends, this is the way the Crucible ends, not with a bang, but with a buzz.)
>>
>>3782406
Right forgot those and they shall ride the speartip on the back of a massive spider driving a tank.
>>
>>3782394

Seems perfectly normal. Nothing wrong at all.

Cord initiates Bob Barker protocol and additional copies are prevented from making copies.
>>
>>3782421
I have to say this feels a bit like the Similacrum exploit in DND

A Wizard casts similacrim that is completely like him but can not regenerate Spells after using them This copy then again casts Similacrum until you have the desired amount of wizard to just walk up to a city and delete it from the face of the world in one round(6 seconds) by spamming Fireball or any other desired spell. Had to stop one of my players from using that because otherwise several of the big baddies could have used that tactic as well...... unlimited Powerliches would be really scary
>>
(Work's slowed a bit so I'm writing now, Gentlemen. I may head home here shortly so there may be a brief delay between updates, so thank you for bearing with me.)
>>
>>3782322
lets see what our options are two. if theres alot in the area that look decent enough, no reason to stop. that, or we find something interesting to check out. its only if we have to take another major road trip to a new area i think 5 alone would be good enough.

also guys id say lets actually see what the ability does in writing before we jump to conclusions. small details matter, and all that, aswell as us possibly misunderstanding how an ability actually comes to its conclusion, if that makes sense.

that, and no ones kits need a new abilities. at all or in any way.
with the obvious exception of Francine of course.

>>3782361
we have a General Generators Succulent Sauce round, we we may be able to coerce a related ability into that, and id say we can easily argue to put it over just a single corpse instead of all of it too, though id prefer us to figure out which one has the most abilities for Francine then pout it over everything else.

>>3782380
the biggest issue will be that groups arent allowed, so we probably will have to kill the guardian and blast a hole in the gate to get in at all.
>>
>>3782619
>the biggest issue will be that groups arent allowed, so we probably will have to kill the guardian and blast a hole in the gate to get in at all.
Yep. We still don't have a solution for that past the vague "hack it with Neuromancy" solution. Best guess I have for a way past the gate is to see if there are any useful clues in Ozmas' diary. But I doubt it, that's all stuff from before they ascended. I doubt they have a secret password that they're still using or anything like that. Yurei might have a plan, though, she seems like she's got a farther-along idea of how to get an entire team into the Cord.
>>
>>3782639
>Yurei
who?

also as far we know it might not be hackable from the outside. also Ozmas herself made the change, the little bitch, so i doubt shes the best place to figure out how to get past it from.
>>
>>3782639
There's also another conflicting issue we might face in the Cord. There's probably only enough processing power/data storage for one major change to the entire Crucible OS. And one terminal.
>>
>>3782652
im not so sure about that. i dont think even West is so clever as to be so gung ho about her own hacking of the cord as to think one change alone would be enough. she might not be against being mother per say, but theres certainly more than one major change she would have to make to it for it to be worth it for her plans.

second part entirely depends on the layout. we know to properly hack and change it we have to do it in the room right before Mother/the winners room, but that could still be quite a large area. we'll see though. its implied it doesn't have a 'terminal' is what im saying, but that we basically just stab the inner most wall more or less to get at the info.
>>
>>3782648
>who?
That was the name of the Hyenas' employer, the lady that's recruiting Daughters for an attack on the Cord. She must believe she has some way to get her entire team in.

>also as far we know it might not be hackable from the outside. also Ozmas herself made the change, the little bitch, so i doubt shes the best place to figure out how to get past it from.
Yeah, it's a major longshot that she would have just password locked the door, and that it's a password she's been using forever so her journal would include it. I admit it's not a great idea for where we'd find a way in.

>>3782652
Quite possibly. If it does, our hope is pinned on the idea that "reboot ecosystem" counts as a single change. I doubt there's a terminal so much as a nerve cluster, though. Remember, you're not supposed to be able to access the Crucible's OS without winning and ascending to the throne, that would be the only place where there's meant to be an interface. We'll have to make our own, at a suitable spot. I believe Proxy Uzu said it was at the penultimate level before the throne room.
>>
>>3782666
oh, yeah my horrible ability with names strikes again. to be fair im more of remembering her being called by a title though, or something. regardless, her plan was literally to form an army and storm it. i think her plan might literally be to just brute force their way inside. which, mind you, i just realized even for their own plan id imagine they still have to climb up a good ways, i doubt even with an army of neuromancers with how its described to work, you could still do something major on the first level. maybe, but unlikely, and probably involves more brute forcing via throwing numbers at is as peoples brains fry.
>>
>>3782675
> to be fair im more of remembering her being called by a title though, or something
I called her "Ghost Lady" a bunch, because Yurei is Japanese for ghost. That's probably what you're thinking of.

>i think her plan might literally be to just brute force their way inside
Maybe. I think she'd probably want to reduce damage to it given that she plans on living in the thing, so I wouldn't be surprised if she has ideas for a more surgical insertion. It's definitely something to ask when we eventually speak with her.

>which, mind you, i just realized even for their own plan id imagine they still have to climb up a good ways, i doubt even with an army of neuromancers with how its described to work, you could still do something major on the first level
Oh, yeah, no way there's anything useful at the first level, even if they just want to upload themselves into its systems. I'd expect they'd need to get at least halfway up. Given that the thing extends at least to the Karman line, here's hoping it has elevators. Otherwise we're talking about climbing at least six times higher than Mount Everest. Hell, let's hope it has elevators for our sake, we've got to go nearly all the way to the top.
>>
>>3782688
Anon.. im sorry but.... we pretty much know it doesn't have elevators...
or at the very least, each one only goes up level at a time, which isnt much better.
>>
>>3782380
Imagine what all those constructs turning on their creator would do.
>>
>>3782690
No, that's what I mean. I would be fine with just having elevators between floors. It won't make the climb much less harder, but it will help keep morale up. Think about it: Would you rather fight your way through all the dangers on a floor and then have to walk up six hundred flights of stairs? Or would you rather just get in an elevator and have a little breather for a few minutes before the next dungeon level?
>>
>>3782706
fair, but the entire point of the cord seems to be to be the biggest dick possible, so its probably stairs. worse, shittily designed stairs too, so you cant even sit on them comfortably to get a breather.
>>
>>3782705
Yeah, good thing it's only constructs that you spawn in the Cord that betray you in the early levels. Unless it's changed since Professor Uzu climbed it, which for all we know it has. The Cord's changed its layout at least once, Karma thought the Tindalos Hounds were on the first few floors but Uzu's notebook said she started seeing them around the twenties. For all we know that wasn't a change between iterations of the Crucible but just something that happens every couple weeks. Let us pray it is not.
>>
>>3782712
we actually have been noticing alot of info we have gotten from Uzu is not matching other sources. still need to figure that one out, as not all of it is so easily potentially explainable.
>>
>>3782709
You're probably right. God, the Cord barely even needs to be a dungeon, then. No monsters or traps at all and the challenge of "climb to space under your own power" would still make it incredibly difficult.

>>3782716
Yeah, I've noticed that too. Makes me paranoid about what this "Mother of All" thing is and whether Uzu is manipulating us from beyond the grave through some huge long con. The fact that A knew the term as well and used it to refer to Shu is making me doubly paranoid. Was this something they spoke of, a theory of Professor Uzu's predicting the emergence of some special individual, and we're it?
>>
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>>3782181
>>3782191
>>3782165
Absolute support. PARTICULARLY for the Marco headscritching part.
Marco and November are absolute Troopers.

I have particular admiration for November. Screw Master chief, Marcus Fenix, Doomguy and other over-the-top supersoldiers, HOTEL NOVEMBER is where´s at.
Accomplishments as proof: faced off a God that could kill her with a single hit by jumping onto her chest, unloading full auto combat shotgun and automachine gun into her chest, then avoided retaliation and took zero hits for several turns. In only one fight. IT TOOK LITERAL REALITY-HACKING BULLSHIT TO DEAL HER WOUNDS IN THAT FIGHT.

And the best part? She´s not a brooding, mono-dimensional Batman; she´s a well-adjusted person, with a niece, a life, traumas and dreams, which just happens to be REALLY calm, collected and proffesional when she is in a fight.

As you see, I have taken a real liking to November. I am very glad we met her and she told to Rath that she was her aunt.
>>
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>>3782732
please. that picture can't capture the essence that's marco.
>>
>>3782727
>mfw the stairs are what truly defeat most daughters climbing the cord.
>mfw that one daughter with legs like steel who always used the stair climbing machine at the gyms time has finally come.

yeah, the Mother of All things got me thrown for a loop too. my best guess is still Shu is like, either bits and pieces of all past Mothers psyches thrown together, or the cords deep rooted example of what 'Mother' is supposed to actually be, or something. its flimsy ill fully admit but its the best ive got.

>>3782732
yeah Novembers a good Aunt, and not just for Rath. shes got this oddly cocky but clearly level headed attitude about her, which sounds like a contradiction but she makes it work.
>>
>>3782732
As am I. November is awesome. She's this levelheaded badass, quietly shooting up monsters like it's just another day for her. Oh, fights for her life? Yeah, sure, she's up for it. It'll help out her niece and her friends, and family is important.
>>
>>3782732
>>3782740
also il ove nad have to wonder how BHOP feels that he gives us all these neat and interesting characters... and we oogle over and throw our efforts behind treating construct creatures nice and trying to build them up as characters themselves.
>>
>>3782754
You can't fawn over people without it getting creepy eventually. You can over adorable giant bumblebees. Pets are better than humans, in that regard.
>>
>>3782756
True
Also, idea time. Give marco a bumblebee themed racoonskin hat.
>>
>>3782759
what sort of reference are you referring to?
>>
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>>3782165

“I figure we can keep between the forest and beach as we continue west.” You announce as you scratch Marco’s chitinous head, fingers running through the bristles that cover his tan exoskeleton as the tank lurches into gear. Traveling quietly for a minute or two while Dorian works on his newest set of sketches, you eventually glance over to November and catch sight of the open gash on her back.

"Hey, mind if I try my hand at patching your wound?" You offer, November tilting her head back to glance your way. "I'm not nearly up to Rath's level of skill, but I can at least try with my swarmlings."

"...Ha, sure, if you want to." She assents, and you move to her side as you summon a small Baneling from your hive. At your silent command it begins releasing a steady stream of acid, Matron's Stoicism making it possible for you to put a personal touch as you massage the acid against the newly-pliable metal.

"So." You begin, avoiding an otherwise awkward silence as you tease the warped metal back into place. "Any thoughts on how everything just went down?"

"Fairly well, all things considered." She replies, keeping her attention straight ahead as you trundle down the beach, continuing as you quickly drill in a few chitinous replacements for her torn plating. "Dorian was MVP with those swarmlings, and I'm rustier than I'd like to admit when it comes to melee. How's, uh...how's *your* wound? I'm sorry I lost a hold of the Dainsl..."

"Hey now, don't apologize." You softly interrupt, smoothing the chitin patch job with a few tweaks here and there. "You kicked ass. I just wish Rath had been there to see it."

"Ha, yeah. Me too...and thanks for that." She chuckles, though her tone's considerably more somber when she continues. "For everything, actually. Actually, you wanna sit and talk for a sec?"

You glance to the seat beside her, finding the Warrior's sword occupying the space.

"Oh, shit sorry. Lemme move this." She mumbles, snatching up the blade and setting it beside her with some awkward maneuvering.

"Gotten any time to test it out, yet?" You ask, and she just stares at you for a long moment before she realizes what you're talking about.

"Oh, you mean...yeah, actually. It's pretty sweet, I think it'll go well with my new frame, actually. Check it out."

>>MARGRAVE'S BLADE: A Relic forged with protection in mind, this uniquely well-balanced blade possesses both a high cutting power and an unusual quirk. Once per combat, the wielder may declare an individual or object to be under their protection, allowing them to automatically intercept the first attack or status ailment that would affect their ward per turn. However, the user must remain within a short distance of the target to activate this protection. (Arm Slot: HEALTH +150%, ATK++. Auto-counter is now supplemented with a vicious counter-strike at the foe, dealing severe damage if in melee range or reflecting the blocked projectiles [if any] back to their source.)

(Continued)
>>
>>3782765

Now devoid of blades or other items, the seat's yours for the taking. Sliding in beside November she relaxes a bit, her left hand on the twelve o' clock position while her right rests in her lap, eyes trained on the 'road' before her. Taking a breath she doesn't need to, she speaks.

"I wanted to thank you properly for pushing me to talk to Rachel." November says, glancing your way. "I'm not sure where I'd be if I hadn't run into you when I did, but I know I wouldn't be with my niece and that'd have been a damn shame."

"You're welcome...and thank you for reaching out to her and telling her the truth." You reply, a warm smile on your lips. "I can tell she's relieved that she didn't lose everyone she knew before the Crucible. She's got us as her family...but knowing her badass aunt is by her side has her happier than I ever thought she'd be."

"You know...it's kind of fucked up, but I don't think we'd have gotten the chance to get to know each other like this if the world hadn'tve ended." She muses, her laugh coming out as a bark of dark humor. "As close as we could've gotten, I'm not sure I'd have ever really know her...the *real* her, if things hadn't gone to shit."

"How so?"

"Family. My brother, her dad." November explains, gesturing lightly with her right hand as she speaks. "He was a good brother, as brothers go. Took after our Dad more than I'd like. Preacher, family man, high standards. Whole mess of kids, but Rachel and I, we hit it off."

She laughs again, a distant memory causing her eye-ports to light up with a jovial azure shine.

"God, there was this time when she was about six when she learned I was training to be a soldier." She recalls. "She thought I fought with a sword, since she'd been reading about knights and dragons and shit, so I showed her a video a buddy of mine took when we were on the range dicking around with some flame throwers, and Rachel just fucking lost it. Started calling me a dragon, asking me to 'breathe fire' like I did in the video, it was great."

Her laughter dies out, replaced with a wistful sort of tone that comes through well on her new speakers.

"I'm so, so glad she's found you and everyone else. You say she's happy with me in the picture, but part of the reason I hesitated in saying anything about who I was was on account of her being this totally different person. Just this absolute badass, who didn't take shit from anyone and was proud of who she was. If all this hadn't happened, if she was still living with my brother and..."

She stops herself, shaking her head a moment before placing both hands on the wheel again.

"If it sounds like I'm glad he's gone, I'm not that much of a bitch." She chuckles softly. "...I miss him. Wish I could tell him that I'd take back my bitching about his lifestyle, if I could. Wish I could tell him he did a good job being a dad. That what happened to Grace wasn't his fault."

A sigh rattles through her voicebox.

"What's done is done, I guess."

(Continued)
>>
>>3782799

"Anyway, that was just a long-ass way of saying that if it wasn't for you then she wouldn't be around, and we'd never have met again, and I'd have been to much of a coward to see that family's what she needs now, more than ever." November concludes, nodding to herself. "So thank you, Shu; for bringing us together and making Rachel feel comfortable in her own skin around people she likes."

"I'd do it again in a heart beat. All of it." You reply honestly, glancing at the sandy lakefront as it curves into the distance. "It's been an honor fighting by Rath's side, and she's saved our asses more times than I can count."

"I second that motion." Dorian chimes in, his gaze still glued to his sketchbook as you and November share a chuckle.

"Ah, well...she's great and she found great people, I'm happy to say." She trails off, staring into the distance as silence settles once more between you both. Switching your vision to your swarmlings you find that your scouts are still coming up empty, so you widen the search perimeter as you consider what to bring up next to Rath's aunt, considering she seems to be in a talkative mood.

>>Ask more about her family, particularly when Rath was growing up. Plus, more stories about a young Rath make for excellent teasing material.

>>Ask what she thinks about the person Rath is now versus how she used to be. She's mentioned that Rath's 'free to be herself', but you're still not quite sure what that means.

>>Ask about Grace. Rath still hasn't brought up her sister since you saved her from Bella, so you're curious as to what happened there.

>>Ask more about November herself, a.k.a. Heather Neeson. There's still a lot you don't know about her, and you'd particularly like to know about (Write-In).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
>>3782765
>"Oh, you mean...yeah, actually. It's pretty sweet, I think it'll go well with my new frame, actually. Check it out."
Yeah, that's pretty good. I suggest we swap it out for the Ignition Gauntlets.

>>3782799
>Started calling me a dragon, asking me to 'breathe fire' like I did in the video, it was great.
November, if you don't have a fire breath weapon somewhere in your arsenal, I will be sorely disappointed in you. You fulfill your niece's childhood dreams this moment, missy.

And I'm not surprised that November and her brother didn't connect super well. If Rath was six when November was in training, and Rath was not his first child, and as a preacher I assume he went to seminary before starting a family, that puts him somewhere ten to twelve years older than her. It's hard to connect across an age gap that big.
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next one and a half hours. I hope your day has been well, and thank you for your participation as always.)

>>3782754
>>3782756
(Also, I have to admit that the fact everyone fawns over FuzzBuzz and Marco delights me to no end.)
>>
>>3782813
>(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next one and a half hours. I hope your day has been well, and thank you for your participation as always.)
Good, because I actually do have to head out for a while. Should be back before the voting period ends. Later, everyone.
>>
>>3782809
>>Ask more about November herself, a.k.a. Heather Neeson. There's still a lot you don't know about her, and you'd particularly like to know about (Write-In).

>What led you to the military in the first place?

We can ask Rath about Rath any time, but this is a November moment.

Also, that is a SWEET Relic that we picked up. If we give that to November and put her next to somebody relatively non-mobile and a bit squishy (Amara, Gina or Francine), she'd be able to do a lot of good as our tank.
>>
>>3782809
>Ask about Grace. Rath still hasn't brought up her sister since you saved her from Bella, so you're curious as to what happened there.
>Ask more about November herself, a.k.a. Heather Neeson. There's still a lot you don't know about her, and you'd particularly like to know about.
>Ask her about her military time, if shes willing. how she thinks it formed her Hive Mistress core?
>Ask her about your plan for the cord. obviously, shes not against it, but she might have deeper ideas or worries to share on it and how prepared for it we are.
>second most importantly, ask her what her favorite weapon is. this totally is not info to be passed on to Rath, not at all.
>Most importantly, Ask her why she made marco so adorable. totally stealing thunder from your FuzzBuzzes here!

>>3782813
glad to hear it, and days going well. hows YOUR day going BHOP?

>>3782762
the best kind of reference. none at all. I simply thought the hat fit the sorta new frontier theme of the fleshscape and November before we met her, and though it would look kinda adorable on him.


>>3782811
ehhh, its not bad but i disagree its better than the Ignition gauntlets. it traps her to being in close range with another, and is only good if you have a teammate to protect. currently, she does not. the ignition gauntlets also can easily keep an arm free, the sword cant. plus, more health and access to explosive punches PLUS two elemental damage types.

the sword would excess at say, Rath and Julia teaming up on the front lines, where they will probably stay close and one can easily use the sowrds abilities. we dont have that here. November and Shu keep trading plcaces between close and long ranged, not sticking together as one needs to keep the enemy holded up in melee, and Dorian? hes not sticking near anyone, its just not his playstyle.
>>
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>>3782825
At least have November keep it on her person. Come to think of it, the Sword's got really good synergy with the Jester's Masque, which turns people wearing it into a melee monster against groups of multiple enemies.

>>3782811
>November with a fire breath attack
It's gonna be a mix of Mazinger's Rust Hurricane and an actual Flamethrower I'm gonna call it.

>>3782809
>Ask about Grace. Rath still hasn't brought up her sister since you saved her from Bella, so you're curious as to what happened there.

>"What happened with Grace? It seemed she was an anchor to her life...before her death. I remember Rath on death's door and trying to help stabilize her. She kept on reliving Grace's funeral, and it was a sore point for her hearing about her relatives badmouth Grace."
>>
>>3782740
Indeed, my post in >>3782732 wasn´t the best picture. But after posting MetalSlug Marco, I consider that you have the copyright of that image ;-)
>>
>>3782838
welll sure, a giant swords still good on her and we have no one else to give it too now, im just saying the sword really will only work if we set her up around being a bodyguard to someone, and have our team based around that, which we have neither of those things. the swords good, just situationally good.
>>
>>3782809
About this, supporting write-in in >>3782838:

>Ask about Grace. Rath still hasn't brought up her sister since you saved her from Bella, so you're curious as to what happened there.

>"What happened with Grace? It seemed she was an anchor to her life...before her death. I remember Rath on death's door and trying to help stabilize her. She kept on reliving Grace's funeral, and it was a sore point for her hearing about her relatives badmouth Grace."
>>
> I showed her a video a buddy of mine took when we were on the range dicking around with some flame throwers, and Rachel just fucking lost it. Started calling me a dragon, asking me to 'breathe fire' like I did in the video, it was great."

Kid Rath confirmed to be a worthy foe to Amara in sheer adorableness at the same age. A Worthy foe indeed.
>>
>>3782846
It would work well for "Sir" FuzzBuzz. We gave him arms, now he has a sword to protect Amara now.
>>
>>3782874
i dont think we ever gave him arms though. hes still jsut a Quad Knighted-Nomling, i dont think we even have gotten around to giving him that stealth upgrade... assuming he can even be upgraded.

i mean, im not against it mind you, im just saying i dont think we have. he needs a suit of armor though, not a permanent one just something for Amara to dress him up in when they go out with us.
and i still want to give Marco that hat. maybe even make it a relic hat, as we seem to like going overboard with things like that. but im ok with just a regular hat.
>>
>>3782885
>reads spoilers
Done.
I might as well make it a joke Tier-1 Relic and make it the Dark souls equivalent of the pendant starting gift (aka. an item that does absolutely nothing)
>MITSUBACHI-CAP: A Cap made of hardened Chitin and lined with Downy bee fur in a Black and yellow pattern. A leathery abdomen hangs out as the tail of the cap. somehow fits all heads of any size, won't fall off no matter how hard you jostle the wearer. Made from a Daughter who treats simple constructs with love and care, rumor has it that the construct or daughter that wears the cap will have good fortune in the future and live a fulfilling life. This relic does not contribute any stat bonuses as it does absolutely nothing. It is just a hat.
>>
>>3782904
you say that like a hat that wont fall off isn't a powerful tool of pure style.
its great though, awesome and thank you.
>>
>>3782907
You don't know the supernatural power a fashionable hat has. The more superstitious aesthetic a hat has the more powerful it is. the ability to not fall off the wearer's hat is just bog standard.

I wouldn't be surprised that there's a daughter out there making hat relics and imbuing them with Generator type elemental particle effects.
>>
>>3782809

"What...what happened with Grace?" You ask hesitantly, seeing November's head tilt almost imperceptibly when you say her name, almost as if she'd forgotten she herself uttered it mere moments before. "It seemed she was an anchor to Rath's life...before her death. I remember, pretty early on in our travels, when Rath was on death's door and I was trying to help stabilize her. She kept on reliving Grace's funeral, and it was a sore point for her hearing about her relatives badmouth her sister."

It's a long moment before November answers, and you fear for a second that you've upset her until she begins to speak with slow, careful deliberation.

"Grace was the apple of my brother's eye...hell, of everyone's eye in the church community." She replies, her voice carrying the tones of someone lost in memory. "She was a model student, a model daughter, a model sister. Rachel was the quiet, timid one back then, but she idolized Grace in every way, always comparing herself to her...and I get the feeling the wasn't the only person in the family drawing comparisons."

"If you don't mind my saying, you don't seem fond of Rath's older sister." You comment gingerly, noting the obvious disdain in the older woman's voice.

"Look, I'll be totally honest; Rachel was my favorite." Comes November's blunt reply. "Everyone else in her family drank my brother's kool-aid, but she...she had some fucking depth, you know? She may have been quiet, but while her sisters were off with their noses buried in the good book and parroting my grandfather's words back to him, she was asking some serious goddamn questions. She was questioning things and getting smacked back down for it and I..." Her voice rises in volume before she catches herself, reeling her tone back in before she continues. "...I guess I'm kind of an asshole for having a favorite niece, but yeah. Grace just seemed like a copy of my brother and his wife. Their perfect successor, and I guess it's on me for not seeing past that."

Another breath she doesn't need before she speaks again, perhaps a way to keep focused on who she used to be while trapped in a body of brushed chrome and sizzling wires.

"Guess you know by now how they found Grace." She continues. "She went to college, cut loose with the wrong people, and...yeah. The rumor mill got started, and it tore my family apart. A church is supposed to come together for their own, and after my brother poured so much of himself in that place there were two, maybe three families out of almost a hundred that deigned to help them with the funeral and everything that came after. And Rachel, she...god love her, she tried to take Grace's place. She tried so hard to be the model everything, it was tearing her apart and I couldn't be there to help her. We video chatted as much as we could while I was abroad, but...I came back and was dealing with my own problems, trying to carve out some time to see everyone when the Crucible hit."

(Continued)
>>
>>3783001

"Like I said earlier, in a fucked kinda way; without her family she's completely, totally free. For the first time in her life, she's totally in control." November finishes, readjusting her grip on the steering wheel. "And I think that thrills and terrifies her more than anything."

"True, she may be, but...Rath doesn't blame you for not being there. She's the kind of person who agonizes over things, and I don't think she's the only one." You say softly, reaching out to place a gentle hand on her knee. "She's just happy to have you in the here and now...and I know she'd want to talk to you about all this, since she's clearly struggling with it, too."

"I know...I know, I just...just wish I'd made time for both of them, y'know?" She mutters, voice low as she just stares ahead. "It's the regrets that'll kill you quicker than...well, what do we have here?"

Your focus snaps back to your swarmlings, catching sight of what your helmswoman's spotted a few hundred meters distant; a mound of earth and flesh, a conical structure that straddles the line between the beach and the fungal treeline. There's no movement, no sound emanating from the thing, and the way it's framed with what's in the distance just makes it all the more bizarre; at the other end of the lake's curve there lies a run-down resort, a crumbling edifice a testament to a time long past.

Also of note is the series of claw-marks you've begun to catch sight of, almost like a set of territorial markings against the fungal trunks that lead deeper into the Mophyton Wastes. They belong to a creature whose claws must be at least a meter in length given the terribly deep grooves, but the creature that made them is no-where to be found.

"I think that's enough moaning and groaning from this old soldier for one day." November says with an audible grin, a forced cheer evident in her voice. "So, what to hunt first, CO?"

>>Follow the trail of deep grooves back into the Mophyton Wastes, which should be easier now that you have daylight on your side.

>>Avoid the mound and instead make haste to the ruined riverside resort up ahead. There could be Daughters, certainly...but given how run-down it is, an Amalgam is more likely.

>>Examine the anthill-like structure that straddles the edge of the wastes and beach.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, I shall be pausing here for the evening. Voting shall remain open for the next eleven hours, with posting to resume in roughly thirteen, give or take. Thank you all for your patience, participation, and enthusiasm as always, and I hope that you all have a fantastic and restful evening. Take care, one and all.)

>>3782825
(I really appreciate you asking, and I'm sorry I didn't see your question sooner. My day went well, I'm just curiously tired for no good reason. I'm planning to try and get an early night's sleep, and wake up early to try and finish off some of the flavor text for the abilities you have waiting for you at the Dragon's Roost.)
>>
>>3783005
Blargh, got back a bit later than expected. Okay, so tracks, a mound and a human ruin. I'm thinking the resort first. I've had about enough of things lurking in caves for right now, and the tracks will take us far afield. If we don't have enough meat after checking out the resort we can look at the others, but let's check this one out first.

>>Avoid the mound and instead make haste to the ruined riverside resort up ahead. There could be Daughters, certainly...but given how run-down it is, an Amalgam is more likely.
>>
>>3783011
Thanks for running, BHOP.
>>
>>3783005
>keep 3 scoutlings following the claw marks. find out if the Amalgam has a cave or place it rests, and where it might currently be. best to figure out its patterns or where it goes to rest, than risk following its trail into an ambush.

>send 5 scoutlings to the resort, and have them start checking it out room by room. the minute they find anything of note, ping you.

>Carefully have 3 scoutlings check out the Mound as you take up your position with the tank, ready to fire on it. figure out what it is and whats inside. if its simply an amalgam, its the closest, and we have our first target, and a perfect chance to get opening shots on it. closest target is the best first target, aswell as its cutting you off from access to the resort.
>>
>>3783011
thanks for running BHOP!

>I really appreciate you asking, and I'm sorry I didn't see your question sooner. My day went well, I'm just curiously tired for no good reason. I'm planning to try and get an early night's sleep, and wake up early to try and finish off some of the flavor text for the abilities you have waiting for you at the Dragon's Roost.
hey man we all have those days. you get some rest. ive got a few questions, but dont worry about it at all, both of them are far from immediate necessities and can wit til you're rested up if nothing else.
>>
>>3783017
I'd like to propose that the scouts we send to the mound be Jacklings, not just normal swarmlings. That way if there is something nasty in there, we're already in position to crash the ceiling down on them. Make "sudden cave collapses" the theme of this hunting expedition.
>>
>>3783017
>>3783023
We should have a few Seismic-Jacklings accompany those Scoutlings to get better readouts via tremor sense. If there are daughters, we might be able to eavesdrop in on conversations. Tremor sense would give us a better indication of other charcteristics as well as use tremor sense to get an x-ray on what's underneath the mound.

But if there are daughters, I'd say we should avoid them. We're out hunting for food for the family.
>>
>>3783025
We could exchange one regular Subversive Swarmling in each group for a Subversive Sonar-Jackling. That way we still have eyes but can still take advantage of the hearing and ability to cause cave-ins.
>>
>>3783011
Thanks for running, BHOP!

>>3783017
Seconding.
>>
>>3783023
>>3783025
sure, that works. it didn't sound as big or sturdy as the last one, so i was thinking a barrage of cannon fire would probably be enough, but theres no harm in doing both. if it comes to that, mind you.

also i mean, depends on the daughters? if we see them carving other girls up fro a snack, dont think we could ignore them, or would want to, as having daughter hunting daughters in the same area as us sounds like asking for trouble. if its just a group of whoevers doing nothing of course then sure. more associates is not bad but also not our goal right now. still would be paranoid about them being in the area though, but if theres no major signs of them being the aggressive type then nothing to be done about it.
>>
>>3783005
>>3783017
>add a stealthed sonar-jackling to each squad of swarmlings.
>>
>>3783005
Supporting>>3783017


yeah getting cut off would be nto to nice

If there is an Amalgam in the resort it might be drawn out by the fire or flee but whatever happens we wont be caught in a pincer attack

Same with daughters
>>
OP can you make the next Daughter fight more difficult? Thanks
>>
>>3783415
NO YOU FOOL
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE
>>
>>3783415
Personally I want a fight against a pack or swarm of amalgams for a different kind of challenge. Fighting weaker but numerically superior enemies that come in waves.
>>
>>3783415
According to BHOP its less he doesn't throw challenges at us as much as we're very good at using what tools we have to overcome the situations. Taking that into mind the only 'solution' might be to just throw something at us so rawly powerful its just a boring slog to fight if we can even win it, or such a perfect counter to our current party its either unjustifiable or just naturally unwinnable.

Granted im not saying theres no middle ground, just when according to him it's more of our planning than our characters actual levels, or strength and weaknesses, it does mean the routes possible to take for that narrow a bit.

>>3783425
The fight against the three hexxane is still my favorite. We technically just had a fight like yours, what you're asking for is basically just the silverfish swarms. Plus, those just aren't fun, it would literally just be spamming AOE moves til either we won or we just ran dry. Only difference between that and a hive mistress fight is we wouldn't have a queen to find and kill to end it early, just have to run the enemies numbers dry.
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>>3783418
>>3783441
I mean the fight was nice but kind of underwhelming compared to what I expected. OP had an amazing description for Lepisma, a fantastic introduction and spoke about her inspiration which was fantastic.

4 v 3 seemed really cool, great set up with her taunting us, she'd killed what Alpha had refused to fight and she was the first confirmed Daughter we've fought that had become this alien in thought and she seemed to be real clever at countering us.

But after the Dainslef tagged her, she went down pretty easily honestly. She never reclaimed the momentum when we killed her. Maybe I just expected too much but it seemad after OP's OOC comments, his reinforcement she could be more dangerous than gods and the potentiality behind a Protean Daughter, I just expected something more impactful.
>>
>>3783489
I think one issue with her, and also people's interpretation of her skill set, is 19/20, if not significantly more thant that, daughter fights are 1 v 1. Groups like ours, especially as powerful as ours, are much much more on the rare side. Lepismas and many other high level daughters are built with this knowledge, and even when they prepare like her even for possible groups, the best way to do that is Construct based abilites.

...except Shu herself ruins that by being a very potent Hive mistress IN that group such powers are meant to even out. And then on top of that we had Dorian who brings down constructs like one bends sticks of butter.

Not to mention most of the time even high level constructs are no substitute for an actual daughter unless you outclass said daughters a good bit, which considering everything its going to be hard for someone to outright do against us, without again, BHOP throwing a fight at us thats just not at all fun to fight due to the level of imbalance going on.

This is also ignoring no plan of ours even went halfway as we wanted and we still got alot of bad hits on us, and we only avoided worse due to having perfect counters and very potent safety nets.

I guess the issue im trying to say is, were no slouches when comes to adapting to situations, meaning none of them will feel as potent as they could, our group is something lore wise simply not something most singular daughters can handle, and if they can, its most likely due to reasons that would make fighting them outright unfun from a gameplay persepctive. It was not a bad fight but it does show how hard it is to balance the feel of them, especially for singular daughters. Either it feels too overwhelming or we break past what was causing us to feel that way and win.
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>>3783415
(Consider it done. SwoleBuzz Difficulty - Activated.)

(In all seriousness, >>3783522 gave a great write-up as to the issues with balancing a fight like this, which is made more difficult given you only had three party members and two of them were hard-counters for a majority of what she could do, as you'll see when you dive into her skills later on.)

(Though, if you crave a fair fight, you'll get your wish soon enough with what's coming for you.)
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>>3783541
at first i was like 'oh thats cool'.

...then i saw how absolutely tiny and undersized his wings look, and now i just cant stop laughing or take that image seriously. seriously, look at those things, those are ridiculously small.

also, like alays, way to be ominous and foreboding BHOP.
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>>3783547
(The picture is utterly absurd, and brings me great joy as a result.)
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>>3783541
Is that the Nechronica aspect of the system seeping in? I used to run it so I know how hard it can be to balance AP per a round; it's one of the reasons I am concerned about difficulty because when I ran it IT was a perennial issue that I had to compensate for with terrain and more movement related powers.

Anyway, thanks for taking the input OP. I appreciate it.
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>>3783415
I concur, 400% health damage is just a scratch.
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>>3783601
thats a 3rd our health in one hit. thats far from just a scratch.
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>>3783441
I would have to agree. the fight against the Hexxane statues had an element of "we've possibly met our match and they do have the huge potential to wipe us, but with clever planning we could turn the tide". Churem was scarily competent, those blades dealt lots of critical damage that weakened us, Silvis had lots of potential to wipe the floor with us had it met its match against Rath, and Vultha... Vultha was wiping the floor with the Midnight Crew. Even though Shu stepped in, we had to pull creative and environmental tricks just to save the Crew and keep Vultha at bay. And it wasn't until we had it pinned that we managed to overcome it.
Imagine the greater difficulty we would've had if we had one other Hexxane class hitchhike with us during the emergency teleport.

>>3783522
You put it pretty eloquently on the troubles of balancing it out. It also stands out IC on how Shu's become this legendary figure. A Hive mistress that doesn't take the selfish queen route nor the swarm route, instead taking a selfless path towards devoting her swarm to protect allied daughters and functions best in a group when the Hive Mistress core was originally supposed to be a solo class that's supposed to overwhelm groups of daughters with specialized powerful swarmlings. For Shu, her friends, her family. They are her swarm. They are the prize of her hive. The other swarmling classes are fodder...except FuzzBuzz.


>>3783601
It seems that way, but when you take into account of the health Regen factor, regaining that much health seems like its a snail's pace when you compare it to Dorian's insane regen.
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>>3783005

This >>3783017 but with a Subversive Sonar-Jackling among our little scouts.
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>>3783601
We literally got that from our own weapon and even after eating 400% damage we didn't lose control. We never lost control of that fight, we never lost the pacing of the fight and every time she countered us we punished her harder. Stop being retarded.
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>>3783652
>calls someone a retard
>while yelling at a man over things they both agree on.
>>
>>3783652

I would rather overestimate the abiliies of an opponent and be a bit to careful thatn underestimate them. Hubris comes before the fall they say
We engaged ehr on our own terms, had a hard counter to her constructs do to our own teamcomposition and were superior in the action economy department.

In hindsight she stood little chance, not with Dorian being there. But if our teamcompostion had not included Dorian that fight could have gone quite badly when her retainers surfaced.

If she had the chance to engage us on her terms she would have probably wiped the floor with us. You must never allow yourself to underestimate intelligence. Especially a fighter that has survived for many years already.

And you are correct we never lost control of the fight. That was because everything got planned out in great and terrible detail. And we planned everything out because we knew that the Royal was capable of intelligent action it was a game of moves and coutnermoves. We just had the much better skillset to deal with ther and identified her powers quickly

A pure raw power engagement(with very little palnning) from our side could have gonne either way i would say.
>>
>>3783664
Like a great game of Chess, except Shu's has a swarm of several parallel processing minds hidden inside her hive and she doesn't know it.
>>
>>3783664
>A pure raw power engagement(with very little palnning) from our side could have gonne either way i would say.
Yeah, but it's not like we really do that anyway. We might have simple plans, sometimes, but we never really go for just raw power. Even our heavy bruisers like Rath or November have enough tactical flexibility that we come up with courses of action beyond "just hit them".
>>
>>3783669
usually, but we have had Rath just go ham before. never underestimate the tactical viability of just having someone like Rath just go wild with her raw power.
>>
>>3783668
All of them capable of independent thought and their own trouble solving abiliites to make sure no point of view remains uncovered

>>3783669
While that is true sometimes i get the feelign people just want to power through soemthing with sheer undiluted power pointed directly at the enemys face. Which can work in specific circumtances mind you but usually requires a modicum of direction.

From what i had read so far in some cases it seemed like they tought that we could have just beaten her up without much agonizing over creating plans. And we could have just taken the hits she threw at us. Just taking them on the chin like the Juggernaut and laughing it off
>>
>>3783681
>From what i had read so far in some cases it seemed like they tought that we could have just beaten her up without much agonizing over creating plans. And we could have just taken the hits she threw at us. Just taking them on the chin like the Juggernaut and laughing it off.

And it's the sort of thing that once we start indulging in that mindset it becomes our undoing.

The thing is, we've been conditioned by many past fights to do our best to prepare and overcome those obstacles with lots of planning since much of our opponents have made themselves look bigger and more threatening then they are at first glance as well as the scale in which we've fought our opponents. We went from fighting to survive, to attempting to fend off a high level daughter (who turns out she was toying with us) during a very dangerous rescue attempt, to fighting giant colossal sad deer, to trying to survive against a daughter favored by god, to a daughter whose so far gone they could potentially end the Crucible, then fighting past shades of the Hexxane Finalists, and then Fighting a Nascent God. That sort of escalation conditions you to stay in the mindset of David in the world of Goliaths even after we've grown in power.
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>>3783681
>From what i had read so far in some cases it seemed like they tought that we could have just beaten her up without much agonizing over creating plans. And we could have just taken the hits she threw at us. Just taking them on the chin like the Juggernaut and laughing it off

yeah im seeing that too and i think thats whats been getting under my skin recently. especially when its from folks who dont even help or contribute to the process of actually overcoming these obstacles. its easy to laugh off the situation when only reading the results like a story, its entirely different when you're the ones actually playing the game and having to work together to actually think up something that will work in the first place.
>>
>>3783690
>stay in the mindset of David in the world of Goliaths even after we've grown in power.

And i would like to remain there it is not a bad mindset to stay in. Treating every opponent like they can kill us even if they cant one should always at least plan for the possibility of something nasty hitting us and potentially crippling us for some time

>>3783694
Yeah we can heal most wounds easily enough but a nasty lingering effect on someone is not something that we can easily shrug off.

It got under my skin as well. I know i am not contributing much to the plans but i at least try my beast to bring in my own perspective when i have the time
>>
>>3783681
>>Just taking them on the chin like the Juggernaut and laughing it off.

Yeah, that's the B'Ni strategy, it was her whole build. In the long run, it doesn't work. Some Gina-ius daughter will work out some insane strategy against such a one-trick. Our versatility and diversity means we can more or less control the decision loop, and get our opponents to react to us, instead of reacting to them... then we win.
>>
(Just now getting to writing as I walked into rather hysterical series of dumpster fires that have devoured my morning. They seem to be settled for now, so I shall post as soon as I am able.)
>>
>>3783721
what sort of office company would have dumpster fires nearly every day bhop?
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>>3783723
(One where I come in to 1700+ emails and a system outage first thing in the morning.)[/spoilers]
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>>3783724
Christ. You have my sincere condolences.
>>
>>3783727
(And you have mine for bearing with me through all this. Everyone's patience with this absurdity has been greatly appreciated, as I'd have liked to update twice as much as I have been these past two weeks if it hadn't been for constant interruptions.)
>>
>>3783721
>>3783724
my lord. well take your time BHOP, even if things are settling down that makes it sound like you might just need a breather if nothing else.
>>
>>3783733
You give us quality entertainment for free, BHOP. Don't feel like you owe us anything, we're getting plenty. Sure, it would be nice if you could update more often, but my thoughts on that are more that I want you to have the free time to engage in the things you enjoy rather than me being upset the quest isn't progressing faster.
>>
>>3783733
You entertain us. I think we can forgive you for having to slow down a bit to make sure you keep your job to be able to continue putting out this content
As a GM i appreciate you being able to put out such quality content as regularly as you do
>>
>>3783733
yeah, as other Anons said, we understand, and appreciate what you are able to do. dont feel like you have to bend yourself over backwards for us, your life and health certainly come first.
besides, it sounds like your company sometimes drives you ragged enough without you worrying about us.
>>
>>3783724

>>3783741 - So much this.


Dear gods I know that feeling and wish I didn't. Godspeed BHOP, and I hope they're compensating you well for the troubles.
>>
>>3783541
Regarding the question about balancing, I agree with the anons in:
>>3783425
>>3783441
>>3783621
The fight with the Hexxane statues was my favourite. Many human-sized enemies, cleverlly foreshadowed, which we were underestimating (looked like hastily-thrown delaying actions at first), with half of them wiped out by the Autumn Protocol... and then they prove VERY inteligent. We teleport them straight into the lair, in the middle of our family...and things go to hell in a handbasket very quickly. Bonus points for the stakes when Amara and the Midnight crew were horryfyingly wounded by them, yet soldiered on, that married our BEAR MOM mode with cold planning for a satisfying result.

As anons explained, the fact that we were matched in numbers, Killer potential and health was what made it so satisfying for me.
In solo duels, now we need to have a God, A Hive Mistress or a trickster facing us in order to survive. All of them have their problems, besides getting glomped and buried below our sheer action economy.

A God like Isabelle felt like trying to contain Fukushima´s reactor from going into meltdown; you either succeeed or die, but it feels more like a puzzle than a fight, with the impression that the first hit you take will be the last: Health & BIO become seemingly meaningless in the face of the sheer power involved, it gets very abstract, too fast.

A God or Hive Mistress that relies on constructs has the problem that Constructs rarely screams as much PERSONALITY as individual daughters. Even Marco & Fuzzbuzz need much more setup time to be as distinct than a single fight. In addition, we murderize constructs hard in our group.

The tricksters that isolate us from our party are very interesting, but we get abit TOO stressed when we are concerned about teammate health. Still, people like Penny or Meg, which use the environment to their advantage to face groups, were interesting. A Trickster with good mobility, several stacked crit auto-counters and NO INSTAKILL/SUBDUAL abilities could be a very viable and fun foe.

I think that my preferred options are daughter groups, fllowed by mobility tricksters (See Jojo´s adventures gambits for them). In partciular, I think that it would be great if we faced "EVIL West Prime" and her clone army MORE often, since she has ALL the good features discussed: Survival ability, numbers, adapatability, and she can send new groups of copies with new skillsets to provide a fresh challenge every time. And if we kill that batch, there´s more where that came from...

So I am very interested in fighting Evil West. She is very active in the area, probably is trying to recruit/ Kill/ Transform into copies more of the powerful foreign newcomers, posing a recurrent threat that we can fight several times over, and very linked to our party via Francine. I wouldn´t mind EVIL West being THE or one of the endgame fights, she is a very fun , yet punchable antagonist.
>>
>>3783724
Jeus Christ, take care of yourself BHOP. Thanks a lot for all the quality time, you are the best DM I have even HEARD of, and you give that for absolutely free. Take all the time you need to recover, your well.being ALWAYS comes first. We will understand, even if you need to drop the quest for a time. Real life comes first, as you do.
>>
>>3783767
I'd like to see some ranged opponents, personally. I can't think of any opponents who have had a real focus in ranged combat. I think that godmode B'Ni came the closest, with her access to Oxygenic Artillery, but she still mostly fired that from point blank. It could be fun to get into a sniper duel, us fighting an enemy that's in an entrenched position whose defenses we have to get past while our own ranged combatants trade fire with them.
>>
>>3783781
the issue with ranged fights is they honestly arent that fun or interesting. its either just shots flying at eachother, or you having to dodge til you get close, in which case they either die or it just becomes another melee fight. the other issue is any ranged fighter worth their damn will end you from afar with either a few very quick and well placed surprise shots, or in a quick hail of gunfire you cant avoid, if they are a true or purely ranged fighter mind you.
>>
>>3783785
I disagree, I think you can get some interesting tension out of one team drawing the enemy's counter-fire while another works their way past their defenses to get in close and attack in melee. November having to take her tank through an intricate dance of maneuver and barrage, Shu creating obfuscating waves of swarmlings that the sniper has to shoot through, Gina making and destroying cover to support our advance, lots of cool tactics we could use. And even if we don't do a pure sniper duel, I'd still like to have just more enemies that use ranged attacks as part of a generalist combat style, like Shu herself does. We haven't had a proper mirror match yet, despite Lepisma aping our style, it could be fun to fight someone who uses the same sort of tactics we do.
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>>3783796
nah, all of thats highly boring, as it either works, and its just taking the idea of dodging or blocking shots and adding a ribbon to it, or it doesn't, and we die. its incredibly boring and id not want to see it.

mirror matches are also terrible and never fun.
>>
>>3783662
The person he was responding too was being sarcastic.
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>>3783802
>nah, all of thats highly boring, as it either works, and its just taking the idea of dodging or blocking shots and adding a ribbon to it, or it doesn't, and we die. its incredibly boring and id not want to see it.
I think you're oversimplifying. Sure, if they were nothing but sniping it would be boring, no argument there. But I'm assuming that they'll be like most enemies in the Crucible and have an array of powers meant to support their main combat style. That would still allow for the fun tactical back-and-forth as we take out their resources and deny them tools. If they had constructs to distract foes, or terrain shaping to make a suitable killzone, or AoE to flush enemies out of hiding, or all sorts of things we'd get to counter with our usual creative solutions.

>mirror matches are also terrible and never fun.
Just going to have to agree to disagree, then, because those are in my experience always the most fun of any character action game. Probably why the people who make them keep putting mirror matches in.
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>>3783812
then they arent a true or pure ranged fighter if they have any of that and its not an actual ranged fight match, nor would they be using the appropriate tactics of a true ranged fighter.

>Just going to have to agree to disagree, then, because those are in my experience always the most fun of any character action game. Probably why the people who make them keep putting mirror matches in.
we are, because true mirror matches are absolute garbage and always the worst part of a game, and developers that use them are shit who rub their own game with mud. something being common does not make it a good trope.
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>>3783818
>then they arent a true or pure ranged fighter if they have any of that and its not an actual ranged fight match, nor would they be using the appropriate tactics of a true ranged fighter.
Okay? I never said pure ranged combat, just ranged combat. I'm fine with them adding other skills to their repertoire, that makes the game more interesting and is good Doylist logic. Good Watsonian logic, too, because honestly they'd probably die as a pure ranged combatant in the Crucible, over-specialization hurts you with how wide a variety of enemies you can encounter here. That's a big part of why we're so successful, I think, parties mean that you can bring more different tactics to the fight at once.
>>
>>3783825
>I never said pure ranged combat, just ranged combat.
>>3783781
heavily implied pure range combat, as thats what a sniper duel would be. adding in all that other stuff isnt a sniper duel, its just regular combat but the opponent happens to use a rifle at times.

also our resident Crow themed lady is a pure sniper, and she does just fine on her own. even only has one ammo type. it works, its just boring, as you do exactly what she does, which is hide and take the enemy down before they even know you're there, and also thus from a distance and with an ability that just allows you to run or get to a new position if they do last more than one shot.

she does suffer when facing excessively large enemies though, but the fact shes alive and clearly got a name for herself with the bounty boards says alot. its just, again, a playstyle thats honestly very boring to fight or use.
>>
>>3783832
>heavily implied pure range combat, as thats what a sniper duel would be. adding in all that other stuff isnt a sniper duel, its just regular combat but the opponent happens to use a rifle at times.
It's still a sniper duel, we're still fighting a markswoman at long range. They're just using other skills to support their sniping. Look, it doesn't really matter, we're getting hung up over technicalities of naming. I'm sorry that phrasing was confusing, I didn't mean it to be.

>also our resident Crow themed lady is a pure sniper, and she does just fine on her own. even only has one ammo type. it works, its just boring, as you do exactly what she does, which is hide and take the enemy down before they even know you're there, and also thus from a distance and with an ability that just allows you to run or get to a new position if they do last more than one shot.
Magpie's got some versatility. We've seen that she can convert her rifle into a cut-down model more suitable for close quarters, and her Hive Mistress crow-bombs let her do area denial effectively. Combine that with her mobility and she's not super specialized as a sniper. She's best in that role, sure, but she can fill others.
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>>3783840
agree to disagree.
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>>3783005

Opening the hatch enough to allow your trio of newly-spawned Sonar-Jacklings to take flight, you watch their shells shimmer and blend into the sky as they spread out to join their three teams. Your first target for inspection the mound of flesh and sand, and the second your Sonar-Jackling makes landfall your mind is alight with sensation, a vast number of humanoid figures scurrying about in a series of complex, winding tunnels that stretch across the beach and well into the Wastes. It’s a hive of incredible scope, hundreds of child-sized beings scrambling to and fro as you struggle to perceive it all. Switching your perceptions to a less overwhelming scene, your swarm silently stalks between the fungal trunks of the Wastes, following the trail of marked trees until…there.

Shifting skin and utter stillness almost make you miss the Amalgam for the trees, as it were. It’s motile skin blends well with its surroundings, and its only with your Halo-enhanced sight that you make out the half-lizard, half wildcat form of the creature that’s hunkered low to the ground, eyes on a beetle-like creature a few hundred yards off as its hind quarters begin to wiggle. You blink and it’s gone, the beetle tensing for a moment before it falls to the ground, shorn into a series of thin slivers as the reptilian panther skids to a stop well beyond it, skin shifting to camouflage as it stalks up to its meal.
Unnerved, you stream your findings to your allies via your empathic field as you switch over to your third and final team, whose slow, steady investigation of the resort has turned up little more than empty rooms and disappointment. Aside from the unnatural chill, there doesn’t seem to be anything here of note, despite the occasional trace of the odd Daughters’ presence, such as a torn bit of clothing, or a ragged shoe here or th…

When the first swarmling flickers out, you almost suspect it’s a sigh you’re pushing yourself too far. When the second one goes, you suspect foul play. Then the remaining three go out at once, a chill runs through your veins that you’re not entirely sure originates from your own body.

“That place is unsettling.” Dorian mutters, shivering from his own chill as your perception returns to your own eyes. “It’s like…my old estate, actually.”

“Are you saying there might be an Engine there, too?” You ask in alarm, and Dorian just raises an eyebrow in amusement.

“No…no, it’s just creepy.” He smirks. “I’m honestly surprised you decided to investigate my old haunt in the first place…I’m glad you did, though.”

(Continued)
>>
>>3783847

“Ghosts are bullshit.” November says solemnly, arms clicking as she checks and re-checks her loadout. “Same goes for chameleon leopards and anthill children. But hey, Earth got eaten by a huge alien bitch, so who am I to judge. Looks like anything goes out here, huh?”

You’re inclined to agree with Rath’s Aunt as you survey your options. The anthill gives you time to prepare, unlike the predator and whatever lies within the ruined resort, but it’s at the cost of having to deal with dozens, if not hundreds of separate targets. Predictable, but numerous…quite unlike the reptilian cat that stalks the Mophyton Wastes. Its speed and camouflage make it a worthy foe, but it’s on its own, thankfully. Finally, whatever resides in the ruins seems capable of either cutting your connection to your swarm or destroying them without a second thought without you being able to detect it. Dangerous adversary…but one that boasts powers you could put to great use against future foes.

You glance from November to Dorian, and while the former’s face is a placid mask of steel and brass, you can tell they’re both ready for whatever you decide.

You just hope you make the best call for your family.

>>Skirt around the hill and go after the cat-like being. You’re not in the mood for a raid, given your current numbers.

>>Stir up the anthill after you’ve made your preparations. You have the firepower and the party to handle a swarm…you just did, in fact.

>>Ignore the hill and investigate the resort. There’s something there, something you can’t quite put your finger on…but you feel like the effort to bring it down will be worth the effort.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, the emails have been vanquished and voting shall remain open got the next two hours. Thank you all for bearing with me.)

>>3783734
>>3783741
>>3783743
>>3783763
>>3783770
(Thank you all for your kind words, as they mean a lot to me. Despite professing myself to be a writer, I lack the vocabulary to express how grateful I am to have a group of players like yourselves. It's more than I deserve, and thank you again for your support and participation, always.)
>>
>>3783848
>“Ghosts are bullshit.” November says solemnly, arms clicking as she checks and re-checks her loadout. “Same goes for chameleon leopards and anthill children. But hey, Earth got eaten by a huge alien bitch, so who am I to judge. Looks like anything goes out here, huh?”
November, telling it like it is. I'm with you, Heather.

Anyways, I'm inclined towards the lizard-cat. There are too many unknowns about the resort, I don't want to head into that. Meanwhile, I can't see the anthill being worth the effort. Hundreds of weak targets means consuming hundreds of corpses to get any real value, we can't haul that back to the Lair. Maybe there's a queen ant in there that we can get something out of, but we can't know that for certain. The lizard-cat is the highest-value target we can be confident of. It's also on the move, while the anthill and resort are static objects, so if we're still in the mood to hunt after killing it we can head back for them.
>>
>>378384
I would guess the Hill is probably the easiest target on an individual level. The Danger are the amount of attacks that will be barraging us and killiing the amalgams is gonna yield little in the way of levels.

The stalker is interesting but not the best matchup for our team composition.(fast and stealthy makes it vbery hard to hit with the tank so we should avoid that.)

We should go for the resort and bring down the unseen predator there. I would guess they are similar in that they are qauite capable of ambushing us but we should be able to scout more beforehand.

>>Ignore the hill and investigate the resort. There’s something there, something you can’t quite put your finger on…but you feel like the effort to bring it down will be worth the effort.

>keep your distance at first and then send in more stealthed swarmlingssend them in groups of three with a Sonar Jackling in their midst.

>I suspect there is either an anti construct field at work or soemone extremely fast and agile so we woeuld have to stay very careful. maybe even a fluid or smoke amalgam or something like that

>>3783854
Good to hear the Emails have been eliminated
>>
>>3783848
>go for the anthill.

>Scan the surroundings to find each and every exit you can.
>Terraform the Land to make a sloped funnel from the beach into the 'ant' hill. flood them out.
>as soon as you start, Terraform and plug shut all but the three closest exits, to give them the illusion they still have options for escape.
>Those that survive will face each exit having a Spiraling blender trap at them.
>Those that escape these traps will find the surface around the blender covered in Dorians paintings to glue them down.
>Spawn Banelings to evenly spread between each exit and be prepared to kill those that escape the other traps.
>Once it seems the majority are flooded out, November will launch a Grenade shot into each of the exits, two from her, one from the Tank.
>Dorian should keep himself moving, being prepared to use Lightning charges and his scythes to cut and zap down any that otherwise make it past the rest of our traps and ambush.
>>
>>3783863
>>3783859
i dont want to leave an anthill full of enemies between us and any other location, especially with their tunnels being so wide spread. we cause a ruckus anywhere else and they could easily be drawn out anyways, just now without us havin the first move or ambush advantage.
>>
>>3783854
going through and deleting 1700+ emails sounds like a nightmare worse than a good bit of the crucible honestly.
>>
>>3783867
Getting the ambush.....

might be worth it.... and we alerted the thing that is in the resort to our presence anyway.

So as long as we keep an eye out for our backs for any potential ambusher we should be able to kill them easily. I jsut am worried that they will be worth very little in levels and might be a big waste of our rescources
>>
>>3783848
>>3783864
>>3783863

The Resort feels like it's a good landmark to make camp while on the westward path if we can clear it. We just need to identify what's attacking our scouts and probe it better to better understand its nature. I suspect Neuromancer or Terraforming Phantasmal shenanigans.

Camoflauge Panther is basically a session of Monster Hunting. Just have to tag the panther with a paintling and take good note of its surroundings. And we've got a good team that can negate much of its main gimmick with a couple of relics that can ward off its ambush tactics. It'll yield camoflauge, fibromancer and Unnatural predator cores and abilities. but I'm not one for that.

Ant hill feels somewhat boring.
>>3783867
Seems reasonable. I wonder if we can commedeer the ant-hill tunnel network? It seems that the Ant Queen has made a good tunnel system and infrastructure for us to travel unmolested on the surface. Not to mention the they might be open a door for communication. Should we try and communicate first?

I want to send a FuzzBuzz diplomat to just probe the ant colony in general.
>>
>>3783871
well we know for a fact we will get at least 8, and id argue hundreds should get us a bit more. using all our methods available, im also not worried about collecting their corpses for consumption either. if they have a queen, id very much say at least 2-3 levels per family member, not the best but not a waste. and again, its not worth the risk. we know they have tunnels going into the jungle and all along the beach. either other location we have to go to could easily draw them out anyways. avoiding that alone i think is worth it.

>>3783877
i think we can take the anthill out quickly, and again, its about practicality and risk management, not excitement.

it sounded like they are just ant amalgams honestly. i mean, we can try, i guess? but like always id prefer to be prepared for them being hostile first, so if we alert them to our presence, we can react fast enough for it to not matter. as for taking it over, i guess i dont see the point, but once we clear them out and with our ability to hydro-form to clear out the water, i dont see why we couldn't. i guess it might give us a new angle to ambush the cat from, and give us a good excuse to put the drill to work again.
>>
>>3783877
The panther kinda feels like the Moonlight Nargacuga....

That could be an interesting fight to be sure but still i think either clearing out the colony or the resort might be a better idea

it just fells like a terrible matchup for our current party the tanks amin cannon will be next to useless agaisnt something moving to fast to track visualy
>>
>>3783863
>The stalker is interesting but not the best matchup for our team composition.(fast and stealthy makes it vbery hard to hit with the tank so we should avoid that.)
I was thinking we'd use swarmlings as spotters and the Geschoss' artillery fire to flush it out of hiding, beat it towards an ambush spot we'll have prepared ahead of time. Terraform a punji pit, even if it manages to jump out (though we'd be using the Fear To Tread combo, of course) we can use the time it takes getting out to tag it with the Dominus Bloodline and Dorian's bloodlings.

>>3783867
I suppose. It depends on how far their tunnels stretch, we should try to map them out first. We need to do that to do your plan of drowning them, anyway. Though may I add that if we do that plan, we should include some Spiralings on the blender traps. Those make it much more likely for enemies to get caught by the spiral. If we're preparing these blenders ahead of time, we can also use the Rev Up function of Fear To Tread, spend a few extra turns to even further increase stun chance.
>>
>>3783887
if we can bait the cat into doing its dash against say, an oversized swarmling, to trap it, we could probably take it out quickly too, and even hit it with the tank. id just not want our cannon shots to then draw out our ant buddies to ruin the moment.

>>3783890
sure, both of those are fine additions.

as for the Cat, i think just giving it a juicy target over a well prepared trap while we wait for it to hunt will work. better than hoping artillery fire is accurate enough to push it into a trap and not just cause it to gun for us i personally think.
>>
>>3783864
>>3783848
slight edits/additions to orders;
>go for the anthill.

>set up the Ambush first, but before we open the floodgates, send forth a Messenger FuzzBuzz to see if they are Amalgams, or belong to a Ant based Hive Mistress.
>You know the drill. signs of willing to talk, give em their chance. even a half-second of hostility, the plan goes into motion.

>Scan the surroundings to find each and every exit you can.
>Terraform the Land to make a sloped funnel from the beach into the 'ant' hill. flood them out.
>as soon as you start, Terraform and plug shut all but the three closest exits, to give them the illusion they still have options for escape.
>Those that survive will face each exit having a Spiraling blender trap at them, complete with Reved Spiral and spiraling support.
>Those that escape these traps will find the surface around the blender covered in Dorians paintings to glue them down.
>Spawn Banelings to evenly spread between each exit and be prepared to kill those that escape the other traps.
>Once it seems the majority are flooded out, November will launch a Grenade shot into each of the exits, two from her, one from the Tank.
>Dorian should keep himself moving, being prepared to use Lightning charges and his scythes to cut and zap down any that otherwise make it past the rest of our traps and ambush.
>>
>>3783887
>Moonlight Nargacuga
I'm hearing that ancient tower theme song again.

>>3783854
Some battle theme reccomendations
>Stealth Panther battle theme song?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ya8Dw-j25C4
Ant Hill Battle theme song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fot2BXVmeVI

>>3783890
I thought of a hilarious, crazy and yet awesome combo involving Drill, Fear to Tread, and Terraforming. Terraforming a springboard, Fear to Tread as a spinning head, and have Shu get onto the the spinning head and Springboard off of it as an accelerated spinning launch pad while she has multiple arms that have Drills that culimate in a Psycho Crusher/Driller attack.
>>
>>3783848
I can support this plan>>3783898
>>
>>3783893
>as for the Cat, i think just giving it a juicy target over a well prepared trap while we wait for it to hunt will work. better than hoping artillery fire is accurate enough to push it into a trap and not just cause it to gun for us i personally think.
Well, I was kind of hoping for it to gun for us. It would be panicked and having to move fast to avoid the artillery fire, and as such not be observing its surroundings as closely. Makes it easier to get it to fall into a pit. It's a tactic in hunting called "beating", where loud noise is used to scare prey our of hiding and towards an ambush. Normally you'd use men with dogs, but the closest analogue (Knight-class swarmlings) would probably just get attacked and eaten by the lizard-cat. We'd need something much louder and scarier, thus the artillery.
>>
aaand...I got called in for work. I'll be seeing you folks in 6 hours. I hope negotiations go well, and I hope the hunt goes well.

>>3783916
Becareful, Stealth Panther might have a dangerous weapon: Intelligence. Always approach with the idea that any opponent you hunt/fight has intelligence.
>>
>>3783916
eh, i just dont think its as good an option. drawing it into a trap instead of shotgunning it out into simply being in the open significantly increases our potential control over where it goes, thus of it actually going for the trap, and leaves the tank open to actually have a much better shot at actually, well, landing a shot on it.

but moot point to discuss until/if we even go for it.
>>
>>3783919
>Becareful, Stealth Panther might have a dangerous weapon: Intelligence. Always approach with the idea that any opponent you hunt/fight has intelligence.
Oh, I'm expecting it to. That's why I want to panic it by making it have to dodge artillery fire. If it's busy dealing with shell shock, it won't be able to carefully stalk and pounce on us.

>>3783922
I'm worried it would see through the trick. This is an animal that hunts by stealth and ambush, it's likely to be both decently intelligent and have the senses to spot a trap.
>>
>>3783919
Well good luck with your day hope it wont be to bad
>>
>>3783848

I'm with >>3783898.
However, given the size of the tunnel complex described I don't think we could actively do a full flood. It's a good start, but I suspect we may be dealing with a drag out hive fight to find the Queen eventually.

[spoilers]Then we find out the child sized creatures are thousands of Amaras building a fort for fun.[/spoilers]
>>
>>3783927
possibly, but its still only an Amalgam and those have always shown to have an upper intellect limit. regardless, i think if it can see my trap, it can understand the point of bombarding its forest and the only difference between the two is we cant predict its movement with your idea as much as with mine. its an ambush predator so it might easily see us bombarding it as already losing the fight and just fleeing, and it probably knows how to get away and through the forest much easier than us, which would make the entire ordeal wasted.

with mine, even if it sees the trap, it hasn't been scared off nor seen our full firepower yet, so wont know what to expect, and we can also easily prepare for if it sees through the trap and goes for us instead.
>>
>>3783936
Well OP stated that there were at least at one point quite a view really intelligent amalgams out there. Even if they are nearly eradicated it might be possibleI dont think it will be intelligent to that degree but better be safe than sorry when planning
>>
>>3783927
the only downside to this is that this is the second cat-amalgam that we’re encountering, and Amara isn’t here to have an opportunity to pet the cat

am >>3783919
>>
random thought time.

i just realized the research teams going to return home to find a new suspicious room that upon opening is has two jars full of suspicious liquids and a dead woman's corpse that probably looks excessively brutalized even compared to our usual. even with them knowing why we kept the biomass that certainly would be one hell of a thing to have to explain, because even for what were doing that sounds weird as fuck.


>>3783943
oh, i trust it will be decently intelligent, its just that still wouldn't change my argument. also, size matters with amalgams, and hes no behemoth.
>>
>>3783966
>i just realized the research teams going to return home to find a new suspicious room that upon opening is has two jars full of suspicious liquids and a dead woman's corpse that probably looks excessively brutalized even compared to our usual. even with them knowing why we kept the biomass that certainly would be one hell of a thing to have to explain, because even for what were doing that sounds weird as fuck.

I think our party is probably jaded enough that they wouldn't be too put off by it, though. Just a "damn, Shu must have had a rough fight, we should ask her about it when she gets back". Because yeah, it's weird, but it's sadly not unexpected anymore. Nothing to freak out about, just leave it for now and ask when you get the chance.
>>
>>3783966
Just give Gina a ping that she should not freak out and that we did not bring drugs into the Lair so as long as anyone keeps their hands off of it until we hadtime to identify it they should hopefully be ablet o stop amara from walking in there.

>>3783944
She can pet the cat once it has been tenderized and prepared for Fuzzbuzz to consider it safe
>>
>>3783980
>that we did not bring drugs into the Lair
We don't know that. Who knows what sort of weird recreational substances silverfish-people get up to?
>>
>>3783979
maybe. its still a sorta weird scene even for the crucible. wasn't implying they would be suspicious of us or anything, but really wonder what the context is.

>>3783980
well, i mean sure but i trust them not to just gurgle suspicious jars of unknown liquids... ok well theres a small small chance maybe Amara might but hopefully everyone else can at least convince her not to or keep them out of her hands. even then, i dont think Amaras the type, unless the fleshscape confirmed it was safe and also tasted good, then back to a very small chance.
>>
>>3783986
we should teleport a FuzzBuzz carrying a post-it note home with the note saying the jars of mystery liquid are relics and the meat is silverfish caught using a behemoth-class worm as bait
>>
>>3784001
We could just reactivate one of them to write the post it note there. no need for a teleport
>>
>>3784001
>>3784004
im positive it wont be an issue and apologize my comment meant purely as a joke spurred on such heavy paranoia.
>>
>>3784006
It wont be an issue but giving them a post it note when they enter might be soemthign they appreciate so they dont have to enter the room themselves and dont succumb to paranoia themselves, asking themselves if anyone managed to infiltrate
>>
>>3784012
Someone who infiltrated and then decided to leave presents of Relics and Daughter meat?
>>
>>3784019
Soemone who infiltrated and left a suspicious room that could have whatever inside of it. Could be a freaking Nanoplague(Grey Goo Style Relic) for all they know or it is a bomb that someone left there to charge up and destroy everything

Sorry my imagination is running wild. I notice that my creativity has skyrocketed again after it became kind of a slog to write. So i really needed a coulpe days to recharge
>>
(I...I need a brief moment to collect myself, Gentlemen. Three crits have been rolled, and not at all where I expected them to be. I'll be updating momentarily.)
>>
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>>3784147

Oh... oh shit... we just had the heart to heart with a core member's last remaining family. Did we just get the "I'm just two weeks from retirement" speech from November?
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>>3784147
>>
>>3784147
That is either incredibly good or incredibly bad.
>>
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>>3784147
Oh boy. FUN!
>>
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>>3783848

You stifle a chuckle as November salutes FuzzBuzz before he disappears into the anthill’s depths, his scouting suicide mission of utmost importance if you’re to determine how best to proceed. Your Sonar-Jackling reveals four possible exits; one near the beach front, another two at the forest line, each one equidistant from the hive. The fourth and final one is the hive entrance itself, the walls pulsing gently with blood-filled veins as FuzzBuzz makes his treacherous descent. Your biomass mostly restored, you slowly Terraform a portion of the beach into a massive funnel, attuning to the furthest exit in preparation to seal it once you’ve sprung your ambush.

Banelings are set up at the entrance and two remaining exits while November loads grenade rounds into both the Metall Geschoss and her own armament. Dorian’s a little ways off, building up a sizable charge in advance of your impending assault, all the while you’re splitting your focus three ways; terraforming, revving your Spiraling Fear, and watching through FuzzBuzz’s multifaceted eyes. You flinch when you turn the corner and come face-to-face with one of the swarm. It’s a jagged, hideous thing that lacks the gentle curves and sharp lines of your own creations, and as it scrabbles through the tunnel to close the gap its meter-long mandibles drip with a viscous fluid that sizzles as it drools onto the tunnel walls. A set of eyes study FuzzBuzz intently as he remains completely still, one half of the creature’s face sizzling with heat, its eyes half-melted into a useless goo while the other half stares ahead, goat-like eyes rotating in place as they struggle to focus.

It’s the moment of truth.

The soldier reaches out, and you’re about to send a Neuromantic surge to flood the hive until it gently takes FuzzBuzz in two of its five arms and scurries down into the hill’s depths. You wait with bated breath as you pass countless other members of the brood, each one more malformed and broken than the last. Aside from a few assorted soldiers, their physiques noticeably more humanoid and mature than the others, the rest seem uniform in their non-uniformity, further cementing them as Amalgams. Upon reaching your destination, you’re faced with a large antechamber, filled to the walls with wailing, mutated abominations that writhe in a translucent sacks embedded in the walls. Tall, imposing soldiers pace the room, armed with chitinous axes and halberds that are as warped and distorted as those that carry them. High above you, a writhing, bloated thing hangs suspended from the chamber’s arced ceiling. A quintet of eyes with pupils ranging from goat, to segmented, to things in-between swivel to stare into your projected gaze.

The wailing comes to a sudden halt as all eyes, segmented or no, turn to face you.

(Continued)
>>
>>3784194


With a long, ponderous claw, the Bloated Queen directs the worker carrying you, and you’re ferried off to a wall of larvae, their half-formed limbs reaching out as you approach, looking somewhere between a newborn’s hands and a maggot’s mandibles as they caress FuzzBuzz’s fur. You watch in disbelief as the worker tucks you into a spare crib with gentle, meticulous care. It gives FuzzBuzz’s downy fur a quick pat before it scrambles off on unknown orders, an errant soldier staring at you before giving you a stiff nod and ambling back on patrol. The Queen emanates a sense of peace as her eyes close once more, your creation’s fur being pet by dozens of half-formed arms that belong to hideous, giggling faces.

The little bee’s charms apply no matter the species, apparently.

>>FUZZBUZZ: ADOPTED

You…you have no words for what just occurred.

“Uh…Shu? Are we gonna do this, or…?” November asks, re-adjusting her aim skyward to better line up her imminent shot.

“They just…I think they just adopted FuzzBuzz as one of their own.” You announce, not quite believing what’s just transpired deep beneath your feet. Dorian freezes mid-run, his awkwardly halted form crackling with built-up charge as his eye narrows. “Like…they swaddled him, and tucked him into their nest along with all their other larvae.”

“…Are they Daughters?” Dorian asks incredulously.

“Nope.” You reply, standing on the beach with your hands on your hips. “No, they’re…Amalgams. They’re definitely Amalgams.”

“…So are we going to…?”

“I just…just give me a second. I’m still trying to process this, alright?” You reply, running a hand through your hair as you heave a heavy sigh.

You could use this to your advantage you…guess? Your plan could still hold true, as the swarm seems to employ melee weapons and heat-based powers, neither of which are great cause for concern. On the other hand, there may be something to be done with the fact that a hive of humanoid-ant Amalgams apparently think nothing of adopting something that in no way, shape, or form looks anything like them. You’re trying to figure out where to go from here…

…and November’s barely-stifled laughter isn’t helping you think.

>>Leave the hive be and continue on to hunt (Wildcat/Resort Amalgam). The ants seem…decent…enough, and they don’t appear interested in antagonizing you.

>>The ambush is ready, so initiate Floodgate Procedure. Adopting a FuzzBuzz is no measure of morality, unfortunately.

>>Attempt to commune further with the hive, given their adoption of FuzzBuzz as one of their own. You might be able to string them along, if they assume your creation to be one of their own.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, the FuzzBuzz you sent into the hive attained three consecutive criticals when going up against the Pyreant’s aggression thresholds. He has single-handedly infiltrated their inner sanctum, and is now gently nestled among their own, a sleeper agent in their midst. You have one and a half hours to decide how to use this information.)

(Godspeed, Gentlemen. I need a drink.)
>>
>>3784200
>>Attempt to commune further with the hive, given their adoption of FuzzBuzz as one of their own. You might be able to string them along, if they assume your creation to be one of their own.

honestly, it just feels totally wrong to not see where this goes. i get it, they're amalgams, they'll turn on us, but... i dunno. we have the trap ready so... see where this goes? maybe FuzzBuzz can break the crucible an its aggression principles fully here, i dunno. we have the trap ready and nothing down there sounds like something we cant deal with, hell with the layout and heat weapons, flooding it will be devastating to them, if it comes to that. we can also possibly have time to Suicide rush the queen now, if we must.

...or we, i dunno, sign a peace treaty with an anthill. i mean fuck i doubt it but why the fuck not try at least?
>>
>>3784200
................................................................. The Frick just happened?

>>3784203
Thank you for clarification...... I think i will go to sleep this is just............ wow i cant describe it#

I believe you that you need one........

Dont drink to much

>>3784200
The Hive could be interesting..... could we maybe use the Fuzzbuzz to somehow take over the Hive make them willing to just lie down and be consumed by us?

A Nest of Amalgams may acutally be an intersting source of "allies"

Maybe we could get an Amara clone in there to try and talk to them... Maybe they are like the Tindalos and can communicate with daughters..
If they can control their insitincts(which i guess they can) they could be valuable allies post crucible. Help rebuilign by lendign their expertise of mining and building.
>>
>>3784200
>>Attempt to commune further with the hive, given their adoption of FuzzBuzz as one of their own. You might be able to string them along, if they assume your creation to be one of their own.

I am interested to see where this goes
>>
>>3784200
Damn it, I can't kill things that appreciate the cuteness of FuzzBuzz! They're too human now.

Not that appreciating good soft boys is the only strange thing about them. They can reproduce? Doesn't that go pretty strongly against the "the supply of Amalgams is limited so that Daughters eventually have to start eating each other" idea? Quick, let's call up Mara on her FuzzBuzz, tell her about this fascinating species of Amalgam we discovered. We can farm them for sustenance.
>>
>>3784203
i mean, i can see USES for this situation, but otherwise the fact this situation was even possible to be an option is whats really throwing me for a loop, even moreso it actually happened.

BHOP, what IS the limit of Neuromancy?

>>3784220
i was thinking, i dunno, maybe we could 'free' them from being amalgams, if that even makes sense, and see where it goes from there. again, i doubt it but i mean... we're prepared for if this goes south, and just saw them do something i certainly never thought would happen, so... *shrug*
>>
>>3784203
>>3784229
also would it be possible to hide a jack or form a new one in our current FuzzBuzz? not sure i want to stroke their aggression with plugging their queen right away on the first date but its certainly an option i want on the table.
>>
>>3784200

Dear gods... I am crying I am laughing so hard. Prepare the liquor BHOP, for we have gone too far, and are about to go further.

>>Attempt to commune further with the hive.

Ants are eusocial, and are known to form symbiotic relationships. I am almost tempted to form a hunting share system with them. I don't expect human level intelligence, but anthills are kind of their own kind of alien intelligence on their own.
>>
>>3784200
>>Write-In
>Call up Gina on the Crimson Cord, tell her about an Amalgam hive adopting a FuzzBuzz. The rest of the party has to know. I'm not even looking for advice, it's just so bizarre that I need to tell others about it.
>>
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>>3784232
...wait ok what did i just type....

...ok, right, take a moment from now on after waking up from a nap to get your mind whirring in gear again Anon, im pretty sure i crossed a line with that one.

>>3784237
im against this. its still a very potentially hostile situation we need to figure out and focus on. they can hear about our adventures later. plus, lets wait and see if we cant tell them something even MORE bizzare if this continues to go well.
>>
>>3784244
I think you wanted to imply that Fuzzbuzz and the Queen could get frisky on their first date to try and get an alliance between them and a daughter wanting to end the crucible forever......

dont take it to hard... it happens to the best of us
>>
>>3784244
>its still a very potentially hostile situation we need to figure out and focus on
It won't become risky again until we act. For now they're busy just petting the cute bee, as is right and proper. I don't think they're going to turn until we start trying to communicate. But if you're worried, fine.

>plus, lets wait and see if we cant tell them something even MORE bizzare if this continues to go well.
I just want to give her the one context-free message of "The ant queen has adopted a FuzzBuzz" and then nothing more. It doesn't have to be now, but it does have to be before we meet up back at the Lair. This single non-sequitur of a message that leaves her wondering what the hell we got up to while we were gone.
>>
>>3784229
(This shouldn't be, technically. To clarify; any time you are within the perception radius of an Amalgam and it becomes aware of you, there's a threat reaction that occurs, with different thresholds that determine the type and severity of the Amalgam's actions. The Pyreants are set to go utterly, completely apeshit the moment something appears in their area. They are so angry, in fact, that so as to not make their entire reaction sheet simply say 'murder', I included a slim possibility that they would simply go about their business as normal. When FuzzBuzz crit, 'business as normal' included tending to the hive, and I took the chance to show off more of what they had so that when their indomitable rage was triggered, then your trap would spring accordingly. The soldiers passed, and FuzzBuzz crit again. The Queen made his acquantence, and he crit a third time. Thus, at a loss for how to proceed...adoption.)

>>3784232
(Yes. Yes, he can.)
>>
>>3784265
>FuzzBuzz broke BHOPS mechanics.
oh i am laughing.

alright, so this probably wont go any further, but dammit BHOP, we're gonna try!

>>3784261
we can tell them later

>>3784249
i mean... lets see if it works?
>>
>>3784271
(You are welcome to try. Also, you questioned the limits of Neuromancy; it's a rather broad question, so what are you considering, specifically? I can elaborate further if the question's narrowed a bit further.)
>>
>>3784265
So the entire situation is to ridiculous for words.......
I am going to sleep I need some time to process this.....
Good night Op

Good night anons
>>
>>3784277
Good night, anon. Hopefully the world will make sense again once you wake up.
>>
>>3784275
i wanted to do a kinda set of things.
first, have FuzzBuzz as gently and painlessly as possible jack into one of the babies. i dont expect proper communication with a baby mind you, i just want to see if they have a hive mind, or if like most ants its still pheromones, and get us a read on both or either and how they work.
second, id imagine even with a hive mind, the baby would be a weaker link. i want to see if we cant... nudge its inner workings. maybe we can erase their outright need to attack daughters on sight? maybe we can alter what they see as a threat? maybe we can make them think we are a part of the hive, or ourselves an exception. its a bit broad but id imagine once we start digging inside their heads whats possible would becomes clear.

then ,if we make any headway at all to any of that in a positive light, i wanted to attempt to do the same to the queen, thus affecting the whole hive. its unlikely as id imagine even if possible its one fucking difficult role... but im taking a note from the other Anons book, and was gonna make a Crimson-Jackling hybrid and get us some aid from a certain gal, if of course its even possible to attempt on the queen. it doesn't have to be a LARGE chance, just a chance at all.

sorry if this is confusing ill try to word it better if it is.
>>
>>3784287
It's not uncommon for some species of bumblebee to parasitize the nests of others. A female will invade the hive, kill the queen, and then take her place. She breeds until eventually the entire hive is filled with her offspring, taking it over Invasion of the Body Snatchers style. I think we're in very good position to do that, possibly. We just have to usurp control over the ant queen.
>>
>>3784275

Of course it won't work, but we're Defiant Fools, with all that entails.

>>Let our companions know we're going to attempt to 'talk' and to keep the original plan ready. "This is incredibly dumb, but, on the other hand I can't think of anything that could annoy Mom and the Crucible more than this working." Then try and communicate Hive to Hive through a jacked in FuzzBuzz.
>>
>>3784308

Damnit, I'm off site on cell. It's me.
>>
>>3784287
I don't think the Scarlet Drone idea would work, actually. We'd need to get another bee in there, and I'm not sure we can rely on them not attacking a second time. Then again, maybe they've established a precedent of "bees are friends" now, and they'll ignore it. Point is, it's a risk.
>>
>>3784308
>>3784307
ive got an in depth plan written up thats of appropriate Shu style, but im waiting for BHOPs response so i can make sure its even possible and if so, takes anything else into account.

mostly, id be a shame to post it only to have to redo half of it or it be a moot point.
>>
>>3784316
so is our current FuzzBuzz going for her. lets wait for BHOPS response and then i can actually possibly post my actual plan for us to work on, as alot rides on his response.
>>
>>3784200
>leave the anthill alone
>>
>>3784287
(What you are describing is completely possible, between your and Gina's Neuromancy along with your Empathic Channel. Additionally, a precedent has been set, so whatever looks like a FuzzBuzz will be summarily adopted as one of their own. I hope this helps.)
>>
>>3784346
absolutely amazing. thanks for the reply BHOP.

>>3784200
>>3784219
amending orders;

>>Attempt to commune further with the hive, given their adoption of FuzzBuzz as one of their own. You might be able to string them along, if they assume your creation to be one of their own.
>But... keep those traps VERY ready to go off...

>Test run. have the adopted Fuzzbuzz make the smallest, most gentle, unaggressive stinger her can, and jack into one of his adopted siblings. the goal is less we expect coherent thought from, well, a baby, but to simply see just how connected the hive mind is, and see if we cant nudge or even outright change their nature to benefit or be friendly to us.

>>If we make any headway at all, even minimally, quickly call up Gina and let her know you’re gonna need some help with something.
>>then, spawn a second FuzzBuzz Diplomat, with a Subversive Recursive Crimson-Jackling nestled into its fur, and send it in. i dunno, make it look like its scared and lost and looking for its buddy but totally not a threat.
>>Then, once in the presence of the queen, send forth the little guy, and with Ginas help, see if we cant ‘free’ the ant hive, or at least trick them into being a benefit to us. Its a small chance but lets take it.
>>worse case, things go south while jacked in, and we initiate the actual plan.

>>if clearly, we cannot alter their nature or anything like that, then we go along and flood them. Its cute, but amalgams are amalgams. They would still attack us eventually and we need the levels. Them's the breaks, ant girls.


i dont care if this is stupid or works. we are going to try it. we are going to try and befriend an anthill. why? because fuck the crucible, thats why. hopefully if this works Gina wont get jealous though.
>>
>>3784351
Sounds good. I'd like to supplement it with

>Spawn four Jacklings to boost Neuromantic strength

though. Jacklings give a bonus on concentration effects (not strictly Neuromantic ones, too, if that ever becomes relevant), so just having them out will help us. We may want to lock down our Halo, too, in case there's something like the hive mind being overwhelming to come into contact with. Not sure on that one, though.
>>
>>3784364
im fine with both of those. im thinking it might not be an issue, at least with Gina helping us, but we'll see i suppose.
>>
(Gentlemen, I just arrived back home and shall update after I fix and finish dinner. Thus, please feel free to use this time to make any last-minute additions or adjustments to your plans, as needed.)
>>
>>i dont care if this is stupid or works. we are going to try it. we are going to try and befriend an anthill. why? because fuck the crucible, thats why.

Yessssssssss
>>
>>3784399
take your time BHOP and enjoy your dinner.
plus, i have a feeling regardless of how our plan goes here, you might need a moment and a stiff drink anyhow to prepare for it.
>>
>>3784351
can we just keep the singular fuzzbuzz in there as a sleeper agent? sending a second diplomat will tip the ant colony off. if we play the long game we could siphon and benefit from them. but right now, FuzzBuzz’s status as a newly adopted larvae is tenuous. we gotta establish a reputation first before we get to influence the colony.
>>
>>3784477
BHOP already said thats not an issue here;

>>3784346
>>
>>3784479
also, 4chan is giving me a ton of issues suddenly, and i cant tell if its my end or theirs. considering no other site is giving me such issues i cant tell.
>>
>>3784483
It's their end, I'm having trouble too. I haven't been able to get a post off in hours, and will be very surprised if this post works.
>>
>>3784489
>>3784489
well, it went through, so heres a test to further see how this shits going.

also on random thoughts;
find it funny we got Amara cat ears before we let her meet or consumed either Cat amalgam. got the order there a bit wrong, heh.
>>
>>3784509
(Testing, haven't been able to get a post out in the past two and a half hours.)
>>
>>3784541

SNAFU
>>
>>3784509

It was her "playfull nature" that mede them manifest like that

And of course our wish as Anons.

>>3784541
Maybe they fixed thier stuff now
>>
I am this Anon >>3784583 now on phone for more tests

The last post took quite a while to get through from my Laptop.... Let's see what my phone can do
Number of errors before it goes through: I
>>
I am this Anon >>3784583 now on phone for more tests

The last post took quite a while to get through from my Laptop.... Let's see what my phone can do
Number of errors before it goes through: III
>>
>>3784509
Somehow I get the feeling that we're gonna encounter a daughter with dog mutations.
>Amara and Dog Daughter meet each other, feral instincts take over for one split scene
>Cue Cat and Dog shenanigans with Amara hissing like a Cat, cloning herself and then sprinting off. The Dog Amalgam somehow chasing after the real Amara and getting confused by Amara's Cat clones.
>"DOG!"
>"CAT. CAT. CAT. CAT."
>"Shu~! Make doge go away!"
>>
>>3784611
Or a daughter with bird aspects.
Then she also could go wild trying to capture the bird

>Amara spots bird daughter sitting in a tree cleaning her feathers
>instincts take over stars stalking up to daughter
>jumps the daughter
>startled bird daughter tries to fly away
>Amara multiplies rapidly while in pursuit
>eventually turns into massive tidal wave of Amara's all reaching for the bird
>Shus confused face when a roughed up unconscious bird daughter lies in front of her private rooms door while Amara walks around and purs with satisfaction
>>
>>3784611
>>3784646
>Why Shu became an alcoholic, the posts.
>>
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>>3784200

"We're...just bear with me a sec, I'm going to reach out to Gina." You say, throwing open the Crimson Cord and feeling your mind attune to Gina's far across the Fleshscape.

[Gina, you available? I need your help, if you've got a second or sixty]

{For you? All the time in the world} She replies instantly, her wink at the end somehow translating across the Crimson Cord. {What can I do you for?}

[I need you to help me talk to an Amalgam ant queen through a FuzzBuzz scout her hive has adopted. I think if we play our cards right we can convince them to help us, but it's a longshot]

Silence, then...

{...'Kay. On one condition}

[Name it, and it's yours] You assent, and you can practically feel her grin from ear to ear.

{You need to sit everyone's asses down and give us a blow-by-blow when we all get back home} She demands, her mind abuzz with a hundred questions that crave a hundred answers. {No skips, no summaries. I need every single goddamn fact of this burned into my brain, forever}

[Consider it done. Now, if you'd do the honors?] You say, signalling for Dorian and November to be ready to spring the traps at your slightest signal. Gina's presence filters into and through your mind, your thoughts interweaving with hers as your FuzzBuzz generates a slender, minuscule stinger.

You're holding your breath when you reach out to one of the many hands petting your spy's downy fur, and you release it with a relieved sigh when the world doesn't come crashing down when it slides home.

{Neat! Alright, let's see...so, they communicate through pheromones, no hive mind. Some other Amalgams in the area are keeping then kind of confined, so they've been stuck here for a while without any Daughters to consume, so they've just been feeding on other stray Amalgams, and...woah, they're fucking *breeding*? How?!}

[Though that was weird, too] You reply as Gina filters through the torrent of data single-handedly. [I thought the whole point was for Amalgams to eventually die out, so Daughters would be forced to eat each other and push for the Crucible to end. Being able to make more of them naturally sounds like it's defeating the purpose]

{Yeah...yeah, in a big way, too} She mutters, fascinated by what she's seeing. {I just ran the scenario by Fran and she said one of the Proxies was researching Amalgams, actually. That version of West had a couple of theories, namely that since this Crucible has gone on for so long and given the volatile nature of our planet's biomass then something like this might happen if a winner hadn't emerged. It looks like she was right; these things are a little society, and they've evolved rapidly to replace and increase their numbers. Hell, they even have some basic concepts and ideas rattling around in their heads, this is fucking wild}

[Alright. Okay.] You say, spawning another FuzzBuzz, complete with a small, cloaked Crimson-Jackling nestled deep within its downy fur.

[I can work with this]

(Continued)
>>
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>>3784728

You send the FuzzBuzz Diplomat in with its hidden cargo, breathing a sigh of relief when he's adopted just as quickly by the fiery members of the bustling hive. Once he too is deep within the Pyreants' inner sanctum, your Subversive Jackling takes flight, slowly creeping up to the Bloated Queen's closed eyes.

"DREAM."

A voice, not yours, not Gina's, but something like a multitude, a crowd shouting all at once as a tremendous utterance fills your mind...

"ARE YOU A DREAM." The voice intones as the Bloated Queen stirs from her fitful slumber. "ARE YOU A THREAT."

{Holy fucking shit, are you shitting me?} Gina whispers, her voice filled with disbelief and wonder

[No, no, we're no threat] You quickly reassure, pulses of alternating calm and reassurance echoing through your empathic channel and into the behemoth that rests deep below your feet. [We're...kind of like a dream, yes]

"I DO NOT LIKE DREAMS. CONFUSING. UPSETTING. DREAMS COME NOT BEFORE, ONLY NOW. BEFORE, NO DREAMS. ONLY SLEEP. ONLY KIN. ONLY THREATS. SIMPLE. I DO NOT LIKE DREAMS."

{We're...not a dream, then}

"DREAMS. THREATS. KIN." She growls, irritation mounting in her voice. "THERE ARE THESE THINGS. WHICH ARE YOU."

[Then we're no threat...and we're no dream, either] You answer, her anger subsiding both at the hands of your answer and the sheer, focused calm you're desperately trying to send her way. [And does there always have to be a threat?]

"THREAT. THERE IS ALWAYS THREAT. NO PURPOSE WITHOUT THREAT." She replies, though you can't help but notice the twinge of uncertainty slipping into her voice. "THREAT HURTS HIVE. CAT HURTS HIVE. DAUGHTERS HURT HIVE. WORLD FILLED WITH THREATS. THREATS TO KIN. CANNOT ABIDE."

A pause, and then...

"WHAT...WHERE IS THREAT, IF YOU ARE NOT THREAT?" She asks, her anger dissipating in the wake of an emotion that stirs deep within her amalgamate form, emerging from a place that grows and evolves, even now. "WHAT ARE YOU?"

Curiosity, for the first time in her existence.

>>[Kin. We are kin, and mean you no harm. If we were to help you with your 'threats', would you call us kin of your own will?]

>>[We are something new. Not 'kin', neither 'threat' nor 'dream'. We're 'friends']

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two and a half hours as I arrive at work and get started on the day. I tried for about three hours to update last night, but ah well. I hope the morning finds you well-rested, one and all.)
>>
>>3784729

>>[We are something new. Not 'kin', neither 'threat' nor 'dream'. We're 'friends']

>Introduce yourself [I am called Shu by my allies, friends and kin. Is there a way you wish to be addressed as?]

>Offer her to help her by hunting the Cat that has been attacking them. Try and convince them that having allies and friends can be something worthwhile.

(Posting from my phone)
>>
>>3784729
>[We are something new. Not 'kin', neither 'threat' nor 'dream'. We're 'friends']
>['Friends' are like kin, but not related by blood. 'friends' are 'kin' that prove themselves worthy of your trust and cooperation, though helping you and you helping them.]
>[You say the Cat Amalgam is threatening you? what if defeat it and present it to you, to prove we are 'friends'?]
>[we need not be a threat to you, and you not a threat to us. there is another option, and you've already proven that possible. both of us could benefit from eachother, just like we benefit from our kin already.]

>>3784733
yeah things went down the shitter last night. but glad to see things working now.
ive noticed thats happened more often ever since 4channel became a thing.
>>
Holy crap. The Crucible ain't no parasite, it's an ark ship of the wildest proportions. Given enough time, the Cord will eventually settle down on this planet and populate the place with Flora and Fauna that develop its own ecology.
>>
>>3784749
i dont think thats what its supposed to do. re-read what Fran/West whatever said. Earths biomass just happens to be unusually volatile. combine that with her mentioning the time and the fact our is one of if not the longest running crucible, and its not that its supposed to do this, its even the crucible is not immune to natural evolution and in a way its more like, the crucible has lasted so long with highly unstable biomass that its malfunctioning.
>>
>>3784729
Supporting>>3784739
with a bit of introductions like in >>3784738

Besides hunting the cat amalgam, we can offer to terraform their mound to be more defensible and efficient in design, with a bit of spirals here and there for flair and Dorian's painting for decoration.
Or gift some of our swarmlings' bio-honey. Perhaps it can even be turned into bread.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAKkjD3nEv0
>>
>>3784729
>>3784739
This but have Language and Grammar stunted to match Pyreant Queen's level.
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>>3784760
they idea of art and interior decorating might not be something they comprehend yet. sure, this is proving the queen is stating to become a sentient, but this is like, only the first step or two past instinct towards sentience. im not sure any of that would stick.

but we can give it a shot, but lets earn their true trust first via the cat. also, if this works out, we need to find a way to distinguish them as 'allies of the defiant' and also set ally condition rules. no eating threatening daughters really is the only one we would need to do honestly, provided we come up with a proper way to let people know they are an ally of the defiant.

i mean... we could just literally put a sign outside the mound, but that only helps when people see the otherwise already obvious mound. hrm... amalgams can absorb and 'level up' too right? again, i doubt they care about aesthetics, so maybe we could have them absorb a FuzzBuzz to becomes fluffy and whatnot? id not be surprised if such a thing is already well enough known as our symbol, that that and a few FuzzBuzzes(and a sign) would let others know, or at least question, whether they should just attack these ants. that and the fact if the Ants agree they wouldn't be instantly hostile, which for amalgams is a big sign somethings not normal.

>>3784763
it doesn't need to be slurred. its half emotional direct mind communication. we already haven't slurred our speech and she understands what we mean. well, i mean, shes not getting confused because were talking normally, is my point, she can understand our regular human speak just fine. its just the new concepts she doesn't understand, and dumbing things down wont matter for that.
>>
>>3784729
>>[We are something new. Not 'kin', neither 'threat' nor 'dream'. We're 'friends']
>>Write-In
>Send in image form all the examples of symbiosis from Earth's old ecosystem that we can think of. Pistol shrimp and goby teaming up to protect each other from predators, the goby using its better senses to alert the shrimp to use its superior power. Tarantulas and frogs protecting each other, the frog eating the flying insects that would prey on the tarantula's eggs and the tarantula eating any ground-based predators that would kill the frog. Coyotes and badgers hunting together, the coyote's speed scaring prey to ground where the badger can dig them out.
>Show some images from our experience, simplified somewhat for their mental system. Meeting Julia as a strange and frightening thing, but with no violence resulting, and then her going on to become an ally who fights beside us. Finding Amara's chrysalis, wondering if we should feed on it, but deciding to let it hatch so as to befriend the girl inside (followed by some shots of Amara being adorable and cuddling her FuzzBuzz, they'll understand the joy of FuzzBuzz). Our party teaming up with Ringo to go fight Johanna, completely unrelated species working together to pursue their mutual goals.
>"Not all things that are not-kin are threats. Many are. Caution is good. But not-kin can also work together, find common ground that lets them extend the trust one has for kin to outsiders. That is friendship. It is rare, but it is a good thing when it happens."
>"Let's find that common ground. You are being threatened by the cat. We would like to hunt that cat. If you let us pass through your territory unmolested, we can kill it for you. Do you agree that this would make things better for both of us?"

>>3784752
Yeah, but it sill seems weird for it to go to sapience so quickly, even with the innate processing power of Crucible biomass. My guess is that while the Crucible is malfunctioning, it's also trying to direct the mutations somewhat. Make new sapient beings so that it might be able to use them as replacements for Daughters, some day.
>>
>>3784786
im not sure thats the case. the Crucible has a plethora of old species to call upon if it needs to throw something out. it also defeats whats clearly part of the point of the crucible to do that, which is get new input from new species. creating its own muddles that process and will never work as well as a fully independently formed species would.
>>
>>3784767
I see.

>>3784729
>>3784763
Ignore this suggestion, but I still support >>3784739

>>3784760
It's a bit too much of a stretch. It's gotta develop more neurons and what not.
Also. The fact that we're befriending/negotiating with a PyreAnt Queen Amalgam of all things...
>inb4 HxH Chimera Ant King is hatched and evolves.

>>3784786
I'm wondering what would make Earth's biomass so unusually volatile.
>>
>>3784793
My thinking is that it's just taking advantage of an existing phenomenon to come up with a backup. It might recreate old species if it has to, but if life is emerging on its own right now it might as well give it a chance. As for the novelty of the life and its contributions to the Crucible's development, fair, but I think that so long as it keeps a gentle hand on the evolutionary pressures the results will still be fairly unexpected. We can shape evolutionary algorithms with our technology and still get things we don't expect. And either way, it would be at minimum no less novel than recreating a species it's already eaten.
>>
>>3784794
well, isnt there actually a theory thats looked at other planets with potential life and calculating most others would require a much more streamlined type of life, but also otherwise be 'easier' for that life to thrive on because of that?

>>3784796
agree to disagree. the fact that its both based off of a timeframe thats not supposed to happen and volatile methods, aswell as goes against many principles of how the crucible is supposed to operate and the point of its functions, very clearly points more towards this being entirely uncontrolled and unintended.
>>
>>3784796
The scene of Stealth Panther stalking and hunting a beetle (and marking its territory) reminds me of Monster Hunter Ecology, where it just shows Monsters in its natural environment.

>>3784799
It's perceived to be "uncontrolled and unintended" because the system is following its programing towards its logical conclusion if you leave the program running it alone for long enough.

It's created amalgams based off of Earth Flora (i.e. a Fire ant Colony or a Panther/Chameleon hybrid) And had to use the existing behaviors, ecology, and habitat of the dead species in order for the amalgams to operate.

So give it enough time, a Fire ant colony will spread, thrive, and expand its empire, and with the choice foods it has eatened, it's taken on the Chimera Queen Aspect of sentience due to the Daughters in its diet.

The Stealth Panther however, is following the behavioral routines of any big cat: Mark territory, hunt for prey, find a mate, reproduce. (Although the latter two is yet to be seen).
>>
>>3784804
> It's created amalgams based off of Earth Flora (i.e. a Fire ant Colony or a Panther/Chameleon hybrid) And had to use the existing behaviors, ecology, and habitat of the dead species in order for the amalgams to operate.
I meant Flora and Fauna.
>>
>>3784804
yes, but thats completely different than the other Anon saying the crucible is outright trying to purposefully stoke sentience in its creations. thats just the crucible letting things run as it should, but with no safety systems in place and using parts that just so happen could lead to that, but still through randomness of what they actually get a hold of and happen to absorb, aswell as if they even survive in the first place.
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>>3784799
>agree to disagree. the fact that its both based off of a timeframe thats not supposed to happen and volatile methods, aswell as goes against many principles of how the crucible is supposed to operate and the point of its functions, very clearly points more towards this being entirely uncontrolled and unintended.
No, it points to this being unprecedented behavior. That's not the same as malfunction, these conditions don't normally happen. But I do mostly agree with you, I think that the emergence of an actual ecosystem is happening on its own. I just think that the Crucible may be able to place evolutionary pressures on it. The Crucible controls the entire environment and has immense processing power, it would be weirder if it didn't have a hand in the emergence of sapient life. Especially among a eusocial species. Sapience runs directly counter to the purposes of eusociality, that shouldn't have evolved on its own.
>>
>>3784810
we're just not going to agree on this one. i think the evidence very heavily point towards it actually stifling the onset of sentience as much as possible, if it has any control over it.
>>
>>3784817
What I think >>3784810 is trying to get at is "Yes, the Crucible's recreating amalgamated versions of Earth's Flora and Fauna for the amalgams restoration feature, but the fact that it's gone on for so long, the evolutionary pressure induced from consuming prey and the diversity of their diet has changed the behaviors of some amalgams."

The Pyre Ant Queen amalgam, being based off of an eusocial species called the Fire ant, has developed unexpected behaviors due to the evolutionary pressures of the Crucible's 'you are what you eat' principle of consuming and evolving.

It's apparent primary diet was Crucible daughters (aka humans), and over time it has developed human sapience and self cognizance due to its diet, evidenced by many of its mature soldiers and drones taking on a humanoid look. but the its amalgamated look in the overall colony populace is due to Stealth Panther keep the colony habitat range confined due to its ability to ambush scouts, forcing it to consume other amalgams and taking on their aspects as a result due to how consuming works.
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>>3784831
no, he's very clearly saying the crucible is purposefully stoking and trying to create sentient life. im heavily disagreeing with that. its happening, sure, thats obvious, but im saying i disagree it wants that to happen. rather, the mix of time, volatility, and base blueprints to work with is making it possible, despite anything the crucible wants or does not want.
>>
>>3784739
>>3784786
Love this write-in, SUPPORTING. I also want to say that we should be open to hunt more foes than the cat, if we want to protect the colony.

Do you realize that, if they BREED, they are the fulfillment of Mara´s plan? That is, a potential solution to the HUNGER timer problem through a steady, renewable stream of consumable biomass able to quench the Hunger. Pyreants as source instead of Isabelle.
In the future, a CONSENSUAL arrangment could even be worked out between the colony and mankind (they are eusocial and some castes may be non-sentient), although this would not make me very comfortable.

If we want to be FRIENDS with them, we should help them understand the state of the world and its threats. It would not do to have a faction of daughters (like EVIL West army) FARM them or OZMA to try to destroy them to speed up the crucible.

It is also beatiful in the sense that it is not only an instance of first contact with sentient life (the second, tasking into account the Hexxane), we are SEEING the evolution to sentience in real time. It just feels historical, like Shu and friends were threading the first steps of mankind in the moon, or something like that.

I really, REALLY hope we manage to make it work. I am already feeling protective of the colony, I really wish for them to survive. They are like newborns, they don´t even have the benefit of a long-developed sentience. We managed to survive through our efforts, but also because some really powerful people, like Mara, Charon, Cassandra and Francine, decided not to abuse of their power and be decent human beings when they had the cahnce, so I would really like for us to be able to extend the same companionship and extend new crucible integrants the same chance. We could be for this colony the same kind of positive influence Mara was for us.

So let´s hope it works, for everyone´s sake.
>>
>>3784879
Clarification: The potential CONSENSUAL consumption solution to the hunger-timer is abhorrent to me. It is just that, if we wish to protect the colony in an effective fashion, we MUST realize that MANY daughters will get that idea the second they realize the existance of the colony.

So they should be (gently) informed, at some point, of the risk they are in, and thaught enough about human society and diplomacy so that no one takes advantage of them.
With powerful daughters around, they should lay low for a while.
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>>3784884
I think they understand quite well the risk, they already see the entire outside world as a threat. The bigger problem will be teaching them what ISN'T out to kill and eat them. They do want to expand their hive, it would be awful if they wound up running into a peaceful community that they could have made friends with and then wind up eating them because "is not Hive-Friend ShuBuzz! Can not be trusted!"
>>
>>3784879
>>3784884
honestly the fact we even made it this far means they have already broken from the crucibles control/programming to some degree. gain their trust and even if we have to put it in very simple terms, i dont think it would be hard to convince them to help us stop the crucible. i mean, honestly that one might be easier than convincing them we are friends, due to the simplicity of the concept.

'Crucible gets Winner = Mound and Kin die.'
'Help stop Crucible = Mound and Kin not die.'

as for them being a food source... i get what you mean and where you are coming from, but using sentient beings as cattle just doesn't sit right to me, consensual or not. the fact both the workers and babies both showed some level of actual affection for FuzzBuzz, no matter how minimalistically, hints towards the sentience most likely spreading. if i had to take a guess, each new generation born from the queen has a higher level of own sentience, based off of her level upon laying their egg.

a much much better solution would be to figure out how they are able to reproduce, copy that 'ability', and put it onto a non sentient amalgam type.

all of this can wait though, til we actually confirm a friendship/kinship with them, and can test just how far they are even capable of understanding and taking it.

>>3784887
might have to teach them how to do minor diplomacy, though unlike out constructs they might not be ok putting their own as such a high risk just to see if someones a threat or not.
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>>3784729

Oh yes this. >>3784786.

I just want to say thank you for rolling with the insanity BHOP.
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>>3784896
yeah, BHOPs being a champ going along with this, even if it does appear to be stoking his alcoholism a bit. though to be fair, i dont think anyone expected this. truly, FuzzBuzz is something special.
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>>3784920
I find it funny that of the scenarios where absurdities overshoot the horror in this setting that we've discussed (two Gluttonous fighting each other that devolves into aggressive face-sucking and tongue action, to two whale constructs/amalgams tackling each other in the atlantic while a Captain Ahab screeches autistically throwing bone harpoons), Fuzzbuzz getting adopted by a literal ant colony of amalgams was the one that threw Bhop off the most.
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>>3784932
to be fair, one of them, while canon, was entirely background secondhand, which probably lessens the feel of the impact. the other, the whales, was more him confirming it was possible and he was ok or even liked the idea, than it actually happening.

FuzzBuzz being so adorable he triple strikes down super aggressive amalgams to the point of giving us a chance to basically possibly de-amalgam them happening in the main questline throws things for quite the loop in a very center-frame kinda way. he's probably looking at a list of ant-amalgam based abilities he now very possible wrote up for nothing and sighing a bit.
though, us 'trading' ability/augment copies or something with the queen to solidify the alliance sounds like a kickass way to show the newfound unity, if it gets that far.
>>
>>3784941
Plus, those other two examples are still rooted in violence. Bizarre slapstick violence, but still violence. It is to be expected of the Crucible, it fits into the established premise. The power of cute fuzzy bees winning over an entire hive full of berserker monsters does not. Cuteness should hold no power over Amalgams, and yet it has.
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>>3784729

[We are something new. Not 'kin', neither 'threat' nor 'dream'. We're 'friends'] You explain, eyes closed while you settle down on the beach’s cold sands. ['Friends' are like kin, but not related by blood. 'friends' are 'kin' that prove themselves worthy of your trust and cooperation, though helping you and you helping them]

With that, a trickle of ideas begin to flow into her mind from yours and Gina’s showing not predation, but symbiosis from the world that was. The Queen is taken aback as images of Julia, Amara, and your other family members flit across her consciousness as a new concept begins to take shape in her burgeoning mind. She’s alarmed when she witnesses your confrontation with Ringo, and even more so when you show Amara’s affection for the Fleshbound Tindalos. When you conclude, you wait a moment for a reply as you feel the Queen’s thoughts churning, mulling over the information in silence.

[You say the Cat Amalgam is threatening you?] You offer, trying to steer the Queen’s thoughts to a position you can negotiate with. [What if we defeat it and present it to you, to prove we are 'friends'?]

“YOU WILL KILL THREAT? WHY?” The Queen demands, confused. “YOU WANT MEAT? YOU WANT US TO BE BENEATH YOU? BENEATH YOUR…”

[No, not at all] You interrupt gently, sensing the Queen’s mounting fear and countering it with simple, honest truth. [We need not be a threat to you, nor you to us. There is another option, and you've already proven that possible. Both of us could benefit from each other, just like we benefit from our kin already. Will you let us do this for you, so that we can be friends? Stay back, rest, and we will take care of the threat for you]

“I…I WILL LET YOU DO THIS.” She finally relents, albeit with some measure of hesitation. “SHOW ME. SHOW ME WHAT YOU MEAN. WITH DOING, NOT WITH WORDS.”

{This is…whew, okay} Gina murmurs, still stunned over what she’s just witnessed as you come back to your own mind, opening your eyes to the beachfront before you. {So, what’re you going to do?}

“What I promised.” You reply, rising to your feet as you stare into the depths of the Mophyton Wastes to the north. “Thanks for your help, GG. I think me, Dorian, and November have a cat to hunt.”

“Don’t mention it…good luck, and I look forward to the recap. Hell, we all do.” Gina replies with an obvious smile, and with that you’re alone in your own head once more, weighing your options. You still have eyes on the reptilian panther thanks to your scoutlings, watching its camouflaged silhouette stalk through the Wastes in search of new prey. It’s not the target you expected to hunt…but if you’re to make friends with a giant anthill filled with flaming barbarian ants, then it’s what must be done.

…God, you’ve had a weird day.

>>Ready an ambush for the wildcat (Write-In).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two hours. Thank you for bearing with me through a rather busy morning, and I do have an open question for everyone; this upcoming weekend is a long one, and one that’s filled up rather quickly with social obligations on my end. Thus, instead of opening a new Vein when I’m back on Tuesday I was considering simply leaving this one open and continuing well into next week as you conclude your hunt and proceed to level up. Would this work for you all, or would you prefer for a new Vein to open at some point in the future? Please let me know, and I hope your day is going well.)

>>3784920
>>3784896
>>3784932
(Despite my jesting, occurrences like this is one of the things I love about being a QM/DM. My delays aren’t struggling to figure out where to go from here since I have a good idea of how this supports the main story beats rather well, actually but rather me struggling with work, unfortunately. I appreciate you all rolling with this amusing development, and I’m keen to see where you’re going to take things.)
>>
>>3784953
>Use our scoutlings to keep track of the Cat Amalgam.
>find a good amush zone for it, while our scouts keep a VERY close eye on it.
>Make a spiral blender trap and cover it with a thin layer of biomass. Make it more oval shaped to take into account the thing attacks with long charges.
>Fill it will Dorians paintlings as glue traps to keep it in, but also near the surface ready to leap up and try and stick it as it passes over.
>Have November and her Tank ready to bombard it once the trap is sprung.
>Dorain should be ready with lightning and his speed, but more so to intercept it if it comes for us, rather then the trap. He should get some speed and armor built up too.
>Then, spawn a big, juicy, but fast Swarmling. Use it as bait to lure the Cat Amalgam to the trap and spring it. It should take its position taking into account last time the thing went right through and past its prey, not stopping on top of it, meaning the bait needs to aim for it to land on the trap once its past the prey, not stopped atop it.
>Be prepared for if the trap fails. Dont let it get to you OR escape.
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>>3784958
its fine BHOP, you keep that fire extinguisher of yours doing its job.

>Would this work for you all, or would you prefer for a new Vein to open at some point in the future?
i mean i dont care ill be honest. all i can think of is, this threads probably getting close to its 5 day bump limit, and is still a good bit always but still not horribly far from its 750 post bump limit aswell. really, it depends on if you trust /qst/ to not push the thread down and off the board before this Vein comes to its rightful conclusion, and honestly nothing else.

>Despite my jesting, occurrences like this is one of the things I love about being a QM/DM.
glad to hear it. sorry to hear works been so rough on you, but hopefully those weekend plans are the good kind and you can at least get something good out of em.
ill be busy saturday afternoon with my mothers birthday anyways, so hey, that works out for me anyhow.
>>
>>3784958
As long as teh thread does not fall of the board in the meantime sure leave it open. If you have doubts you could close it as well. It is your call after all

How is the writeup coming along? I will start writing Minas Story again farily soon. (I had to recharge my creative batteries and they are bursting again)I would hate to see the write up be elayed any further by forcing you through reading another chapter, before ther write up is even finished


>>3784944
Supporting >>3784959
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>>3784953

Most of this: >>3784959. But load up Dainsleif for the first Geischoss shot.

>>3784958 no problem BHOP I'm running LARP plot this weekend, so I understand and appreciate all you do here..
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>>3784981
>Spoiler
oops, i may of done that already with the siege, my bad.
>>
>>3784953
>>Ready an ambush for the wildcat (Write-In).
>First, disable those spiral traps we had for the hive. I assume we would anyway and that BHOP wouldn't do us like that, but I'm saying it just to make sure.

>Scout out the terrain of the forest for a good ambush point. The ideal location is flat, low land near elevation, it's the path of least resistance and so most animals will follow such paths. Terraform such a point if need be.
>Create a tiger pit. Deep hole with steep, smooth walls that can't be easily climbed. Harden the walls, too. Place numerous barbed spikes at the base of the pit. Don't get the pit spiraling yet, we don't want the sound to give it away. Cover the pit in a thin layer of easily-breakable biomass.
>Fill the pit halfway up to the top of the spikes with Dorian's bloodlings. Have them ready to leap on the tiger and poison/exsanguinate/glue it down. Have a Spiraling waiting in the pit as well, ready to enhance Fear To Tread.
>Make a blind for the tank to hide in. It's a big, obviously artificial shape, it could alert the tiger. Modify the "foliage", hide it behind a thin fungal curtain that the tank can easily break through and/or shoot through with swarmlings acting as a spotter.
>Spawn a large baseline Swarmling. Give it a moderate injury, nothing that would actually impede it but enough to make it look like it is. The smell of wounded prey should help attract the tiger, and upon seeing the wounded animal it should want to attack it. Use it as bait to draw the tiger in, ideally having it land on the pit's surface so that when the tiger pounces it will fall in.
>Have Dorian build up some stacks of CHARGE while Shu REVS UP. Upon the tiger falling into the pit, set it spinning (with Spiraling assistance) while Dorian fires lightning and November drops some cluster grenades down the hole.
>Also spawn two triple-Knighted Nomlings, two Bishops for us and Dorian, a Rook, and ten Banelings. Have the Banelings barrage the tiger if the initial trap doesn't kill it, while the other swarmlings will be of use if it escapes the trap entirely and we have to fight it.
>Prime Halos, activate Ravenous Maw, grow six extra arms, have Dorian switch to Critic form and grow six extra arms of his own. Be ready for a possible fight against a fast and hard to see enemy.

>>3784958
I'm fine with leaving the Vein open, BHOP. We're still on the same "mission", so to speak. And don't worry too much about you being busy with other things. Seriously, you're one of the fastest and most consistently-updating QMs I've ever seen, you've ruined me for other quests.
>>
>>3784953

>>3784959
So your plan. Good start. Good ambush idea. But lets go with the idea that Stealth panther might flee after escaping the initial trap.

So I think we should have Dorian Tag it with a subversive Succling so we can keep track of it. Or a paintling. We'll turn the ambush and use a tried and millenia old tactic our human ancestors use, turn the hunt into a Persistent hunt force it to keep running until it decides to fight back like a cornered beast.

Stealth panther's an ambush predator, which means it's only built for short sprint bursts which heavily taxes its body if not given enough time. If we get close enough to it, we force it to fight and prevent its escape by making a circular wall or something.

Dainsleif should be loaded into Geschoss's main cannon as ammunition, so have November swap out Ignition gauntlets the Silver sword. And November should have the Jester's mask active.

As for when we're in the final hunt phase and facing off against the panther. Have November and designate Shu as the target of protection with the Silver Sword. It's gonna be making flanking attacks with its ridiculous speed so the Silver Sword is the perfect tool against this kind of amalgam.

So my thoughts on the overall plan:
>Initial ambush trap with the blender, spring the trap regardless if its successful or not
>Turn initial ambush into Persistence hunting, Have Geschoss Fire lobbing shots to keep panther on the run using the "beating" tactic to keep rattling its nerves
>Turn persistence hunting into an actual fight the moment it decides to fight back like a cornered beast.

>>3784987
>>3784981
Me writing Luna's choice has taken a rather odd turn. I was expecting Luna's insane silliness to be fun and have it confuse and annoy the crap out of Ozmas but then I kept on having thoughts on what would happen if sane!Luna appeared in the mindscape and it's giving me moodwhiplash and the story's taken a more tragic turn. I don't know what to do.

>>3784958
I'm rather torn about this. I've got work on the weekend, and can't participate much if this vein were to keep on going at its usual pace of 2 hours voting time after each update, but I also understand you've got your life...So how about an update once a day? would that work?
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>>3784998
>I'm rather torn about this. I've got work on the weekend, and can't participate much if this vein were to keep on going at its usual pace of 2 hours voting time after each update, but I also understand you've got your life...So how about an update once a day? would that work?
im unsure if im fully understanding you right, but BHOP is trying to say he wont have time to post this weekend at all, and so will be taking a break until tuesday. instead, hes asking if he should close out this vein, or keep this one open and continue it on Tuesday when he is back.
>>
>>3784987
Dont worryy i posted the sixth chapter of the story after you had posted teh Siege so i know that it will take soem time. I would just like to get a status update of when we can roughly expect it

>>3784998
If it flows it flows let your mind take you where it wants to take you and enjoy the ride. I am quite curious how the chjoice look for Luna.... I did include a mention of her in the 6th chapter
>>
>>3784998
also im gonna have to disagree with and veto those changes.
>>
>>3784981
>>3784987
(It's been delayed regardless due to updates and work, so please feel free to post them and I'll work that into my write-up when I finish it.)

(Also, I will more than likely be taking the week of September 16th to 20th off from posting for both Borderlands 3 with my wife and to finish the write-ups for the stories that’ve been posted up to that point.)

>>3784998
(Oh, no worries; I won't be able to update over the weekend myself, so updates would resume on Tuesday of next week, since I know everyone will be busy.)
>>
>>3785006
Your reasoning please.

>keep in mind that my suggestions are for the possibility that Stealth Panther flees the fight in search of easier prey instead of fighting the party. If it stands its ground and fights, then my suggestions for those changes will be rendered moot.

>>3785008
oh. It's fine then.
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>>3785008
Thank you for the pointer

It will probably take at least a week to write it down and i will likely not be able to do much anyway since i have to plan my own birthday party for next week
>>
>>3785008
already did but i can post it again if necessary, though all of them are linked on the Pepperboxes main sheet.

also, sure, hope you and your wife enjoy the game when that time comes around.

>>3785010
well, i misinterpreted that as you meaning alot of that right now, but regardless...

at any point, even if it tries to run after the ambush attempt, Dorian focusing all his actions on killing or crippling it will work out better than just trying to tag it.

i guess the walls not the worst idea, but we should still aim to just dish damage to it or properly stun/pin it down with spikes or something, rather than block its path, if it comes to that.

Dainsleif can be loaded into the cannon without being unslotted from November. i still think the gauntlets are better suited for being slotted into November and she can still use the sword without slotting it into herself.

i also think if it gets to the point we're chasing it down instead of killing it here, we probably will simply lose it or it'll get way too far to properly finish it off, and can simply consider us having lost the fight on a technicality.
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>>3784998
I'm not sure endurance hunting would work in the Crucible. I think that if we put the pressure on the tiger is more likely to stay and fight to the death than run. The tiger is far more likely to fall back on Amalgam behavior than natural animal behavior, it appears to be a one-off rather than a member of a species like the ants and so shouldn't have instincts designed to preserve its Darwinian fitness.
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>>3785008
Also a Question did i predict this possibility of the crucible by making the Umbral Hunter Amamlgams pretty much like a species that can reproduce? Similar to the ants?
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>>3785023
(Indeed. I'd planned to showcase the evolution of Amalgams at some junture during this excursion, though it didn't happen quite the way I expected. This is yet another reason why I wanted to start you off in a much later stage of the Crucible's duration, to further highlight what oddities can occur and how they run countercurrent to prevailing expectations.)
>>
(Gentlemen, for my own clarification; if you're able to bring down the cat-like Amalgam, are you planning to give it to the Queen immediately as a gesture of good-will, or would you like a vote to open to decide how to proceed, post-combat? Just trying to see how much I should streamline things while not making any undue assumptions.)
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>>3785055
Would it be possible to communicate a desire to share the meat? Not in the sense of "okay, you get your bit, we get ours" but more like a communal feeding thing. Splitting a meal is a big part of social bonding. The main obstacle to the idea, of course, is that most of our party is not here right now and can't join in. It would just be Shu and Dorian getting fed. Though I suppose with the Sparagmos Engine that doesn't actually mean we can't give any levels we get from that to the rest of the party.
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>>3785064
(They would understand you wanting to take your food back to your 'nest', as it were.)
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>>3785055
I'd say leave the cat head for the Ant Queen, but keep the rest of the Carcass. The head will serve triple duty as both proof that the threat was slain, a gesture of good will, and splitting a small portion for the Ant Queen to consume.
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>>3785072
Yeah, but my intent was that we'd sit down with the ants and eat with them. Which I guess might not actually work, depending on their social structure. They might not have the concept of shared meals, if drones just grab food as they need it from the communal stores. Especially if they don't prepare food. Oh, we should introduce the ants to the idea of cooking. They've got fire powers, right? Let's teach them that heating meat slowly makes it easier to digest and can kill off infectious/toxic agents in it. Plus, it's tasty.
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>>3785085
I think we're that concept of communal meals abit too far and too fast. They're a eusocial species that just learned sentience. Queen's running the show. I'll have to veto this. Besides, we've got our own family to worry about. Just helping them with Stealth Panther and leaving them a gift of goodwill would be enough.
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>>3785093
Yeah, I realized the impracticality of it as I was typing that. I still think teaching them about cooking is something we should do at some point. They'd enjoy it. There's a lot we could teach them, actually. Like, they live next to a fungal forest. Let's teach them about leafcutter ants. "Look, here's a species much like you who cultivates edible fungus and so doesn't have to worry about hunting."
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>>3785055
So yeah. Final vote from me before I leave for work and the occasional phoneposting: leave the cat head for the Ant Colony as a gift of goodwill, food, and and communal sharing for the Ant queen, keep the rest of the Carcass.
>>
>>3785055
sure, go ahead and move forward with giving her proof we killed it. not sure we need to give it all to her but hey, she does also have alot of mouths to feed.
>>
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>>3784953

Within minutes, your trap is set. The oval pit is dug, covered by a thin layer of biomass stretched over the yawning gap filled with drill-like teeth and spiraling flesh, coiled tight in preparation of the butchery to come. It’s been lined with Dorian’s paintlings, their master waiting near you to intercept your prey should the trap fail while November has a barrage primed and ready, waiting to strike when the trap is sprung. From your hive writhes a plump, speedy member of your brood, and with a thought it speeds off into the Wastes to intercept your target. Switching to your scouts’ perceptions you witness the instant the chameleon-cat’s attention is captured, its posture slinking low as it stalks your bait to its inevitable end.

The second your swarmling stops to hover for the fourth time the cat blinks out of existence, tearing through your creation with impossibly sharp claws. The finely-sliced slivers of your swarmling have yet to even begin to fall when the Amalgam skids to a stop, skidding directly into your trap. Its back legs lash out to propel it out of the funnel of flesh and bone but they merely seal its fate as they collide and stick to Dorian’s viscous paintlings. It tumbles, all elegance lost as the teeth begin to turn, the pit picking up speed as November’s cannon-fire rings out over the cold beachfront. The creature’s flailing, frantically trying to free itself at is roars furiously, legs quickly being ground to paste by your savagely efficient trap. It was a thing that nearly killed the protector of Carroll’s Woods, a titanic worm that had warred against the forest’s evils for months.

This glass-cannon wildcat stands little chance…and that’s even before the bombs fall and engulf the pit in a torrent of fire and flame.

When you drop the Amalgam’s shattered, charred skull in front of the pit and walk a safe distance away, a trio of workers tentatively emerge from the hive, inspecting the carcass thoroughly before picking it up and disappearing back down their hole. You wait for a long, tense few minutes until you witness the worker drones present the remains to their Queen as you watch through FuzzBuzz’s compound eyes and listen to the Queen’s reaction through your Jackling tether.

“INCREDIBLE. TAKE IT TO THE MEATPILE, SO THAT IT MAY BE MIXED FOR FUTURE KIN TO LEARN AND GROW.” She bellows, the order echoing through the chamber with indisputable tenor and pheromones. A flesh-wall opens nearby, revealing a massive vault of pulsing flesh and twitching meat, at least two meters in height and four times that in diameter. The workers toss the remains on the pile and begin to mix it in furiously, their mandibles working with surprising dexterity as they massage the slurry back into a consistent paste, or as much as they can given the sheer size of the thing.

(Continued)
>>
>>3785213

“THE THREAT HAS BEEN SLAIN BY OUR NEW KIN-FRIENDS.” The Queen declares. “THEY ASK NOTHING OF US FOR THIS. THEY MAKE NO DEMANDS. THIS IS THE ACT KNOWN AS ‘FRIEND’. THUS, WE SHALL BE FRIEND AS WELL! TAKE THEM A PART OF OUR MEAT! THROUGH MEAT, FRIEND!”

Her five mis-matched eyes swivel among her gathered forces as they stare up at their monarch.

“WHAT SAY YOU, KIN?” She queries, and the response is a sudden torrent of chittering voices rising up as one, blending into a cacophony of intentions and demands as the hive roars their assent through waves of pheromones.

“…MeATmeatMMeattGIvetHEMmeatFOrmeATIsgooDMEatyeswHEreSiScarlMEAtyesyeSMEatgiveTHemmeat…”

Before you can act to stop them, they’re already carving off a portion of the semi-solid slurry, scurrying back to the surface with your…gift. You’re tense as they scramble up to you, depositing the misshapen blob at your feet before darting back off to the hive.

>>MYSTERY MEATPILE: A consumable mound of assorted biomass, composed of Amalgam, Daughter, and construct material intermingled together into a fetid mass that may be devoured to grant 14 LEVEL-UP POINTS. Containing a mis-mash of abilities that include the Wildcat and who knows what else, this unusual gift is, hopefully, but a taste of the fruits to come from your new-forged allegiance. This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship…or a catastrophe waiting to happen. Either-or.

[Thank you for the gift, friend] You reply, staring down at the twitching mass before you. [I hope this helps show that there are things other than ‘kin’ and ‘threats’]

“IT DOES, YES. THANK YOU FOR RIDDING MY KIN OF THE THREAT.” She counters, a note of satisfaction in her voice. “IT SEEMS THERE ARE MANY THINGS MY KIN AND I HAVE YET TO LEARN.”

Well, here you are; you’ve slain a skilled Daughter, pilfered her Relics, acquired a laundry list of future Amalgams to hunt, and taught a hive of Pyreants the meaning of friendship…with meat.

Kind of.

In any case, this hunt has been productive…though certainly not in the way you expected.

>>Discuss other matters with the Queen, as you have a few other points and questions you’d like to review before you take your leave (Write-In).

>>Continue your hunt elsewhere. It’s been fruitful but you’ve no reason to stop now, especially since you have so many good leads (Choose new target to hunt).

>>Thank the queen, and take your prize back home to your family. The hunt, while it didn’t go quite like you expected, was at least a productive one (Go Home, Level Up).

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two and a half hours as I close out the work day. The next update will likely be the last or second to last one before I pause for the weekend, just as a heads-up. Thank you for your time and participation, as always.)
>>
>>3785221
>>Discuss other matters with the Queen, as you have a few other points and questions you’d like to review before you take your leave (Write-In).

>You will have to be careful. You represent soemthing new something different to the past. You grow, you reproduce. There will be tohers that come heree. some will seek to kjsut kill you soem will come to harvest you. To consume you on occasion to stave off the hunger that compells us and those like us to go and beat the crucible this world we are in.

>If the crucible is beaten. You will die. We will die. If the crucible is stopped from completing the cycle however we can maybe all survive together. It is a hope i hold that you can be part of the future we seek. I leave you with this proposal. Work together with us. I will leave my messenger with you so you can contact me if the need should arise and i can contract you if i need to.

>For now grow, flourish and at least try to just ward off the other daughters that come here. I will see about finding a safe place you can set up without the risk off someone coming to exploit you.


Afterwards...... I am conflicted....

While the Level UP option is tempting as it would give us a good boost now and we could discuss it over the weekend...... Which i wont be able to do since i will be busy with my birthday and having guests.....

Contuinuing the hunt...... we could get more things to consume to make sure we get even more out of the huntingsession but i am unsure if that would not lead to choice paralysis because of too many options......

But we have to level up so much stuff that we cant even take most of the Powers that we would be able to get(at least not without piling on more powers that would be better spend elswhere to grow existing abilites even stronger)
>>
>>3785221

You know what? This is just a win. Arguably the strangest win, but a win. Let's go home, and find out how much the Crucible _hated_ us befriending and raising Amalgams sentience. We have the strangest stories to tell, and Francine is going to be agog at what we've done.
>>
>>3785221
>[Queen, there is something id like to discuss further. but this one will take something of a... change, to your hunting habits, but in exchange, of course, something that may aid you greatly too.]
>[See... me and my own kin have a... 'reputation'. that means others know of us and hold us to high regard... for better, or worse.]
>[Id like, if you're willing, to offer you a chance to gain my protection, of me and this reputation... but in exchange, you would have to do something.]
>[You would have to stop actively hunting daughters.]
>[Note, if any Daughter threatens you, you would still be allowed to do with them as you please. same with any and all Amalgams. But you must understand i have a reputation of... allowing others to be 'friends' if they so wish. you, of course, do not have to do this, and can impose on others to stay out of your territory. however, it would help me and i would be very grateful if you would otherwise not kill daughters outright, but at least warn them they are imposing on your territory and give them a chance to back off first.]
>[...in exchange, you shall have open communication with me. if ever you need aid or assistance, be it from a threat or in need of some other help, i will aid you.]
>[Perhaps to signify this, we could meet in person, and... exchange a bit of ourselves, so both may show off our alliance? you shall get a bit of my hive and its looks and benefits, me a part of yours, so any that meet either may know we are 'friends'?]
>[I do know it is alot to ask of you, and please, if you need more time to ponder this request of mine, or need something a bit more in return, i shall give you your time, but please, let our current 'friendship' be a sign, that there is another path to take here, and benefits to be gained from taking it. i would not ask this of you, my 'friend' if i did not mean the best for both of us, know this, no matter your choice.']

>Otherwise, ask her if she is aware of anything else in the area she thinks we might be interested in, or any other amalgams she would like help with.
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>>3785213
Well, that was fast. I don't know what to do with this trap that worked perfectly and immediately ended the threat. I keep expecting a twist, like oh no, the tiger is going to regenerate from a skull and be super powerful now. But nope, we just prepared the scene that well. Alright. I guess the tiger just wasn't impressive enough as opposed to our usual fare, we made a trap for the sort of enemy we usually fight (the kind that the trap only manages to hurt before they break out and the real fight begins) and it instead was enough to puree it.

>>3785221
Whoo, meat friends! Fourteen points, that's quite a haul. Thank you, meat friends.

>>Discuss other matters with the Queen, as you have a few other points and questions you’d like to review before you take your leave (Write-In).
>Does she know what is in the building down the lake from her mound? We sent some drones in to explore it, but lost contact with them. We're not like her, most of our drones aren't intelligent so it's not a tragedy like if her children had vanished. But we are worried about it.
>Also, configure FuzzBuzz to, while not being an active swarmling, have some ability to alert us if the Ant Queen wishes to talk. Inform her of this, too, explain the idea of "diplomat" and that she can contact us through the fuzzy one.
>Then, depending on what we learn about the resort, either drop a spoke so we can explore it in the future and go home, or just go home.

>>3785246
This is good, too. Maybe also add an offer to mediate with any other Daughters she meets that aren't immediately aggressive. If they attack them, of course they should defend. But if they just happen to find other Daughters who aren't a threat, we could try to explain the situation to those Daughters.

>>3785247
Ozmas has been shaken out of her funk by what she saw happen, but is still not taking any action because she just doesn't know how to deal with this bullshit. "What?! She made friends with an Amalgam. No. No, that's dumb. You can't befriend Amalgams with the power of cute animals, that's now how they work! I am looking at the Crucible's documentation right now, it says nothing about a vulnerability to fuzzy bees. What even are you, Shu?!"
>>
>>3785255
>What even are you, Shu?

That is something quite a few people would like to know including but not limited to: a certain Athens and her friends, Sam, Mina and any enemy we will ever made(probably Lepisma as well)
>>
>>3785246
>>3785255
id like to go a bit more into detail with her about how to make our alliance, and give her a more in depth offer, even if my write up might need some wording fixes(Tried my best but dunno how it reads).

otherwise, we are already next to the building on the beach already, lets at least check it out, but we have no reason not to gamble and ask the queen for more hunts or something too. if its in the area, its in the area, afterall. we only have 5 levels per, plus 3 extra for Francine. not bad, but again, we already have at least one location to check out, it would be amiss of us not to if we have to leave the area, sure, go home instead. otherwise, we should get what we can while in the area.

>>3785221
>>3785253
also;
>Put a Gear Spoke down in the area, but a safe enough distance from the mound as to not scare them when and if we re-enter the area later.
>>
>>3785253
>>3785264
Yes it seems interesting to meet in person but i am not sure the queen will be comfortable with that....

Ther is no harm in trying i suppose but we have to instill a sense of caution into her for when other daughters come to her that she should not put her trust in them so easily, not just because we might be busy at the time or unavailable but because we might not be able to reach her in time if a strong daughter shows up and manages to get into the thorenroom by persuading the guards.

The Alliance offer is good and we shoul dprobably make it more clear that we would be willing to at least give advice how to deal with other daughters and maybe even show up several times to establish they really are connected to us and not just some daughter(because who would believe the story of a peaceful amalgam) claiming to be something she is not.


There is also the danger of the ants one day turning rogue and into a devouering swarm to consider. But i think we will burn that bridge when we get to that
>>
>>3785280
well, i wasn't asking her to just trust anyone, just not kill and eat daughters on sight, and give them a chance to leave their territory if nothing else.

she doesn't have to meet in person, it is just on the table, and thought it would be a really neat way to seal the deal, as it was. we can add-in that we would be willing to just give advice too if thats all thats needed, if you have any idea how to word that and slip it in or something.
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>>3785263
God, can you imagine how this is going to add to Shu's weird reputation? "So yeah, that Defiant chick? She befriended an entire hive full of Amalgams. Didn't take them over with Neuromancy or anything, just did them a favor and now they're buds. Did anyone else know this was possible? Is it possible, or is it just some Defiant-only thing?"

>>3785264
>id like to go a bit more into detail with her about how to make our alliance, and give her a more in depth offer, even if my write up might need some wording fixes(Tried my best but dunno how it reads).
Yeah, it feels a bit clunky. No offense intended, I'm having trouble coming up with wording to express that idea, too. But yeah, we should elaborate further on this idea of alliances and cooperation. I fully agree that while we want the ants to stay safe (because they are a fascinating development in the Crucible), we should also make sure they don't become a threat to others that we have to put down eventually.

>otherwise, we are already next to the building on the beach already, lets at least check it out, but we have no reason not to gamble and ask the queen for more hunts or something too. if its in the area, its in the area, afterall. we only have 5 levels per, plus 3 extra for Francine. not bad, but again, we already have at least one location to check out, it would be amiss of us not to if we have to leave the area, sure, go home instead. otherwise, we should get what we can while in the area.
Fair, but I do want to drop the meat off back in the meat locker again if we're going to continue on the hunt. This stuff is stinky. Let's get it out of the tank, the ventilation is already terrible. The rest of the party should still be out, so nothing to risk distracting us. Though I'm sure that once Amara gets back she's going to want to hear all about the story and refuse to let us do anything else until we tell her about how the Ant Queen also thinks FuzzBuzz is adorable.
>>
>>3785297
>>3785280
fair on dropping off the meat first.

ill give the write-up another go at it, but feel free to try it yourself, but regardless ill see if i cant make it more palatable, or something. in my defense however, i was trying to write it in a way that makes sense to an Ant Queen who can clearly learn new concepts well enough on the fly but still needs them actually explained, so some of it might not make sense if just implied like you could with another human, which may of lead to some odd wording.
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>>3785287
How about this

>As you can see my messenger has connected us both so if you should need advice on how to deal with a daughetr that is not hostile but refuses to leave your lands. If you then wish we can come and help you deal with the interloper or just give advice if you wish it to.

>And if you would keep informed about any goings on in the area i would be very thankful


I also have nothing against meeting in person but the queen might just not be comfortabel when we then finally meet. Her instincts taking over like such and she would go into a frenzy. Just a situation that she thought she could handle but that actually broke her young mind.

>>3785297
Eah the reputation she is gonna have is gonna be absoilutely confusing.
>Alright she killed those people and befriended those amalgams and then she went ove rther killed half of them and made the rest of them becoem frineds with amalgams and ther


>>3785306
I will try but it is gonna be terrible(probably) i can see it coming as i am a bit tired already.
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>>3785310
>I also have nothing against meeting in person but the queen might just not be comfortabel when we then finally meet. Her instincts taking over like such and she would go into a frenzy. Just a situation that she thought she could handle but that actually broke her young mind.
There's also the possibility that she's immobile. She is an ant queen, after all, they don't really move.
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>>3785221
GREAT! I am SO glad this has been solved peacefully!
> Voting WRITE IN on putting together all the concepts in >>3785246, >>3785253 and >>3785255.

She should understand the risk she is in by her unique condition (and why the Crucible is EEVIL), the concept of diplomacy/peaceful contact and the fact that we are willing to help her in case of problem, within our limited time/focus.

There is ONE additional problem. She has mentioned DREAMS, and the fact that she doesn´t like them. This means two things.
Either DREAM DAUGHTERs, and we should propose to evcuate them to our minds via neuromancy (going to become zombies otherwise), or OZMAS or a neuromantic daughter (maybe the nearby cursed motel?) is messing with them.

> Should we intervene?
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>>3785213
>>3785253
>>3785264
amending orders;

>[Queen, there is something id like to discuss further with you, if you would be willing to listen.]
>[See, me and my ‘kin’ some something called a ‘reputation.’ a reputation is when your actions garner alot of attention from others, both good and bad. It happens when your actions are impressive, and have a lasting impact on the areas you travel through.]
>[and while I will not hide it may come with some dangers, I would like to offer you the benefits I can from my ‘reputation’.]
>[Id like to find some way to show we are allied. Perhaps we could each, one queen to another, exchange a bit of our personal biomass? That way my kin will take on properties of yours, and yours mine, so all can see we are ‘friends’?]
>[But.. In order for me to go this far, i would have to ask something of you. I would have to ask you not kill daughters that come near or into your territory on sight.]
>[I know that is alot to ask of you, but please listen. Part of my ‘reputation’ is, i am known for giving others a chance to be ‘friends’, instead of ‘threats’. But I expect the same from those i call ‘friends’ to a level that I would share in their ‘image’.]
>[I am no asking you to let Daughters hunt in your territory, or to not kill any that are ‘threats’, all I wish is, that you would understand if given the chance, others aswell would be willing to leave you alone, or even also be you ‘friends’, if you give them a chance. ]
>[In exchange, i will leave you with a way to communicate with me. If ever you need advice on how to deal with a daughter without treating them as a ‘threat’, i will offer it. And if ever a strong amalgam or daughter threatens you, i will be willing to come to your aid, with nothing asked of you in return for it.]
>[i Understand this may be confusing for you and take time for you to understand and come to an answer on. Please, if you need more time, i will offer it, and leave you with a way to contact me when you are ready.]
>[Just understand this. I Would never ask something of a friend if i did not think it would not benefit them in some way, or without as i have, offering something of value in return. Id be delighted to meet you too, but only if you’re comfortable with it. Otherwise, please consider the exchange i am offering.]

>Otherwise, ask her if she is aware of anything else in the area she thinks we might be interested in, or any other amalgams she would like help with.
>Put a Gear Spoke down in the area, but a safe enough distance from the mound as to not scare them when and if we re-enter the area later.
>also, drop the meatpile off at home, but at least check in on the resort before we leave for good.

>>3785319
>>3785310
this any better?
we might have to just conclude trying to come to alliance terms with an ant queen is just going to sound clunky a bit though honestly.
>>
>>3785280
>>3785287
>>3785297
>>3785306
Should we offer the Colony EDUCATION? I know it is weird, but we could delegate to Churem, Francine, Gina, or any of our bored dream daughters to give them jackling skype calls and teach them anything they wish to know.
Hexxane may be good influences, they are mayybe a bit bored in our head and are, as a species, close to almost eusocial terms. I think they would bond well.

I also think that it would be very rewarding to Chruem and Vultha. The first is an ignored museum curator and repository of knowledge, the second a shy and caring erudite. I feel like the fact of teaching the Ant colony about the wonders of the cosmos would be really fulfilling for them
>>
>>3785322
i THINK the Dreams is literally just a sign of her sentience. i mean, due to the crucible more could be involved, but i think its literally including just normal dreaming, and because of her only budding sentience she is having trouble understanding the point of them.

some animals do dream, but most do not, at least not with the same level of brain activity going on as humans.
>>
>>3785333
im...unsure if we could do that? i mean... sure maybe? i guess im not against it just feels weird and like maybe its a few steps ahead here maybe.
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>>3785329
Wonderful write-up, absolute support for >>3785221.
>>
>>3785329
>>3785333
>>3785319

How about this

>I have an offer for you. An offer of Mutuial protection. Ther are certain points that we both would have to agree on.

>First: You will not hunt daughters that just stumble into your territory. If the ycome in you will first give them a warnign to leave. If the yrefuse to leave you can try and drive them off. Try not to kill them. If you are attacked by a daughter however you can deal with her as you see fit. In return i will leave my ambassador with you. I have a certain reputation amonst daughters and being asscotiated with me might give you an edge at dealing with interlopers peacefully. I would in additon also promise to help you out in whatever way i can and whatever my capabilites allow me to give to help you deal with threats both form daughters and Amamlgams. Amalgams are fair game however.

>Second. To signify this alliance we could meet in person if you feel comfortable with that. To give part off each other to the other to make sure we are kin not only in deed but also in blood. So everyone can see that we are kin and will protect each other in times off need. Be it by using words or actions

>If you are not comfortable with this idea i can understand. I ask a large loan of trust from your part

>If you need time to think about my request please take it to consider my offer. I would not make it if i were not completely behind what i am saying.
>Modify fuzzbuzz to make sure she can reach us through him without us needing to constantly expend a slot on our roster to keeep him active.

>One last thing before i leave. You mentioned Dreams. Do you dream off daughters? Daughters you may have consumed? If that is the case would you consider interacting with them or giving them away so they are not tortured in your mind my firend?

>Otherwise, ask her if she is aware of anything else in the area she thinks we might be interested in, or any other amalgams she would like help with.
>Put a Gear Spoke down in the area, but a safe enough distance from the mound as to not scare them when and if we re-enter the area later.
>also, drop the meatpile off at home, but at least check in on the resort before we leave for good.
>>
>>3785322
That is a good point, we should ask her what she meant by dreams. My guess is that it's related to her developing consciousness. Maybe something like the bicameralism theory, where her mental modules are not fully integrated and so she perceives some of her mental activity as separate from her. The psychologist Julian Jaynes hypothesizes that humans were like this up until a couple thousand years ago, and that we frequently interpreted our mental processes through hallucinations of outside entities speaking to us. Whether that's true for humans or not (it's quite controversial) that could be the case for her.
>>
>>3785336
I just think that, since we have a vast excess of dream daughter and Hexxane personnel that must be bored and itching for mentorship in our heads, that would solve a lot of problems.
Also, the ants are like developing children. The sooner you educate, the better the results.
>>
>>3785329
Yeah, that's better. I think you're right, and that it's just not entirely possible to not sound clunky when explaining concepts to an alien mind that is still developing proper consciousness. Really, we got very lucky with the Hexane managing to assimilate to human semiotics so quickly.
>>
>>3785345
>>3785347
i get what you mean, but i feel like even the queen would still be weary of just letting us dig in her head. i think she probably at least has an idea of dreams being your mentality, id imagine, and might not yet be comfortable with us digging around in it too freely, or with others not us doing it.

lets keep the idea, but get our affection levels with her up more first, if that makes sense.
hopefully, she wont take our aid the wrong way long term and see this more as us being attracted to her, which as she starts to learn new ideas an concepts i just realized could very well become an issue. 'oh, this other queen of a hive is being oddly nice to me, and wants to get closer. this seems to be a thing other species do to earn themselves mates they are attracted to... i see benefits in this!'
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>>3785365
Well, I don't want to start messing with her head, just asking for clarity about what she meant by dreams. Just as we have explained concepts to her, she can explain concepts to us. Friends share not just meat but ideas, truly friendship is the best.
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>>3785366
fair enough i suppose.
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>>3785365
........ a massive ant queen vying for affection from Shu and tries to woo her away from Gina and Rath......

Not sure if its the alcohol i put in the cake mixture that i nibbled on but this sounds abolutely hilarious
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>>3785374
even worse?
Gina might not be against it, so long as she isn't left out.
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>>3785381
........ do you think Gina is omnisexual?

God that picture off Gina stadning there and smiling as she stokes the queen(giving her pointers to shus weakspots) to give Shu a flower bouqet with Shus favourite Meatflowers inside of it

The Queen starts modelling herslef to appear even more atrtactive to Shu...... just.... like oyur picture>>3785373
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>>3785384
no idea on Gina there.

also im both laughing and wondering if its not time to stop this line of thought. either way, yeah i can see Gina giving the queen some ideas and new concepts to work with... and Shu quickly learning Gina should not be left alone for even a minute with a new and budding sentience.
ive got another pic like that one but sadly it is technically nsfw minorly.
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>>3785390
Yeah... lets burry the line of thought. I know i should not have finished that bottle of wine. Its showing in the roads my mind is going down
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>>3785221
Ammending my vote from>>3785246
to now support >>3785329
>>
>>3785390
You have a link?

for research puropses. No i am actually looking for artwork i can use myself. i am terrible at searching soemtimes. and an aritst that makes art like that would be useful to know about
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>>3785429
Not sure if this makes me more or less worried about Ginas tastes...... or rather if i even want to know
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>>3785429
yes, but where does Gina fall on that chart?
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>>3785423
sadly i cannot find the artist(i think?) this is the best i can find;
https://softguro.tumblr.com/post/99197791387/sknakna-%E3%81%AF%E3%81%AA%E3%81%8B%E3%81%BE%E3%81%8D%E3%82%8A%E3%81%A8%E3%81%82%E3%82%8A%E3%82%93%E3%81%93

otherwise, try pinterest. has worked out for me decently well in the past, though sometimes for it to work you just have to jump down the rabbit hole of seeing where an image leads you, as each image you open will also give suggestions of 'similar images' to look through.
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>>3785429
The worrying implication is that Gina had to have already saved that to her phone before the Crucible started. This is why Gina fell for Shu so hard. This is her magical realm, and we are the Whizzard.
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>>3785446
Thank you for trying.

I have jumped down quite a few rabbit holes already..... I will check it out and see where i can get to
>>
(Back home and writing now, Gentlemen.)
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>>3785221

[Queen, there is something I'd like to discuss further with you, if you would be willing to listen] You begin, testing the diplomatic waters with something that, half an hour ago, you were fully prepared to drown in its home. [See, me and my ‘kin’ have something called a ‘reputation.’ A reputation is when your actions garner a lot of attention from others, both good and bad. It happens when your actions are impressive, and have a lasting impact on the areas you travel through...and while I will not hide it may come with some dangers, I would like to offer you the benefits I can from my ‘reputation’.]

"SO...YOU ARE THREAT. THREAT, BUT NOT TO ME OR MY KIN?" She asks, the gears slowly turning in her growing consciousness. "YOU WISH TO BE FRIENDKIN, SO...SO YOUR THREAT KEEPS OUR THREATS AWAY. IS THIS CORRECT?"

[Uh, yes...yes, it is] You stammer, surprised she's so quick on the uptake. [So I'd like to find some way to show we are allied. Perhaps we could each, one queen to another, exchange a bit of our personal biomass? That way my kin will take on properties of yours, and yours mine, so all can see we are ‘friends’?]

"...I WOULD CONSENT TO THIS EXCHANGE. I WISH TO POSSESS THIS THRE...THIS REPUTATION OF WHICH YOU SPEAK."

[But.. in order for me to go this far, I would have to ask something of you] You posit, trepidation mounting as a ball in your chest as you voice the stipulation that could make or break this deal. [I would have to ask you not kill daughters that come near or into your territory on sight]

Silence, waiting on you to continue while judgement is withheld.

[I know that is a lot to ask of you, but please listen. Part of my ‘reputation’ is that I am known for giving others a chance to be ‘friends’, instead of ‘threats’. But I expect the same from those I call ‘friends’ to a level that I would share in their ‘image’.]You slowly explain, sending concepts of the Midnight Crew to the Queen to help illustrate one of many examples. [Now, I am not asking you to let Daughters hunt in your territory, or to not kill any that are ‘threats’. All I wish is that you would understand if given the chance that others aside from me would be willing to leave you alone, or even also be you ‘friends’...if you give them a chance]

"OTHERS CAN BE KIN?" The Queen muses. "NOT MEAT, BUT KINFRIEND?"

[Exactly. In exchange, I will leave you with a way to communicate with me. If ever you need advice on how to deal with a daughter without treating them as a ‘threat’, I'll be happy to offer it. And if ever a strong amalgam or daughter threatens you, I will be willing to come to your aid with nothing asked of you in return for it]

[I understand this may be confusing for you and take time for you to understand and come to an answer on. Please, if you need more time I will offer it, and leave you with a way to contact me when you are ready]

(Continued)
>>
>>3785700

"I...I WOULD LIKE SOME TIME TO....THINK?" She replies, confused by her own answer. "THINK...I WISH TO THINK ABOUT YOUR OFFER. I LIKE IT, BUT...I MUST THINK OF MY KIN, AS WELL AS ME. YOU...YOU ARE QUEEN OF YOUR KIN. YOU UNDERSTAND?"

[...I understand very well] You say, a warmth blossoming in your heart. [Just understand this. I would never ask something of a friend if I did not think it would not benefit them in some way, or without offering something of value in return. I'd be delighted to meet you too, but only if you’re comfortable with it. Otherwise, please consider the exchange I am offering]

"I...I CANNOT LEAVE. MY TUNNELS ARE...NARROW, DIFFICULT FOR YOU TO MOVE THROUGH..." She replies, before a thought occurs to her that causes a small spark of happiness to leap across the empathic channel. "...BUT MY KIN SHALL MAKE A PATH FOR YOU, SO THAT WE MAY MEET AND EXCHANGE GIFTS, KINFRIEND TO FRIENDKIN. GIVE US TIME TO DIG AND TO THINK, AND WE SHALL MEET. WE SHALL MEET AND I SHALL GIVE YOU MY ANSWER AFTER I HAVE THOUGHT."

Something almost like a laughs reverberates across the channel, a little self-satisfied thing at the rather simple observation that nevertheless pleases the Amalgam.

"QUEEN TO QUEEN, WE SHALL SPEAK." She concludes decisively.

A few minutes of idle conversation and one comm-ling later you're on your way back home, having found that there are no other issues or Amalgams the Queen and her kin would like attended to, though the very fact that you offered seemed to resonate with her in a curious way. Depositing the meat back home, you warp back to the spoke of Escher's Gear you left a little ways away from the hive, trundling over to the resort in a blessedly mystery-meat-free Metall Geschoss.

Emerging atop the hull once you arrive at your destination, you're caught off-guard at the unsettling difference in temperature in the relatively short distance between the hive and the resort. The beach is a cold one to be sure, but this place...you find yourself shivering, wishing for Gina or Rath;s presence to help push back the chill that's creeping into your bones. You feel eyes on you as you scan the remains of the shattered resort, worn by time and flesh in equal measure...but you're struck at the curious fact that the residual biomass around here is relatively low. There's the odd pulsing vein or sliver of bone, but aside from that the resort is suspiciously devoid of the rampant biomass that's covered the other locales you've visited in your time venturing across the Fleshscape.

However, with as many questions as this place raises alongside the unnerving presence that you sense within these crumbling walls, one thing in certain...

...whatever's in there knows you've arrived..

>>Investigate the resort...as a team. You've seen enough horror movies to not split the party.

>>Continue back home. You don't wish to linger here, not any longer than you have to.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, I shall be pausing here for the weekend. Voting Shall remain open until Tuesday, September 3rd at 9:00 AM, which is when I shall resume posting. Thank you all for your participation, kindness, and enthusiasm, and I hope you have a long and restful weekend. Depite my plans over the next three days I will still be around to address questions from time to time, so don't shy away from asking if there's anything you're curious about or would like clarification on. I look forward to the possible fight and the inevitable level-ups you will be receiving early next week, and I wish you all nothing but the best. Take care, and see you next week Gentlemen.)
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>>3785710
>Investigate the resort...as a team. You've seen enough horror movies to not split the party.

>Approach the door but before you enter, give whtevers inside one last chance. perhaps they simply wanted to be left alone, or misinterpreted the point of your scouts.
>"Look, if you're a daughter in there, I know you're in there, and you know im here. IF you want to be left alone thats fine, but after killing my scouts, no answer will be seen as a sign of aggressive intent, and we will be coming in. If hostility isnt your intentions, this is our chance to avoid it."
>If we get an answer, reply as appropriate. leave if they just want to be left alone, have a conversation if they are willing, or enact combat plan if necessary or no answer.

Combat plan;
>Have the tank ready to put solid shots through the place as necessary.
>Keep three Double-Knighted-Nomlings and a Stealthed Jackling guarding the tank.
>otherwise, Keep a Knightling guarding everyone, and a Rook at the ready aswell. fill the rest of your slots with Banelings to search the rooms ahead of you.
>have Dorian keep us surrounded by a circle of paintlings, ready to to jump anything that comes for us.
>Halos primed, With November priming the sword on herself to give her some extra reaction time, Mask activated aswell.
>Expect either a phantasmal, Cold based daughter, and/or possibly a dust or mist daughter. possibly strong neuromancy or anti-construct powers.
>>
>>3785724
thanks for running BHOP, its been absolutely fun as hell these past few updates. who knew trying to commit genocide would end in a new alliance? truly, diplomat FuzzBuzz deserves a medal. i hope your weekend plans are either enjoyable or at least go smoothly.

as for questions, please of course, feel free to get to them as you please, like always, and i do apologize for the length of them and any confusion in my wording;

>What fights the closest we have gotten to a game over? Im talking from your perspective of course, not ours, as im sure the numbers and rolls behind the scenes paint a different picture. Im also talking ‘true battles’ too, not things like with our first fight with Isabelle where yeah technically we did lose that one, but we never had a shot and the whole thing was fully out of our control once it started.

>what are our options and limits for the General Generators Succulent Sauce? Id imagine we can just slather a select corpse or two if we want, rather than all, but i guess i'm trying to figure out how we would best go about picking which whole to use it on. Mostly because after seeing the options i'm not sure it would still be easy to know what would be the best to transform into augments. I also dont want to overload you by asking for both versions of each ability, that would just be unfair honestly to expect. Id say maybe we could just trust you to pick the best corpse to slather it on, but I also don't like that as i feel like we have no justification IC to know which one would give us the best results.
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>>3785724
Thank you, BHOP. This entire thread has been fantastic as usual, and you have taken the madness that has resulted from the trio of crits and spun it into a development far more interesting than any Amalgam fight.

See you Tuesday, have a fantastic weekend...

And all hail FuzzBuzz, First of his Name, Broker of Peace between Daughters and Ants. Long may he reign.
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>>3785724
Thanks for running, BHOP. This has been a fun Vein, things went off the rails in the best way. See you Tuesday.
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>>3785724
also, though this one might be spoilers, what IS going on with the Ants? did we basically scramble the crucibles programming of their behavior, or did they just evolve to a point where the natural point and tendencies of Amalgams just sorta got shafted? or do you yourself not even know yet, due to how unexpected this all was to even be possible?
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>>3785746
>What fights the closest we have gotten to a game over?

(In terms of pure numbers, you were dangerously close to both Gina and Julia going completely off the rails during the Sad Deer fight, even with Magpie present. You couldn't see it on the back end, but one more turn of exposure would've caused a cascade of negative status ailments that would have been catastrophic. In terms of sheer damage output, the Phalanx fight could've easily gone either way. Cheruem is a terrifying critical-hit machine, so the fact that they didn't get to trigger half of the Augmentations they had was a blessing, or else you'd have been making death saving throws after the first clash of blades, to say nothing of the heights Silvis and Vultha would have reached if the fight had dragged out any longer. If it felt like it was a close fight, then I'm glad; it was very much the closest you've come to a TPK.)

>What are our options and limits for the General Generators Succulent Sauce?

(While I will say that it's ultimately up to you, I can offer some general bits of clarification as this was something I was going to bring up to you. You will have two or three [depending on if you trigger the upcoming possible fight] targets available for the sauce, with the two known ones being Lepisma's Remains and the glorious Meat Pile. Lepisma's portion has practically every skill she possesses, which are mostly a selection of potent hybrids and Augmentations to strengthen them. It's not all that much since she didn't have a broad skill tree to begin with...though I'd be lying if I said some of her skills and Augments wouldn't be utterly devastating in your hands, particularly when it comes to one Augment that somewhat solves the problems you've been having with a particular Swarmling class's utility, essentially being a 'birth-one-get-one-free' Hivemistress Augment.)

(The Meat is literally a grab-bag of mid-to-high tier abilities from the Amalgam and Daughters skills I have compiled, with some repeats of past skills for your perusal along with a selection of other new skills, like the disgustingly powerful crit and speed skills wielded by the Cat Amalgam. That would probably be my recommendation for the Sauce should you choose to use it, solely on account of the associated augmentation options would be the most diverse if you were planning to strengthen pre-existing skills without leveling them directly.)


>>3785774
(If you don't mind a bit of spoilers that Francine with hypothesize about once she's received the full story, then it's a result of human biomass and thought processes that've caused the divergence in programming. The more human biomass proportional to other mass in a given Amalgam, the higher the chance for it to break out of its assigned programming and start rapidly evolving into an independent form. The Pyreants aren't the first Amalgam or group to diverge, but they're certainly not the ones I expected you to encounter and befriend.)
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>>3785710
>Investigate the resort as a team

In the absence of further information than what we already know, November is likely to be our star player here.

But as for the investigation, first we should send out our scoutlings in a wave and have them simply hover and wait...all within range of our halo-enhanced vision. It’s simultaneously a taunt and a probe for whatever’s in here, and if drones start flickering out as they did before we’ll get important information on the thing’s disposition and whether it’s abilities are ranged or not. Then there’s also the slim possibility of spotting it outright.

If this plan doesn’t bear any fruit then we’ve not lost anything except time.
>>
>>3785816
>You couldn't see it on the back end, but one more turn of exposure would've caused a cascade of negative status ailments that would have been catastrophic.
well, didnt know it got that close, but i can see it. that depression effect was terrifying yeah.

>If it felt like it was a close fight, then I'm glad; it was very much the closest you've come to a TPK.
it did, but felt VERY fairly done aswell. it never felt like we never had a chance but man, did it feel like things were wire thin there. absolutely stunning fight as I and many have said before BHOP, you really outdid yourself there, honest.

>GGSS
hrm... tough choice, but thank you for the information. ill wait to see how this last (potential) fight goes of course, but the grab-bag sounds like an excellent one. makes sure past abilities we may not of even wanted might instead become useful augments, and while im still thinking we dont need new abilities, Lepismas probably has the better ones if we do end up taking any. that, and while the Cats two abilities sound good, it also feels like we have similar or close enough to it that them becoming augments for existing abilities would work out just as if not better.

>spoiler
oh, ok neat. kinda a bit disturbing on how they get to this point, but also to be fair not their fault how Amalgams are programmed and they probably were defending themselves just as often as they were the aggressor anyhow id imagine. you got a name for Amalgams that evolve past, well, being amalgams? feels like by now they deserve their own name, but also, i suppose if they are becoming independent organisms you can just use their actual name and basically consider them close enough to a new species. and yeah, super aggressive fireants, a species know for their aggression in old earth too, are now our allies... we really do play fast and looose with the crucibles rules at times, dont we?

thanks for the responses BHOP!
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Back from work. pic related is my reaction to all of this.
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>>3785848
They're just intelligent amalgams, he's mentioned them existing before and that they're usually hunted down by bounty hunters before they reach proper sapience.

>>3785710
This is interesting, that she didn't take us up on any of our offers but is considering ours even with our conditions.

Seeing as previously it had only known KIN, MEAT, and THREAT it's possible we've got this negotiation in the bag...because it hasn't learned the concept of TRUST yet, as previously all allies were kin and presumably infinitely loyal unless subverted by THREATS.
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>>3785862
no, they are sentient. theres a very big difference between intellect and sentience.
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>>3785871
I've always regarded it as more a sliding scale, and any delineation between the two is just an arbitrary mark somewhere along the line. It's demonstrated sufficient capacity for learning abstract concepts in such a short period of time that I'm solidly convinced it's sapient or will be so soon enough that it deserves the rights entailed to such entities.
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>>3785871
Oh, nevermind I see what you're saying. The term for such amalgams is still intelligent/sentient/whatever amalgams. I don't think there's a special word for it.
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>>3785816
>>3785774

So what you're telling me is that we literally befriended the Chimera Ant Queen from Hunter X Hunter.
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>>3785816
Hmm, I kind of don't want to use the Sauce on either of those, then. Those sound like some really neat abilities to acquire, and I want to see what those old skills back in the roster are. Can we look at them before we apply the Sauce?

>particularly when it comes to one Augment that somewhat solves the problems you've been having with a particular Swarmling class's utility, essentially being a 'birth-one-get-one-free' Hivemistress Augment.
I can't figure out what this one is referring to, though. Rook?

As for the spoilers:
Huh. That's actually pretty weird. My understanding is that the Crucible had to process all the biomass it consumed into its own sort of cell, first, otherwise it wouldn't have the sort of rapid absorption and universal compatibility we've seen. Human-derived biomass shouldn't be any different from any other biomass. Unless the cells have some sort of memory to them, and absorbed ideas about human neural structure in the process of consuming human brains? So that human-derived biomass still remembers what a sapient brain is supposed to look like, or something along those lines. Has this happened on previous Crucibles, or is it something unique to human brains?
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>>3785876
>>3785877
fair. but yeah i was saying the PyreAnts sentience seems different than the just raw high intellect implied by the old amalgams. my other thought was, it feels unfair to call them amalgams when they have literally evolved beyond all the rules that makes amalgams, amalgams. its also why in differentiating them from the amalgams mentioned before, which were implied to still show no signs of having evolved past their actual programming.

though granted, even here its arguable in how much we should actually know, but hey, clearly we sparked something new in them so theres merit to the thought process i say.

>>3785887
yeah besides the cost of Rooks i cant think of anything we have had major issues with. maybe hes talking mechanics wise behind the scenes and didnt realize he was?
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>>3785887
also, we dont need new abilities. im already against taking any from lepisma without us recycling a different one in return on most characters. and it would have to be damn good to be worth it. its time we actually pick an actual build a some abilities and actually levels what we have, not keep slapping on new ones that half the time we wont even use anyways.
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>>3785887
(You have it about right, yes. This has occurred on previous Crucibles, but it's a first for this strain.)

(And yes, I'm referring to the Rook, though the Augment is open-ended and simple enough to last well into the endgame.)

>>3785898
>>3785871
>>3785876
>>3785877
(I have a term for such Amalgams, but I'd encourage you to create your own classification for them.)
>>
>>3785913
thats a dangerous game bhop, because next thing you know, someones gonna put out something really silly to call them like
the Fuzzbuzz ascended.

but in all seriousness i mean, if they are breaking out into their own little branch of life just dropping the amalgam title and picking up purely the PyreAnt one sounds good to me personally.
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>>3785904
I agree with you, we've got more than enough skills to level already. Except on Francine, she needs more than just Creation's Strings. I want to see what we can give her to synergize with it. Otherwise, I'd want to put points into existing skills, and maybe put one Augment or Passive on each character at most. Just in case there's something really good, like an anti-subversion Augment. I'd really want that.

>>3785913
>(I have a term for such Amalgams, but I'd encourage you to create your own classification for them.)
Hmm, that's a tricky one. Nothing's really gelling.
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>>3785932
oh well, yeah Francines an obvious exception. i mean, yeah ill say it, wait to see what is actually available before we make out choices, but im remaining skeptical on this.

honestly whiles its never been bad, i still feel like we could do without the Drill, and still easily make Shus build work even in the situations we have used it without it. though i suppose some still want to possibly see what it can do with Fear to Tread, but honestly my only complaint, and mind you it IS a big one, with tread is that its has to be centered on Shu, making it really finicky to use. it also is only so good as its basically kinda been used as a Terraforming augment, which has worked out extremely well but i do still feel on its own its lacking, and we just sorta got lucky with Shu having Neuromancy to make the best use of it.

honestly Dorians build is great. cant think of anything he needs really, at least not as a full on ability.

i guess 5(not counting Halos) is a good number to stop at, so Rath has a 'slot' i could maybe be convinced to take, but she honestly does really well with what shes got so id have to be something pretty special to put on her.

i guess with people potentially wanting to hybridize Julias Core, Elemental and Appetites, and possibly even also Depressive and Fury, if actually go for at least one of those she too could have a 'slot' open, and honestly doing at least one of them might be a good idea, as her kit is far from bad, but it does feel like it needs something, probably a mobility ability i think is the issue im thinking of.

Amara... honestly i think shes good. really, it'll depend i think on if Hunters gives her a more standard defensive option, but as odd an kinda random as her kt looks, i think it actually all works together really well.

Gina doesn't need anything. shes already at six, and most of them are cores, which i dont think is unfair to say makes them more likely to be good. and they all already give her alot of versatility and might even give her more survivability as things for forward.
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>>3785724
Thank you for this grace period.
I have a birthday to celebrate over this weekend.

>>3785710
>Investigate the resort...as a team. You've seen enough horror movies to not split the party.

>Spend 3 Rounds having Dorian and November spend a round of full hp regen's worth of health to boost their stats before stepping into the Resort grounds
>176% hp per round for dorian [after sui interitus] x3 = ~529% total hp in stat boosts (spend 300% hp to boost Speed/reaction time by 1200%, and 229% hp to boost strength by 687%)
>200% hp per round for November [tethered to tank] x3 = 600% total hp in stat boost (spend 200% hp to boost Speed/reaction time by 1000%, 200% hp to boost Armor by 1000%, and 200% hp to boost strength by 1000%)

>Terraform the ground wherever you walk to upturn the earth and expose a patch of Biomass in a small range below your feet wherever you go. the place is nearly devoid of biomass and you don't want to stage a fight in a place like this. Dorian has a low reserve and will need the biomass terrain to thrive. The entire party stays on the Terraformed patch of land where Shu works the biomass into exposing itself for the Party. It will be slow going, but slow, safe and cautious will keep everyone alive.

>Spawn swarmlings in pairs. Have them pair up with each other. A Sight-enhanced-swarmling and a Soundling are to be paired up and set to fly up high with a birds-eye-view. Another Swarmling keeps an eye on the swarmlings that flies overhead. maintain visual contact. Spawn a ring of 12 Torch-lings (A baneling with the the stomach acid ignited and burned as fuel at a steady pace) that orbit us at close range while a pair of Seismic SonarJacklings are to stay by Shu's Feet, plugging themselves into the ground whenever the party stops to take a look around.

>Dorian is to lay a network of Fibromancy wires everywhere he touches that trail from him wherever he goes like a web of threads acting as both Ariadne's String (labyrinth escape thread) and a sensory web. while Paintlings are to spread out and act like paint puddles. If an amalgam is actually prowling about, then it would either step in the paint puddles and leave tracks, or trip the fibromancy wirewebs.

>November and the tank are to be on bodyguard duty and to keep their heads on a swivel. November should have the Margrave Sword out at the ready and Joker's Mask Active.

Something's nagging me about this scene. Amalgams usually stay in places where there's lots of ambient landscape biomass. Yet...whatever that lurks here, it's living in a place where it's devoid of biomass. Whether it be by accident or by intention, either way it has an ability that scours the ambient biomass clean and makes hp and bio regeneration difficult. There's also the fact that the air temperature has been chilled to an unnatural degree. I would look for signs of Rime or frost and seek colder places. And keep November's core nice and toasty.
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>>3785955
>honestly whiles its never been bad, i still feel like we could do without the Drill, and still easily make Shus build work even in the situations we have used it without it. though i suppose some still want to possibly see what it can do with Fear to Tread, but honestly my only complaint, and mind you it IS a big one, with tread is that its has to be centered on Shu, making it really finicky to use. it also is only so good as its basically kinda been used as a Terraforming augment, which has worked out extremely well but i do still feel on its own its lacking, and we just sorta got lucky with Shu having Neuromancy to make the best use of it.
Yeah, I was never crazy about the Drill, either. It's not bad, it has actually been very useful a few times, but I'm not sure it's the most useful thing for us. And yeah, Fear To Tread would be more useful if we could deploy it at range, or just avoid knocking allies down with it so we could just nuke the entire battlefield with it. It's supposed to be more discerning at higher levels, though.

>honestly Dorians build is great. cant think of anything he needs really, at least not as a full on ability.
Agreed, he's fine as-is. Maybe if we ever got an appropriate Halo for his skill set, but otherwise I'm fine leveling his current abilities.

>i guess 5(not counting Halos) is a good number to stop at, so Rath has a 'slot' i could maybe be convinced to take, but she honestly does really well with what shes got so id have to be something pretty special to put on her.
That's something I've been thinking of: I want to lower the Neurotic Halo to level two on everyone who has it. The enhanced senses are nice, but it mostly gives Neuromancy upgrades as it levels, as one would expect. I'm not sure it's that worth the levels. Like, level three on Dorian is pointless. That does nothing for him.

>i guess with people potentially wanting to hybridize Julias Core, Elemental and Appetites, and possibly even also Depressive and Fury, if actually go for at least one of those she too could have a 'slot' open, and honestly doing at least one of them might be a good idea, as her kit is far from bad, but it does feel like it needs something, probably a mobility ability i think is the issue im thinking of.
Yeah, she needs mobility for when she doesn't have Dorian around to taxi her. Maybe the cat can give her something for that.

>Amara... honestly i think shes good. really, it'll depend i think on if Hunters gives her a more standard defensive option, but as odd an kinda random as her kt looks, i think it actually all works together really well.
Anime ninja catgirl is strong, no problems with her.

>Gina doesn't need anything. shes already at six, and most of them are cores, which i dont think is unfair to say makes them more likely to be good. and they all already give her alot of versatility and might even give her more survivability as things for forward.
Same. Gina's got plenty of good stuff.
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>>3785984
>>3785246
(Happy Early Birthday to you both, if I understand you correctly! Actually how many birthdays are coming up for everyone over the next week? I've noticed an interesting trend...)
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>>3786002
Oh, I didn't even notice their mentions of birthdays. Happy birthday, anons!
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>>3785913
How about Homoculi? They're amalgams that have gained sentience and think in lines of humanity, yet they aren't quite "there" since they still have feral instincts to guide them since their creation.

They aren't really human, but they've taken on aspects of humanity through their diet and their growing nature. But that would be a demeaning title for those who have reached advanced intelligence and sapience.
(mid 17th century: from Latin, diminutive of homo, homin- ‘man’)

bhop, all of this reminds me of Ancestors the Humankind Odyssey videogame.

>>3785923
I kinda like this, but it would require us to teach them the concept of a [NAME] and [INDIVIDUALITY] among kin.

>>3785984
If anything, this Amalgam will have a Frost type generator's ability.

>>3785955
Hey Anon. Do you think we should swap out party members? I get the fact that we're on a roll here, but there's something nagging me about this upcoming amalgam hunt. I can't quite place it though. But my hunch is telling me this:

>we're dealing with a Frost-type generator amalgam.
>Dorian might not be well suited for this fight because of his liquid-state anatomy, entering Masque of war would become his undoing since all it would take is a Flash Frost move to freeze all of his body paritcles solid and basically kill him.
>November's status as a Forgebody daughter would mean she and her tank are a walking furnace which may be anathema to this amalgam's preferred habitat. It might aim for elemental attacks on November's core and threaten to kill her that way.
>This Amalgam will be Intelligent and have the homefield advantage. It might be a living foil to the PyreAnts due to its ability. Ironic that the PyreAnts were focused on Stealth Panther when MysteryFrostAmalgam has a chance to pose a greater threat against the colony.
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>>3786013
>>November's status as a Forgebody daughter would mean she and her tank are a walking furnace which may be anathema to this amalgam's preferred habitat. It might aim for elemental attacks on November's core and threaten to kill her that way.
November is actually immune to Cold damage. Granted, immunity-penetrating abilities exist, but she's not in any more danger than anyone else of being frozen to death.
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>>3785992
>That's something I've been thinking of: I want to lower the Neurotic Halo to level two on everyone who has it. The enhanced senses are nice, but it mostly gives Neuromancy upgrades as it levels, as one would expect. I'm not sure it's that worth the levels. Like, level three on Dorian is pointless. That does nothing for him.
you forget supposedly as it go higher on the chain, it started editing itself to the user. the issue is BHOP said it doesn't start doing this til level 4, before starting to ramp that aspect of it up. we simply haven't been leveling anyone's enough to properly utilize that aspect of them, and id like to see what it can do for someone without neuromancy because of that.

>>3785984
honestly that sounds like a waste of biomass. only Shu and only Terraforming outright needs biomass to work, and all we wil be doing doing that is wasting a bunch to get that small area. plus, its an enclosed house, im thinking Terraforming would be a very bad idea.

we also dont know 100% whats actually in the house, hence me wanting to git 'it' one last chance.

>>3786013
i mean, even if its just the Queen, it feels right to me to call her and her kin their own thing, if nothing else as a sign of respect.

also, nah, i dont think we need to switch out party members. Dorian might be at a slight disadvantage but as far as we know liquid daughters dont actually have natural weaknesses, only those their specific ability says they gain from it, which one of his is not to cold damage. either way, i feel like he has enough of an ability to avoid it being a problem. at worst, he now would be in trouble if he gets caught, but no more than any other daughter would, in the context of being slowly frozen solid at least. Shu and November i cant see having any issues here really. we also dont know that elemental types can cancel eachother out. so far, we have seen little to no 'unstated counters' in the sense of something actually being a natural counter. if your heat doesn't say it minimizes cold damage, it very well might be the case it doesn't do that, regardless of what you think it should do.
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>>3786002
One question, besides PyreAnt Queen's (I'll call her Ember for now due to the appropriate theme name of their species and the fact that she's the heart of the Pyre ant colony that its denizens feed to keep their civ going, the flame to fuel their Queen) gift of the mystery meat pile (worth 14 levels), is there any leftover biomass (read: leftover levels) from the Panther Carcass itself or did all of it get shipped straight to the Pyre Ant Colony to make the Grab Bag mix?
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>>3786063
(It's all been slotted into the Grab Bag, essentially. You haven't missed anything for the sake of fairness, despite the mixing so no worries there.)
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>>3786053
>you forget supposedly as it go higher on the chain, it started editing itself to the user. the issue is BHOP said it doesn't start doing this til level 4, before starting to ramp that aspect of it up. we simply haven't been leveling anyone's enough to properly utilize that aspect of them, and id like to see what it can do for someone without neuromancy because of that.
I suppose, but I'm unconvinced that it will be worth it in the end. But eh, we've got the Engine, we can always recycle it if it's not good. Or if we just find him a better Halo, Charon might still have the Flesh Artisan Halo but the Humoral one should be up for grabs.
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>>3786078
im wondering now if all the halos do that reconfigure thing as they level up, and if the type of halo it is affects how it does that.

like, having no Neuromancy, Dorians will of course not be Neuromancy focused by the end, but might still be 'neuromancy minded' in that it aids his other abilites via utility, while say, the fibromancer would would still focus on helping Shus swarm, but in a more Fibromancer way, via focusing on increasing their attack power and/or defensive power.

im certainly curious to find out, thats for sure. seeing what a copy of say, the Hive Mistress one becomes on a non Hive Mistress if they do work that way might get some really neat results.
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>>3786094
Yeah, probably. Like, the Neurotic Halo contributed to Shu's swarm by giving her control over more bugs at once, so it seems to apply its information management abilities to the user's other skills. My prediction is that how much a given Halo augments the wearer's abilities depends on how applicable its focus is to their abilities conceptually. So, like, the Calcite Halo wouldn't offer much for a Neuromancer, because making weapons and armor doesn't have much to do with Neuromancy. It might upgrade terraforming when making durable structures, but that's it. But put it with Unnatural Predator, which is about transforming the body to be a weapon, and it would have more to offer.
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>>3786113
>>3786094
I wonder what happens if we fuse two halos together? If the Halos can be duplicated, then is it possible to fuse two different halos together?
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>>3786193
You hybridizing them? The nature of the Crown artifact we have makes me think maybe not.
>>
Okay, here's a worrying thought about the Halos: In addition to the corrupted copies of the Neurotic Halo that she uses in her Proxies, West Prime also has the Fibrous and Phantom Halos. Where's she get the Phantom Halo? Professor Uzu's journal said that she was the one wearing the Phantom. Hopefully it's just that Uzu and West exchanged some levels at a Sparagmos Engine. But with how much else of Uzu's notes seem like unreliable narration, it has me suspicious.
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>>3786226
Define "Corrupted copies"
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>>3786268
BHOP said way back when that the Halos in the Proxies have been repurposed for maintaining the collective. They're worthless for their other functions, they're only good for overwriting and subsuming other people into your hideous hive-mind of clones. Which I guess isn't bad, if that's what you're looking to get out of alien psycho-technology, but you're not going to do anything like the Hexane Rewrite with them.
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>>3786298
I don’t think West has a Neurotic Halo copy to our knowledge.
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>>3786329
Not one that she personally uses, as far as we know, but the crystals in the chests of the Proxies that link them together (in retrospect, kind of spooky we had our Neurotic crystal be in Shu's chest) are derived from the Neurotic Halo. It's unclear why West Prime doesn't personally have one, we know that she had an actual Halo and not just research on it at some point given that Meg found her Neurotic Halo in one of West's old labs. It's a bit of a mystery.
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>>3786002
Thank you
Well it was not an early birthday wish....
It clocked over for to my birthday about 7 hours ago, 4 when you write the message
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>>3786350
I didn't realize Meg had found her copy in one of West's old labs. Is there somewhere that lore/info is getting published other than the threads? Or was this in the archive and I just missed it the last time I binge-read?
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>>3786388
It was in the threads. Can't quite remember which Vein, it was sometime around when B'Ni was attacking us. Either after the "West has Proxies" reveal or after the Hexane Rewrite. But yeah, when we first talked to Meg in the Dreamscape she told us she found the Halo in a ruin with a bunch of other crowns in it, and it was the only one that was functional. BHOP later said that the ruin was one of West's old labs, so I'd guess the other crowns were failed attempts at replicating the Halo's technology.
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>>3786193
>>3786218
im sure its possible, due to their nature of being abilities. i also dont think the crown is a sign its discouraged or anything, considering it gains advantages via the same types in it, but that would imply duplication of a crown type was intended or not discouraged anyways, so they clearly weren't worried about running out of any particular type.

at worse, its like generator and neuromancer hybrids. unstable no matter the context, but otherwise highly powerful.
otherwise, id imagine it works like hybrids, but with less options and based on class plus class. meaning, say, it gives you something inbetween the two classes giving you boosts related to the traits of both, of course.

the less interesting and also actually less likely option is, it just doubles the effects, essentially just acting as a 'space and level' saving method.
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I pretty much never participate in quests, I just thought I'd stop in and say I love your quest, BHOP.
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>>3786773
(Thank you so much Anon, I appreciate you reaching out. Feel free to participate if you're comfortable with doing so, and thank you one again for your kind words. I'm glad you're enjoying it thus far.)
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>>3786811
>>3786773
>NowKiss.jpg
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>>3786972
(Okay.)
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>>3787126
Vey fun, since my own interpretation of our playstyle is the SS SHU, an aircraft carrier and command flagship
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>>3787174
My time in the Gundam fandom has left me thinking of Shu as one of the mobile suits that carries "funnel" drones. Fast and mobile, wields a powerful gun/sword, and has a swarm of lesser combatants she can launch from her back to put pressure on strong enemies or destroy weaker ones.
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>>3787126
>>3787174
>>3787190
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>>3787228
Eh, kind of. I mean, the various glands are pretty important in influencing my behavior and personality. I can't say my brain is separate from the rest of my body, not entirely. Also, it's really more a meat mech with bone reinforcement. The muscle isn't the armor, it's the drive system.

Of course, Shu's scenario is rather different. Daughters are more like informorphs running on biological computers, given how their minds can be transferred like files. So it really is a flesh robot that Shu is occupying. And even the bone thing isn't true, with how quickly Calcite can grow and retract you could totally make a body entirely out of it that would still be mobile.
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>>3787237
its a meme my friend, its not supposed to be taken fully seriously or need to be entirely accurate.
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>>3787241
Yeah, I know, I'm just a bit sick of that meme. Sorry.
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>>3787249
well, thats odd, but to each their own i suppose.
even if its not 100% accurate it is much more accurate than how most people think of the human experience, which is the point of the joke.

>>3786811
also BHOP, know your weekend is busy, but if you do find the time, id very much love to know the artist for Lepismas Constructs. these guys look wicked cool.

actually kinda was disappointed they didn't have any methods or augments to stop Dorians auto-kill on them. considering their clear cost(and not just in biomass) and odd construction technique, it would only make sense for anyone using them to try and get some better safety measures for them. eh, then again the crucible mildly runs on lootbox mechanics, so i guess its not entirely controllable if something that comes your way either.
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>>3787256
(I'll search for the source here shortly, thanks for asking. Also, if you'd have brought a full team on the hunt they were cued to have an Augment that was similar to your Swarmling "remain alive but at 1% HEALTH" ability. Additionally, Dorian carved through them faster than I expected, since all three of them were very capable of throwing the fight. Honestly, if you hadn't had Dorian's Halo cued to auto-counter, the Rogue's sneak attack damage had a 9/10 chance of dealing roughly 1100-1300% HEALTH damage outright, so the fight could've gone very differently once Dorian was taken out and the Mage had gotten the chance to get the Contender in Lepisma's hands, which she'd have been able to wield at full capacity thanks to her skill tree.)
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>>3787434
>Swarmling "remain alive but at 1% HEALTH" ability.
oof, though that would'nt of helped with Dorian specifically, unless you are playing a bit too loose with the wording there and theirs would've been a counter-counter to block his counter. would've very much made a difference with the Silver Warrior though, that could've gone very differently.

>the Rogue's sneak attack damage had a 9/10 chance of dealing roughly 1100-1300% HEALTH damage outright
holy fucking cow.

>Mage had gotten the chance to get the Contender in Lepisma's hands, which she'd have been able to wield at full capacity thanks to her skill tree.
im curious what she had that could force a sentient high tier unique relic to fire at full throttle, though we may just see that in a bit of course. but otherwise, to be fair, i know we tried to get that bastard back in our hands before the finale, so im very unsure that would've happened. but thems the 'what ifs' of scenarios that didn't happen i suppose.

>I'll search for the source here shortly, thanks for asking.
thanks BHOP.
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>>3787434
>>3787449
The artist goes by nezumiyasha.

You post so much good stuff BHOP. I'd love to peruse your presumably massive folder of horrors.
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>>3787484
(Thank you so much for posting it, Anon. Also, the folder has, and I do not exaggerate, over two thousand images. I'm just thankful for the massive amount of talented artists out there that helped inspire so much of the imagery. A lot of it's cozy, a lot of it's creepy, and all of it is fun.)
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>>3787495
Me and my 800 pic folder are humbled. One day we'll get there.
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>>3787484
ah thank you. though his art seems a bit scattered on where to find it, very helpful indeed.

>>3787495
damn, thats alot. though im stupid picky with what i actually end up saving.
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>>3787506
>>3787516
(I'm rather picky myself, though I'd started gathering pictures for the quest several months in advance before I finally started.)
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>>3787568
my own folders honestly not even pure horror, some of its just character art i liked but had ideas for related to the folder.

speaking of inspiration, or something, curious question, but how much would you say the system has changed since it was introduced to us? what version would you say its on?

ive noticed a good few changes, none bad mind you, but its been interesting to see them slowly come about and if nothing else, would love to hear your thoughts on it from the perspective of the person running it.

lemme see, from what ive seen and can remember;
>abilities used to sometimes just level up on their own, think that happened to Swarmling once.
>abilities used to have augments directly unlockable via special conditions.
>That one other level-up option that got scrapped pretty quickly.
>i think at least once where the level up points went was auto-controlled, though not certain here.
>Maw and id imagine other abilities used to run like the Contender it seems, with named upgrades i know at least once we got a choice to pick from.
>Damage types and resistances used to very much not be fully implemented and be more implied than said, without actually stating alot as a damage type or at any level.
>Stat upgrades being rolled into ability upgrades.

i feel like there was one or two other things, but off the top of my head i cant remember them. regardless of your answer, its been just as fun watching the system develop as the game, and you've done a wonderful job with it too.
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>>3787595
>feel like there was one or two other things, but off the top of my head i cant remember them
Well, it's probably a result of the Arbiter's Appetite and has in-universe justification, but Consumed abilities don't really customize themselves to the user anymore. Remember how on the random table you'd get skills and Augments that tended to be especially suited for the user's existing abilities, like how eating Johanna offered Rath a pair of Augments specifically for Tensile Strand and Phantom Limb. But like I said, I figure that's just because the Arbiter's Appetite gives us direct access to the menu now.
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>>3787624
Yeah i remember what you're talking about, but that one i think is just as you said.
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>>3787434
dammit bhop, just when we thought it wouldn’t get scarier, you throw out these facts that make us shudder in the number of bullets dodged in our fights
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>>3787434
> "And the Mage had gotten the chance to get the Contender in Lepisma's hands, which she'd have been able to wield at full capacity thanks to her skill tree"
I KNEEEEEW IT! Thank god it didn´t happen, I was really worried of our survival chances if Lepisma managed to get her mitts on it... And once again, Sir Dorian saves the day by cutting dopwn the mage and Lepisma´s massive swarms. I mean, he saved the day in the past by tracking Isabelle and wasting A LOT of Ozma´s tokens, crippled Isabelle in a fight, and saved our collective behinds multiple times by instakilling ennemy constructs beyond counting.
All hail Sir Dorian the red!

Just a question, dear BHOP... What was the strategy Lepisma was going to follow after she stole our Hive abilities (which I assume was an endgame move)? She seemed relatively confident and committed to it despite the risks, how was she going to regenerate/end the fight after the grievous damage she had suffered?
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>>3787932
Lepisma is not so weak or dissapointing right now, isn´t she? Now she infuses a HEALTHY dose of RESPECT.... she is Bane in pic. related, we anons are feeling now like the smaller guy does. ;-)
I mean, you don´t face one of the QM childhood nightmares without assuming she can´t and won´t go full Jason / Freddy Krueger on your face the moment she has the chance...

I am cackling quite manically right now. I guess this is normal....
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>>3789059
>>3789067
(Ah, I'm glad you asked. Essentially, her kit was ramping up as she was constructing her own Chitinous Stalwart set, though her replication would not have stopped here. The next step of her kit was to start absorbing Trypophilic Hive from the top down, taking the HEALTH and BIO bonuses it gives you and locking them from your use, hence her not being all that worried about the damage she'd been taking since she also had an Augment to swap her HEALTH and BIO, at a cost. The assimilation would have been complete in two turns, with your Hive completely locked and your full suite of Hive Mistress abilities available to her.)
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>>3789149
*whistles impressed*

Not a bad way of fighting. We just overwhelmed her with Action economy and our ability to just murder her constructs....

She would have been murderous if allowed to ramo up.

And while i would have to accept that she may be able to use the contender as a mere weapon..... I would have thought that by taking the weapon up after Shu used it, it would go inert until the end of the session. Because even if she copied our hive abilites she would not be Shu and the gun was "Attuned" to Shu as a person i thought.... So it should have gonne inert and be useless in the fight from then on.....

Just something i find odd


Also would it be possibel to get the entire lexicon of words for Skintalkers? THe Answer would most likely be no. I just have to ask because i would like to have my own skintalker opponents access to more words than jsut what Amara has at the time.(not in the sense they are superior but words she does not have access to) I have found Spellcrafting to be a somewhat difficult thing and i am still unsure if the spell i crafted to ground Mina would have even worked in that fashion
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>>3789149
Ah, Bhop, I just remembered now. If PyreAnt Queen knows of our presence through the Stealth Jackling, is it still unaware that the "adopted" Two Fuzzbuzzes are our sleeper agents in their midst? And if we leave the FuzzBuzzes in their colony, will the Pyre Ants nurture them? Will the Two Fuzzbuzzes gain Pyre Ant Augmentations and abilities the longer we leave them there? I'm just imagining the two Fuzzbuzzes becoming all grown up swole and stronk as heck and gaining Pyre Ant Augmentations from their time in the colony like in your provided pic in this post >>3783541
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>>3789163
(While her plan was to use the Contender, she was not privvy to the fact that it has its own mind and thus its own saving throws and resistances.)

(Also, while there are quite a few words I'd like to keep hidden until you find them, I'll see what I can do about adding some flavor text to a selection today and posting them, if you'd like.)

>>3789167
(She's not aware that they are sleeper agents, and they will continue to be taken care of by Queen and Kin. While they're Constructs and thus have no way to level up or gain new abilities aside from another Daughter's influence, I'll have to check how the interaction effects could go.)
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>>3784265
kek
Bhop's dice table for Pyre Ant reaction:
>1-19: MURDER
>20: business as usual
Bhop's dice table for Pyre Ant Queen reaction:
>1-19: MURDER
>20: Adoption
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>>3789067
Nah, I still consider her weak and disappointing. I never said that she wasn't a threat to Shu. I said that she was a threat to Shu largely because Shu happened to be the perfect opponent for her to fight. "She would have been really effective if she managed to steal your super gun" doesn't change that, because just like copying Hive Mistress abilities it means nothing if Lepisma's opponent doesn't have a super gun to steal. Lepisma was hyper-specialized for fighting Shu, to the point I wouldn't be surprised if she was working for Ozmas. I don't think she was, but if BHOP revealed that I wouldn't question it.

>>3789170
They should teach their bee ways to the ants. Have a gradual shift in the Pyre Ants' culture to include communication by dancing. Or they develop a love for nectar that eventually leads to the Pyre Ants farming Amalgams that secrete sugary fluids like real ants do aphids. Or maybe they just learn the "heat balling" technique where bees surround an invader to cook it alive with their body heat, which would be very effective for things with fire powers.
>>
>>3789170
I am not asking to post them publicy...(because spoilers are a thing) I know it is kinda selfish. If you could send me some via an email or so that would be grand but i wouldnt ask you to just put them out into the public eye.

If you are willing to part with some of them(not the ones that can do massive stuff like Vitathat is not something that they are gonna have access to,, you can give out those you dont want to keep deliberatly hidden i would be very grateful)
>>
>>3789170
>(Also, while there are quite a few words I'd like to keep hidden until you find them, I'll see what I can do about adding some flavor text to a selection today and posting them, if you'd like.)
That's quite revealing for a qm like you.

>While they're Constructs and thus have no way to level up or gain new abilities aside from another Daughter's influence, I'll have to check how the interaction effects could go.
On one hand, I'm disappointed as it would've made a more "natural" progression and provide a better cover for our sleeper agents should we decide to activate the Manchurian protocol. On the other hand, the fact that the Pyre Ant Colony will be spoonfeeding the FuzzBuzzes free Biomass (and by extension Shu) means we can use that to "fake" their growth by spending that biomass to physically alter them and upgrade the classes they have, but at the same time the more "mature" they become the more we have to take active control of them in order to keep the "facade" up.

>>3789179
On one hand, it's a cute interaction, on the other hand it's giving a colony of sentient Rage-Ants ideas of new tactics and behaviors for them to use. And I don't want that backfiring on us if our relationship with them goes south because their expansionist policies and their preferred diet of "Daughter" has taken one of our friends as a victim.
>>
>>3789195
(To be clear, all I'd be comfortable showing would be 5-6 words out of a bank of...many. As a bit of trivia, the Skintalker class started as a totally seperate system before I integrated it into the Crucible setting, since it was originally intended to be the core class for a different setting before I realized it was so developed that it'd be a shame to not absorb it into the Body Horror Quest system.)
>>
>>3789195
>On one hand, it's a cute interaction, on the other hand it's giving a colony of sentient Rage-Ants ideas of new tactics and behaviors for them to use. And I don't want that backfiring on us if our relationship with them goes south because their expansionist policies and their preferred diet of "Daughter" has taken one of our friends as a victim.
True. Though I don't think the aphid thing would be that big a problem, and could help counter other dangerous behaviors if they have a non-violent food source. Though I guess that would require there to be grazer Amalgams for them to tame. Probably not a ton of those yet. Maybe if we get more of a naturalistic ecosystem, but not for now.
>>
>>3789210
the aphid idea would only work if there was a colony of aphids, and Aphids themselves require a large source of Flora to siphon their energy needs from like a Yggdrasil-class Tree (basically a huge tree the size of a Mountain.)
>>
>>3789204
I'm glad you did, effect-based spell construction is always a fun system.

>>3789218
I figured they'd just drain fluids from the fleshscape. We've already got an enormous sessile organism, it's the size of the planet and chock full of nutrients. But yes, the idea would require a true-breeding species of aphid-analogue Amalgams to exist, as well. Hence my "maybe once a more naturalistic ecosystem exists" comment.
>>
>>3789204
>>3789179
Please let us know our options when it comes to our Sleeping FuzzBuzz Blackops agents should you decide that our FuzzBuzz agents get benefits from embedding themselves in the Colony and being active as spies in their midst.
>>
>>3789204
not sure if you have much to say on it but if you do, i posted this question last night
>>3787595
>>
>>3789241
(Ah, thank you for linking that, the night was a long one and I was afraid I'd missed something in my sleepy state. When I'm back home at my computer I'll post my thoughts.)
>>
>>3789235
(Ah, I'll address this when I've stopped commuting, as well.)
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>>3789248
its fine, im sure everyone has nights like that.

>>3789235
im still wanting for this to end up with the outcome spies wont be necessary, with the only caveat we dont want to cause their younglings to cry from melted bees. otherwise honestly if they do becomes allies subvertly stealing biomass from them just sounds horribly dickish to do.
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>>3789254
>otherwise honestly if they do becomes allies subvertly stealing biomass from them just sounds horribly dickish to do.
I think they just mean that as part of the hive the FuzzBuzzes would be fed along with the rest, and we could use the biomass they acquire that way to upgrade them and simulate them growing and maturing.
>>
>>3789250
>>3789254
actually i gotta be honest here, and suppose i didnt word that section properly, but when i had Shu say 'and you have proven that to be possible' to the queen, i kinda meant for/expected/implied she would/the fuzzbuzzes they had adopted were the examples for that, and only now did i realize them being Shus was not, in fact, actually pointed out to the queen like i meant for them to be, and kinda just thought was implied they were, as otherwise that line really makes no sense.
>>
>>3789261
(I realize my wording was rather poor, myself. To clarify; the FuzzBuzzes are known to be from you by the Queen. What she is not aware of is your swarm's combat capabilities, overall. She just assumes your allies and your swarm to both be 'kin'.)
>>
>>3789265
ah ok, thanks for clarifying.
>>
well, heres just a random relic idea that came to my mind. its absurd and horrible and somehow wonderful because of it. we should never build it however and should hope no one else is ever dumb enough to build it either.

>CONTROL SCRAMBLER; this small sphere looking akin to a bunch of speaker heads stuck together, may be primed and thrown for the cost of 1 ACT, up to medium range. Upon impacting its location, the orb unleashes a silent, but ear numbing set of pulses outward in a large area. All constructs thus caught in this pulse will have their control orientation scrambled, redirecting their link to a random daughter, amalgam, or even another construct, within the pulses range, thus meaning control could be transferred in any number of ways, including chains where constructs are controlled by constructs that are controlled by a daughter thats never controlled a construct in their life. The effects last 3 turns or until the device is destroyed, and if the device survives, it may be recovered and recharged with an ACT and 100% Bio, to be used again.

>>MIND SCRAMBLE EXTRAVAGANZA(Control Scrambler Augmentation); an augmentation to the base relic, this more powerful, focused pulse instead only goes out to medium range, but at the cost of utterly absurd, but powerful enhanced effects. The pulse now affects Daughters, Amalgams, and Constructs alike, transferring control all around in a mix and match from hell. A Daughter could find themselves being controlled by a Construct now thats controlling itself, or be caught being controlled an Amalgam being controlled by a construct thats being controlled by an ally, forcing a precarious and awkward chain of command to get anything done. Just as likely, a daughter could find their foe wholly under their control. the possibilities, both good, bad, and absurd, are quite endless. Again the effects only last for 3 turns or until the device is destroyed, but now even if destroyed the more potent effects will still linger for the remainder of one turns worth of time, making it truly an absurd but potentially devastating relic.
>>
>>3789919
Yeah, that's nasty. The only safe use I can think to use it is with some sort of long-range delivery mechanism, having a flyer drop it on your targets or firing it out of a cannon. Otherwise it's too much of a risk you'd be caught in it too.
>>
>>3789919
It would be a hilarious Joke Relic that can be used for pranks were it not for the fact that it's in a setting called "Body Horror". The Scrambled-Egg-Bomb-device-thing basically turns everyone into the functional equivalent of a chaos Amalgam.
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>>3789934
yeah, its not a good idea to use, though i can see a daughter who loves to gamble use it, or one using it as a last ditch effort type of 'fuck you' move.

>>3789976
i had a terrible idea.
imagine Quinn getting hold of it for a party prank. or possibly even Gina. certainly dont let Amara mess with it.
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>>3789995
For some reason I feel that the Relic itself would better fit the appearance of a Transparent Egg with an Egg Beater shoved halfway inside the Egg, the handle and the Crank sticking out of the Egg. The contents of the egg has multiple egg yolks inside it. The Yolks are in the shape of human heads that wear the faces of those within its potential area of effect should it be activated. Activating it requires one to simply crank the handle of the beater 5 times. For more controlled purposes of activating the relic safely, there's a wind-up feature that allows a 1 round delay for the user to set up the relic and have it activate before getting the hell outta dodge.

Because face it, the Relic literally scrambles everything, and I couldn't resist making a scrambled egg joke.
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>>3789995
>imagine Quinn getting hold of it for a party prank. or possibly even Gina. certainly dont let Amara mess with it.
That could actually work, in a controlled context with no constructs or Amalgams around. Could make for a fun party theme.
>>
>>3790009
i dont know whether to laugh or sigh heavily and slam my head against a wall.

>>3790011
i can see amusement as a prank but as an actual party theme or party game i am unsure of how one would implement it.
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>>3790020
>i can see amusement as a prank but as an actual party theme or party game i am unsure of how one would implement it.
Obstacle Race/bonding exercise. If it's one team, everyone has to work together to get everyone to the finish line... or see how far they can get with coordinated actions after getting their motor control scrambled.
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>>3790039
i guess that could work, but on its own without silly conditions thrown in and possibly sillier penalties for losing certainly not a party game, compared to just an exercise.
>>
(Gentlemen, my weekend's been a hectic one, but I'm finally back home and settled in. My apologies for not being nearly as present as I'd have liked, though given some of the Relics that were posted, it looks like everyone's been having fun, so I'm glad. Posting shall resume tomorrow morning at around 10AM, give or take.I'd like to make sure everything's in order before you resume your hunt, so I'm giving myself a little time to ensure I can look over it with fresh, relatively-rested eyes. I hope everyone's had a good weekend, and take care.)

>>3785741
(Thank you for your kind words and your patience with my reply. So, to answer your question;)

(Abilities leveling up on their own and more aggressive Dream Daughter leveling was a system to help balance a solo/limited party member playthrough, which became less of a thing as it became apparent that you were going to be making quite a few allies in your time fighting through the Crucible.)

(Leveling up became something I handled very differently, as it had always been somewhat cumbersome and I had something of an epiphany as to the order and how to tackle the different elements of it. Honestly, the how and whens of leveling and the associated user interface has changed the most out of any elements, I'd say. It's certainly the most obvious when looking at the 1st Vein and this one, in my humble opinion.)

(Regarding the Maw, in the early versions a given Daughter was to only have their main skill tree be level-able, with all subsequent skill trees essentially acting as static abilities that scaled with their Core and occasionally unlocked Augments though talks with the Dream Daughter you got the power from. At levels 5, 10, 15, and 20 of your Core, you could absorb these independent skills and integrate them into your Core and modify how it would grow. I had the current system in beta, but given how cumbersome the former system's leveling was, I decided to focus on the beta version since it offered greater options and implemented a BHQ Fashion-Souls-esque mechanic via corruption.)

(Via elements, they were always in effect but that was an aspect of the system that would become more obvious the more you played. As I'm sure many of you suspect, there are a large amount of system mechanics at play in the background, and instead of being somewhat overwhelming up front, I thought it would be better to slowly introduce the elements and allow things to amp up naturally.)

(If there's something else you're curious about or that I didn't address fully, please let me know.)
>>
>>3792787
>(Regarding the Maw, in the early versions a given Daughter was to only have their main skill tree be level-able, with all subsequent skill trees essentially acting as static abilities that scaled with their Core and occasionally unlocked Augments though talks with the Dream Daughter you got the power from. At levels 5, 10, 15, and 20 of your Core, you could absorb these independent skills and integrate them into your Core and modify how it would grow.
I take it B'Ni's character sheet was made back when you were still using that system? I always thought it was a bit weird how she only had the capstone effects from the skills she consumed, her sheet using this early system would explain it.
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>>3792841
(It wasn't, actually. The reasoning behind that was more to give you the gist of her abilities without expanding several max-level skill trees with full flavor text. On my end she had the full trees, but expanding all of that from the arcane shorthand to something easily readable and flavorful would be a time investment that would take me some time, which is something I didn't have during that arc, with work and the like.)
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>>3792858
Huh. Well, alright, then, that's kind of neat. Did any of the lower-level abilities ever matter and we didn't realize it?
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>>3792787
well, sorry to hear your weekend was so hectic, but hope it was at least enjoyable.

and no problem on the wait, i figured something came up, so no worries BHOP. thanks for replying though, hearing about why changes were made(or, oddly things in play randomly started to be revealed) instead of just noticing them is quite interesting. as stated, hearing the why to the what only confirms further for me you made the right choices. as much as i sometimes have... issues, with how people spread of level-up points, its still a fantastic system you have cobbled together and hammered into shape, and having all our abilities level certainly make them both more fun and more important to both pick and try and keep a focus on, to get the most out of them.

i will say BHOP, the only mechanic you have teken away is kinda miss is things like how we gained recursive swarmlings. the idea of having to fill doable but iffy conditions that might not even be to our benefit but still come with a reward is actually really neat, but i also understand that with our current highly team based playstyle that might end up alot safer and easier to fulfill and be too easy a reward to balance. still, for what its worth, its still a very clever part of the old system, so nice work anyhow.

also,not sure if you were just replying to my vote post for another reason, or just clicked the wrong one, but you have brought up we never really discussed or consolidated our plan for the house excursion at all.

i mean, cant think of anything id change on my current vote currently but discussion still never hurts.

>>3792858
having had to go through it myself already, im still utterly impressed with your ability to think up 15-20 levels per ability with so far little being just direct numbers upgrades, at least on our end.
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>>3792863
>i will say BHOP, the only mechanic you have teken away is kinda miss is things like how we gained recursive swarmlings. the idea of having to fill doable but iffy conditions that might not even be to our benefit but still come with a reward is actually really neat, but i also understand that with our current highly team based playstyle that might end up alot safer and easier to fulfill and be too easy a reward to balance. still, for what its worth, its still a very clever part of the old system, so nice work anyhow.
Yeah, having three party members with you at (nearly) all times gives you a lot more of a safety net to experiment with, we'd probably get OP if we could do that. Ah, well, having to eat all your power-ups is pretty good thematically, anyway, helps enforce the idea that anyone strong you meet in the Crucible is a seasoned killer. Nobody gets to where our party has just by experimenting with their skills, I like that idea.

>also,not sure if you were just replying to my vote post for another reason, or just clicked the wrong one, but you have brought up we never really discussed or consolidated our plan for the house excursion at all.
You've got a pretty good one. Maybe just change the wording from "no answer" to "not answering", removes a tiny bit of potential for misunderstanding.

>having had to go through it myself already, im still utterly impressed with your ability to think up 15-20 levels per ability with so far little being just direct numbers upgrades, at least on our end.
And there are so many skills we never even see, just because we didn't pick them up. Every enemy skill we didn't Consume, every skill in a grab-bag like the Fear or this meat-mass that we'll pass over for others, those are there statted-out behind the scenes too. That's a pretty daunting amount of prep-work for a quest, it's impressive.
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>>3792884
>Maybe just change the wording from "no answer" to "not answering", removes a tiny bit of potential for misunderstanding.
im fine with that, though seems like a 'non-change' honestly, but paranoia has served us well before.
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>>3785710

You stride forwards a few meters, coming to a stop before the resort's entrance; a set of dingy double-doors, hanging by a set of weak hinges and hinting at the darkness beyond.

"If you're a Daughter in there, I know you're in there and you know I'm here, so if we could drop the whole stand-off thing, then that'd be great." You begin, hands on your hips as your trio of Knighted Nomlings and single Jackling hover near the tank. "If you want to be left alone that's fine, but after killing my scouts then not answering will be seen as a sign of aggression and we'll be coming in. If hostility isn't your intent, this is our chance to avoid it."

Your path forward is decided by the silence that hangs over the frigid ruins.

"November, be ready to bring the whole damn place down if someone in there tries to get clever." You sigh, your Rook hovering close at hand as a Knightling's assigned to each of your allies. "We go in, Halos primed. Dorian, I'm going to need a circle of paintlings ready to slow down anything that decides to pull a jump-scare."

The metal of November's helm creaks as the Jester activates once more, her gauntlets tightening around the haft of the Dainsleif and the handle of the Margrave, both. Stalking past you, she takes the lead as her twin blades carve through the doors with ease.

Every cautious step produces a crackling of frost as you proceed to search through the empty rooms and echoing corridors. Your and Dorian’s breath produces small clouds of mist as you creep forwards, and the deeper you reach into the abandoned resort the clouds go from mist to crystals, falling from the air with every shuddering gasp. November pushes open a pair of double-doors at the end of one of the innumerable halls, seizing up when what’s within comes into full view. You can hear Dorian’s teeth grind with rage as you look out on the dozens of crystallized Daughters, bodies twisted in agony, faces contorted in fear. A flicker of movement at the center of the baroque menagerie catches your eye, an undulating form that pads to the center of the room on four angular limbs.

Figures swirl in the air above the canine Amalgam, stuttering in and out of existence and resembling abyssal fish, then snakes, then back again. It stops, its entire body sloughing into an amorphous blob before reforming back into its dog-like body, sitting in the center of the room. It’s waiting, watching…protecting, as it gently throbs with neon heat.

Warmth in a sea of ice.

Shu the Defiant, Hunter of Gods

VS.

THE KINETIC REMNANTS

HP: 1210% (+105% [Dominus: Deactivated], Tractus, HALO: Primed)
BIO: 1280% (+90%, 2x Double-Knighted-Nomlings, 1 Subversive Jackling, 1x Rook, 3x Knightlings, 23x Banelings, 30/30)
CONTENDER [LIONHEART]: Empty.
RAVENOUS MAW: Primed.
HUNDRED-HANDED: None.
ACT: 3/3

DORIAN HP: 960% (235%, Interitus, Caelorum, Gutgrab, HALO: Primed, [ELEC STACKS: 0])
NOVEMBER HP: 2420% (Deliverance)

Threat: ?

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two hours. I’m not sure why I thought the first work day after a long weekend wouldn’t punch me in the face, but the fault’s on me for expecting anything less. Thank you for bearing with me, and it’s good to be back.)
>>
>>3793549
Question:
Is there an object the Canine Amalgam is protecting?
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>>3793550

Sorry to hear I hope it hasnt been a load of fires again

>>3793549
So if i read this right this thing absorbs heat around it? Is this the correct interpretaion? because if so then i think plasma based weaponry is gonna be a bitch as it will just absorb the heat.... Was this thing inspired by the blob and the thing?
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>>3793549
Can you give us the noted surroundings? We're in the center of the room, where's the heat source? is the Canine Amalgam emitting the heat?
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>>3793549
Huh. Did this thing used to be a Tindalos Hound? We know from the Chittering Tindalos way back in the Town of Rust that the Crucible isn't above repurposing their biomass, despite their pact. It would fit the canine appearance and the weird vanishing and reappearing of its attendant swarm.

So it deals cold damage, clearly. Flash-freezing, that's probably what took out our swarmlings. Given the name "Kinetic Remnant" I'm imagining it's more a general momentum-draining power that affects the microscale as cold, but can probably slow things down on the macro. Amorphous body, so probably pretty decent damage resistance and possible ability to reshape itself to optimize defenses/offenses or quickly dodge. And the swarm is worrying. Not sure what that's going to do, but the shifting appearance and the teleporting has got me spooked. I want those locked down quickly.

>>3793550
I'm sorry to hear that, BHOP. I hope the rest of your day is less hectic.

>>3793555
Actually, I think it might be the opposite. This thing absorbs heat, the area is cold but it's throbbing with warmth. Hit it with enough plasma and we might be able to overload it.
>>
Also, the Remnant might have a "heat battery", so to speak. That the reason its body is amorphous is because of the heat it's absorbed, and that it would have to expend the absorbed heat to use its fluidity. Which could make heating it up dangerous because it could use its shapeshifting more freely, but at the same time make it looser and less reinforced.
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>>3793564
I was thining more like it can absorb heat and transforms it into more mass. Like the blob(from the film) did when exposed to large amounts of heat(flamethrowers). What is heat if not the accumulation of energy in a certain area. It absorbs the heat around it to cause it the area to flash freeze. Overloading it might work but it might be able to absorb the heat into BIO or something. Or we might be able to vaporize it by superheating it. Which migfht make it super dangerous or kill it as it cant maintain cohesion and will just fade.

We also probably need November in the frontline as this thing will freeze Dorain and Shu pretty quickly they dont have any defensees against its (probably) main mode of attack
>>
>>3793553
(Not that you can see, but you get the feeling from the empathic channel that it's guarding something nearby.)

>>3793555
(The fact that it absorbs heat in vast quantities is safe to assume, yes.)

(As much as I love both of those films, this particular Amalgam isn't derived from them.)

>>3793561
(Circular room, Medium diameter. Littered with whole and fragmented remains of frozen Daughters, though none are sturdy enough to offer cover, it seems. Aside from the Remnants and the frozen remains, there is nothing else in the room.)

>>3793564
(You're uncertain as to whether or not this is a Tindalos, but it resembles more of an earth-based canid than anything else.)
>>
>>3793564

General tips should it come to a fight:
Dorian:
Dorian should not be moving around much. If Canine Amalgam drains momentum and body heat, then Dorian's Blitzkrieg tactics won't work, in fact it will only hasten his death. Masque of War will be a death sentence for him since a simple flash freeze will instantly kill him. Have him use Fibromancy Wires and stay within short range of the group.

Shu:
Use the Banelings fire acid as bonfires. If this thing absorbs heat, then we should feed it lots of heat. That way it will decrease the area in which the Cold damage affects the environment and make it safer for Dorian to use his electricity trick.

November:
A hard counter, we'll have to stay close to November. Also, November should be throwing out plasma attacks.

>>3793572
Bhop, we have Perfect vision within 1km. Can we figure out what it's guarding?
>>
>>3793572
Is there a room beyond the circular one?
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>>3793572
>(You're uncertain as to whether or not this is a Tindalos, but it resembles more of an earth-based canid than anything else.)
Ah. Then given that it's guarding something, maybe a former family pet? The Crucible taking its loyalty to its family and twisting it to something more dangerous.
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>>3793549
Shu;
>Load up six BBs and give the thing an opening barrage.
>surround the thing with Banelings, test its acid resistance, and if that has an effect, use acid to corral and keep it at bay.
>try and get a read on the thing. Does it have a core? Or purely, fully liquid?
>>Activate Dominous


Dorian;
>Send forth the paintlings, to mix with its liquid form and slow it down.
>Send a shredding wave of Threads forwards, see how able it is to reform itself.
>Be prepared to flare Verteilung if it charges us.


November;
>stay back, dont let it get to your forge core.
>Get the gauntlets primed for electric damage, and use blunt hits. Slashing and piercing from the sword and spear will most likely do very little to it.

ARE YOU GOING TO DO WHAT I WANT THIS TIME?!?! HUH!??! ARE YOU GOING TO BEHAVE FOR ME 4HCAN!?!?
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>>3793581
It ate neither, from my perspective.

I don't think November has to be worried. She's immune to cold damage. I'd also like her to test the Remnant with a shot from the BAR. Her weakest plasma attack, should tell us how worried we have to be about its heat absorption.

Also, let's take out those viperfish, too. Send at least a few of the Banelings their way, keep them from doing whatever spatio-temporal weirdness they can do.
>>
>>3793549

Recovering from a very physical long weekend, and can't think well enough to contribute to this encounter much. I do think we need November to move forward and prepare the Margrave to counter any attacks it may throw at Shu / Dorian. I am getting Tindalos vibes, with the not quite there creatures and canid description, so I wonder if it can be reached through Karma/Contender. I have no idea what to do with Dorian though.
>>
>>3793584
geezus christ finally.
sorry for any bamboozles. first post took 5 minutes to actually post, then trying to delete one of the duplicates deleted both.

>>3793572
glad to be back, though clearly 4chan might not agree. sorry to hear about work and hope it slows down for ya.
>>
>>3793584
Nice....... had that problem too last week

>>3793584
We should probably try and let the banmelings explode, at least some see if we can coax it to use its powers to see how fast it can react to multiple threats from differen dirrctions or if it is just an Aura it can flare or something.

>>3793572
Are the bodys still worth Levels if we kill this thing? Can we potentialy safe some of the Daughters here as dreamdaughters?

Am this Anon by the way >>3789180 not sure why i changed IDs on my desktop
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>>3793585
i was more worried the thing might get inside of November and absorb her forge cores energy.

also i had the BAR thing on the list, but BHOP said here
>>3793572
that its safe to assume it can absorb heat damage, which the BAR is heat damage.

>>3793589
i wanted to test its acid immunity first. most of their explosion is acid as far as im aware, not explosive damage, so them self detonating might not do us much good here.

im more of hoping to test what it can do mostly this turn, than risk jumping to conclusions on things we dont know for sure and only fucking us over.
>>
>>3793590
I was thinking the explosion more like to test out how fast it can absorb the resultant energy with our near perfect sight we should be able to notice if its just freezes in an instant or if it freezes when it reaches a certain point form the Amalgam. I know that they dont deal explosion damage.,

And it would also give us a good indicator if it absorbs heat or momentum. If the acid just gets rapidly slowed while it freezes it is the latter of the two.

It would also give us an indicator if going faster or slower is the better move. The explosions will be faster and more violent than the spraying so we can see if it is in our interest to slow dorian down even even more or if we should have him go speedy gonzales on the amalgams ass.
>>
>>3793549
SHU
>Attach Dominus Bloodline to canine
>Load and fire six B.33s into canine, jam it with honey
>Split Banelings into two groups, one to attack the viperfish swarm, one to attack the canine. Start with probing attacks to see how they respond to the incendiary acid, then if results are positive use acid to corral canine and destroy swarm. Use at least one Baneling in explosive mode to test speed of energy absorption.

DORIAN
>Switch to Creator, spawn more paintlings, have them swamp the canine.
>Use Resplendent Threads to slash at Remnant, aim to come in from overhead so as to hopefully slash through swarm as well as canine.
>Flare Verurteilung if need be.

NOVEMBER
>Switch Ignition Gauntlets to electric damage
>Test canine's heat absorption with BAR. If results positive, continue fire, otherwise cease fire and focus on guarding party.

>>3793590
>i was more worried the thing might get inside of November and absorb her forge cores energy.
I'm not sure it's that sort of amorphous enemy. And even if so, November should have good seals on her armor, I think she'd have to take damage before a gap big enough to slip through was present.

>that its safe to assume it can absorb heat damage, which the BAR is heat damage.
No, he said it's safe to assume it absorbs heat, which is a bit ambiguous in how it interacts with the damage system. All cold damage is the user absorbing heat, from a physics perspective, but cold damage auras don't necessarily cause immunity to heat damage. The creature appears to be concentrating the heat in its body, it doesn't have a way to dump the heat somewhere else (another dimension, like how we store biomass?) like Julia's cold aura does. Its body has heated up in the process of cooling the room. So the heat is still affecting it, and adding more heat to that may damage it. Or it may just store the heat for use in some other process. It's unclear, I want to test it. The BAR is pretty weak as a single shot, if it doesn't work we shouldn't have made things significantly worse.
>>
>>3793549

Battle theme recommendation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAOVZP4JtW4

Shu
>Send a Baneling to probe its defenses, see what it's guarding. Play a literal game of hot or cold to see the general direction of where the hound's object of protection is.
>Have Several banelings ignite their acid in a steady burn like a oil lamp as fuel. don't have them detonate, just spill their acid in a controlled stream. Keep the Acid-Lamp-lings close.
>Have some banelings hover close to Dorian. If the Canine tries to absorb Dorian's heat, have the Baneling pop its acid to give Dorian a heat infusion and to act as a Decoy flare for the Canine Amalgam. even though it is painful for Dorian.
>Set Banelings to Detonate if they're about to be flash frozen
>Full load and fan the hammer on the contender. Fire 6 B.33 rounds.
Dorian:
>Stay close. Running around will get you killed.

November:
>Shotgun and BAR. Open fire if Dog threatens to attack and gets close. BAR to zone the dog and have it aim for the fish and snakes. Shotgun for the Dog.
>If Dog gets too close, use the blade flat of the Silversword to bat it away.

The idea behind some of the "apparently stupid" tactics is to cover all avenues of heat absorption that the Canine Amalgam theoretically absorbs. Momentum, Open flame, Canine Amalgam absorbs heat in general. So I'm trying to give Shu and the others a "Heat Shield" to hide behind and attack safely without getting their body heat drained.

>>3793590
You know... I wonder if we should have brought Rath with us. The Fiery redhead would make things either easier or harder since Canine would more or less tunnelvision on Rath if she was here.
>>
>>3793575
(It's nothing obvious, as far as you can see.)

>>3793577
(There is, but it appears to just loop back through to the area's second entrance.)

>>3793589
(I'm afraid the remains are quite decayed, and little more than ice fossils in a way.)
>>
>>3793602
its foolish to risk it being able to get into her system, especially with her having a giant gaping hole in her back. we may of plugged it, but no way is that plug as good or hard to get into as her normal body. feels silly to not have her be careful when if it wants heat energy, she has a giant generator inside of her.

>No, he said it's safe to assume it absorbs heat, which is a bit ambiguous in how it interacts with the damage system
its a pretty safe assumption that its ability is a combat ability, which would be tied to the damage system.

>>3793596
i suppose, but id think the BBs, Paintlings, and the acid will already give us a pretty good spread for that.

>>3793604
id prefer her NOT to open fire with the BAR willy nilly with no testing involved. also, she has the Gauntlets and can increase her strength. an actual weapon made to do blunt damage will work better than the blade will.

theres more Dorian can do than just nothing.

having Rath here could very well be the worst idea possible, and depending on how this works,(we'll see), be a death sentence for her. if nothing else, im very positive it at least has heat resistance, which would make Rath kinda not a good choice.
>>
>>3793605
>(I'm afraid the remains are quite decayed, and little more than ice fossils in a way.)
This saddens me a bit.......

We cant change it but when we beat this thing we should give them a once over for any fresher statues maybe we can safe even just one or two daughters

i thought that ice would probably be a quite good preserver unless the Amamlgam drains their frozen forms for their BIO.......

Would have been a nice way to get to know some new people without needing to fight them first....
>>
>>3793608
>its a pretty safe assumption that its ability is a combat ability, which would be tied to the damage system.
Yes, obviously it's tied to the damage system. What's not clear is how. That's why I'd like to deal some heat damage, to find out.
>>
>>3793612
i mean, you dont build up heat inside your body if heat is a danger to you or a worthless asset to have.
>>
>>3793615
Not intentionally, no, but for all we know this is an unavoidable byproduct of its chilling and therefore a potential weakness to be exploited.
>>
>>3793608
>>3793610

>theres more Dorian can do than just nothing.
Sorry, I forgot to put down other options for Dorian like use his fibromancy wires.
I just want him to stay close in general and prevent him acquiring too many Frost Stacks from the Amalgam, he may have sloughing armor, but it's still an issue.
>>
>>3793618
that would be an absurdly massive drawback for an ability, one we have not seen the crucible give out and have no reason to think it would, given the evidence we have seen.
>>
>>3793625
Except that Generator abilities are supposed to have severe drawbacks for their power, with high risk of self-harm being the most common. We've just never had to deal with that for a variety of reasons. I would not be surprised by an ability that dealt cold damage and caused the user's body to heat up to dangerous levels in the process.
>>
>>3793635
no, they are supposed to have a high risk of actively using the ability also damaging you with the attack. backlash damage. thats a very specific type of drawback that would play out in a very different way than heat buildup.
>>
>>3793638
Yes, and heat build-up would be backlash damage from using cold.
>>
>>3793642
no, it wouldnt be. agree to disagree, as clearly this conversation is going to go nowhere.

>>3793549
>>3793602
DONT fire the BAR

>>3793604
and certainly DONT unload full swing with it. even if we can use Novembers armaments on it its liquid nature would make the Shotgun better on it anyways.
>>
>>3793648
>no, it wouldnt be. agree to disagree, as clearly this conversation is going to go nowhere.
I'm not saying it's certainly safe to use November's plasma weapons. I'm saying that we don't know how the Remnant's abilities work, and I'd like to hit it with a tiny bit of plasma right now to find out. Maybe it will hurt it, maybe it will do nothing, maybe it will help it. I don't know, but I figure that if it does meaningfully absorb heat damage then a single BAR attack shouldn't change things overly much. This is just part of the overall testing of its capabilities, just like seeing if our acid does anything.
>>
>>3793652
>thing clearly has an ability to withstand large am mounts of heat
>even bee told it can absorb heat
>"hey, lets waste time and actions firing on it with heat!"

see
>>3793648
>>
>>3793656
>thing clearly has an ability to withstand large am mounts of heat
No, it doesn't clearly have that ability. It clearly has the ability to freeze things, that's not the same.

>even bee told it can absorb heat
Again, that's not the same as mechanically absorbing heat damage. Julia absorbs heat, too, because she can do cold damage. She has no special resistance to heat damage (okay, she does, but because of Elemental Digestion, not Frozen Fury). Dealing cold damage doesn't make you immune to heat just like dealing heat damage doesn't make you immune to cold.

>"hey, lets waste time and actions firing on it with heat!"
November has actions available! If she's not going to shoot it, then she's just standing back and doing nothing. At best she'll punch it if it comes close, that's certainly not going to take up all of her four ACTs. Her actions are already wasted, might as well chance that something productive comes from it. Or, fuck, can we at least target the swarm and the canine both? See if the dog is immune but the swarm not, or vice versa, and thereby have November not be near-useless in this fight?

Actually, yeah, adding that to >>3793602
>Have November test the defenses of both the canine and the viperfish swarm with the BAR, see if either of them is susceptible to heat damage.
>>
>>3793549
Supporting >>3793602
>>
>>3793667
it has has a massive amount of heat built up in it, you utter half brained moron. of course it has at least heat resistance! id be dead or burning to death otherwise, and it very clearly is not! FUCK i hate you so much.
>>
>>3793675
Yes, and it's also visibly radiating away that heat it's built-up. It wouldn't be doing that if it couldn't be harmed by heat, it would have no reason to. It would just hold on to the heat, let it sit. The fact that we can tell that it's hot means that heat has to be able to hurt it.
>>
>>3793656
>>3793667
I still think having a "heat shield system" that makes it absorb other sources of heat instead of our party's body heat is a good defense mechanism against this canine.

Canine deals cold damage by absorbing heat. It's even evident that the previous Daughters were killed by Frost/cold damage Shu and Dorian don't have a way to combat that. So either we set up our own heat shield that lets us safely poke the amalgam without it flash freezing Dorian or Shu, or we stuff the amalgam with so much heat that it can't use its cold-type abilities without risking heat overload or backlash.

Resistance =/= immunity, therefore the amalgam has a limit to the amount of heat it can absorb.

>>3793675
Or you can ignore what we've pointed out and be stubborn and get emotionally heated and call names. If you still don't agree and can't bring it to a civil argument without flinging mud, then leave it to a simple disagreement.

>>3793604
Amending my vote: >>3793549

>First off, we back off. and cool our jets. If we're allowed to back away, then back off. We aren't mentally prepared for this.
>otherwise Do the following:

Shu:
>Send a Baneling to probe its defenses, see what it's guarding. Play a literal game of hot or cold to see the general direction of where the hound's object of protection is.
>Have Several banelings ignite their acid in a steady burn like a oil lamp as fuel. don't have them detonate, just spill their acid in a controlled stream. Keep the Acid-Lamp-lings close.
>Have some banelings hover close to Dorian. If the Canine tries to absorb Dorian's heat, have the Baneling pop its acid to give Dorian a heat infusion and to act as a Decoy flare for the Canine Amalgam. even though it is painful for Dorian.
>Set Banelings to Detonate if they're about to be flash frozen
>Full load and fan the hammer on the contender. Fire 6 B.33 rounds.

Dorian:
>Stay at range but stay close, use Fibromancy wires for ranged attacks.
>Make paintlings, have them tag the swarms of fish and snakes with bright pink (lightish-red) paint so we can keep track of them.

November:
>Have Joker's Mask active, be ready to riposte any flanking attacks
>Set one Ignition Gauntlet to Fire damage, the other to Electric. Test to see which one deals more responsive damage
>Have the Shotgun at the ready in case it gets close.

And I'll be leaving for work soon. This discourse will be the death of Dorian or Shu if this keeps up. Jesus christ.
>>
>>3793695
ah yes, because Rath doesn't radiate off heat and we cant tell Rath is hot at all!

>>3793697
i tried to leave it at a simple disagreement TWICE! not once, but TWICE!

this fucking assholes the ones REFUSING TO LET THIS GO and refusing to just have a disagreement. HES the one being stubborn and refusing to just admit we dont agree on the topic, and if hes going to keep pushing, im not going to hold back.
>>
BHOP we have reached the bump limit and the thread is sinking fast on /qst/. I just thought you should know.
>>
>>3793700
>ah yes, because Rath doesn't radiate off heat and we cant tell Rath is hot at all!
But Rath does radiate heat. We can tell that. I'm confused where you're going with this.

>i tried to leave it at a simple disagreement TWICE! not once, but TWICE!
>this fucking assholes the ones REFUSING TO LET THIS GO and refusing to just have a disagreement. HES the one being stubborn and refusing to just admit we dont agree on the topic, and if hes going to keep pushing, im not going to hold back.
I'm pretty sure it was just the once, actually, I'm looking back through the posts and I'm only seeing you go "agree to disagree" the once. Unless a post got eaten? Regardless, I'm not inclined to respect that when you say "let's just drop it" and then in the very same post pick it up again. You went immediately from saying that the conversation is going nowhere to arguing that it's a bad idea and we shouldn't do it.
>>
>>3793708
my bad, i forgot sarcasm doesnt come off. my entire point was Rath does radiate heat.

>>3793656
>>3793648
twice. and the second time i wasn't saying anything new, i was repeating myself to get my point across to you. and if you wont respect im allowed to disagree with you, i have no reason to respect you are a person at all.
>>
>>3793707
(Indeed, I noticed but thank you for bringing it to my attention. After this fight I'll see how things are going and make the decision from there as to how best to proceed.)
>>
>>3793707
>>3793715
we've been on page four for a bit no actually. id say we have at least a day or two probably before its precarious. depends on how /qst/ is feeling, though usually its the same threads, not new ones, that get any consistent updates during the week.
>>
>>3793713
>my bad, i forgot sarcasm doesnt come off. my entire point was Rath does radiate heat.
Yes, because she has a reason to, it's how she attacks. Unless the dog also attacks with heat (which it probably doesn't or more of these statues would be melted, though I admit the possibility), the only reason to radiate the heat would be to get rid of it because it's harmful. Or maybe it's just an aesthetic detail. Maybe BHOP meant nothing important by it and we're both just reading into things that have no significance. We'll find out soon.

>twice. and the second time i wasn't saying anything new, i was repeating myself to get my point across to you. and if you wont respect im allowed to disagree with you, i have no reason to respect you are a person at all.
Oh, see, I thought that was just you re-iterating the "do not do this" part. That part is why I didn't take seriously the "agree to disagree" part, because they're contradictory. Since it came second in the post, I assumed it had primacy and you still were part of the conversation.
>>
>>3793734
why would i not be part of a conversation when you replied directly to me in a post in which you refused to let the topic go?

my point with Rath is that it radiating heat and clearly having heat is utterly pointless as proof against it using the heat for anything of use.
>>
>>3793744
>why would i not be part of a conversation when you replied directly to me in a post in which you refused to let the topic go?
I'm saying that I thought that you hadn't dropped the topic. You were still talking about it, that came after saying "agree to disagree".

>my point with Rath is that it radiating heat and clearly having heat is utterly pointless as proof against it using the heat for anything of use.
My problem with that idea is that it's not using the heat for anything, as far as we can tell. But hey, maybe there's something we can't see and I'll kick myself for it once we realize what it's doing.
>>
>>3793762
literally basically everyone here who has ever done 'agree to disagree' has still given their last reply, as they have a right to say why they think you're wrong and we wont agree.

also, nothing after the 'agree to disagree' was even related to the topic, all i said was in less fancy terms was 'we are repeating ourselves and neither one of us will budge.' which is still happening, you stil lrefuse to just agree we will disagree.

also its literally the first turn. it hasn't attacked yet, of course it hasn't used the heat for anything when its not even made a move. honestly my guess would be it uses it to spawn the phantom things, but hey, you're not going to listen clearly so moot point guessing.
>>
>>3793768
>also, nothing after the 'agree to disagree' was even related to the topic, all i said was in less fancy terms was 'we are repeating ourselves and neither one of us will budge.' which is still happening, you stil lrefuse to just agree we will disagree.
You were voting against people's plans. That suggested to me a desire to continue debate about the topic, which felt at odds with your insistence that we just agree to disagree. So I felt the need to defend my position still. But whatever, you're right, it's not worth the argument.

>also its literally the first turn. it hasn't attacked yet, of course it hasn't used the heat for anything when its not even made a move. honestly my guess would be it uses it to spawn the phantom things, but hey, you're not going to listen clearly so moot point guessing.
Hmm, maybe. It could be to spawn them. I'm not sure how that would work, but it would be interesting to see. Like some sort of isentropic Forge.
>>
>>3793549

November acts swiftly, swinging her B.A.R. up with one hand and opening with a quick three-round burst. Gunfire echoes through the room as the Remnant stands perfectly still, the trio of bullets clattering to the floor as the Amalgam’s swarm begins to jitter and shake, now visible in the air above it. The Dominus links you to the canine as the chambers of your Contender fill with B.33s before they’re violently expelled as you fan the calcite hammer. Six rounds, six hits as the payloads tear into the now-charging Amalgam, its path a straight line towards Dorian.

Then it simply vanishes.

Dorian’s paintlings boil in mid-air when the Amalgam tears past them and through the young man’s side before any of you can react. He staggers but remains standing as his Resplendent Thread cuts through the space and slashes the airborne fish to sizzling shreds as your swarm splits their focus between tearing into the other creatures and charging after the nimble Remnant, one of their number detonating close to the Amalgam’s misshapen face. The blast of heat blossoms, then compresses into the creature’s shifting hide as it’s absorbed instantly, the beast darting back around to strike at Dorian a second time.

Where bullets failed, November’s blades succeed as glaive and sword slice through the air, their terrible weight tearing through the creature mid-leap and causing it to miss Dorian as it rolls across the floor, staggering to its feet before darting off again for a third charge. Its wounds sear closed, its amorphous shape darting towards your resident artist in a focused assault. Now across the room from you, you can see the acid’s eating away at its motile body and you can feel your rounds digging through its flesh…but you’ve just noticed something that only worsens the chill that runs down your spine.

It’s bigger now, even as pieces of it slake off to replenish the swarm that promptly joins their creator in its mad dash to end you.

You move to interpose yourself between the beast and your friend when you realize your limbs hurt to move, your actions as fast as they used to be, despite the lattice-work of frost that’s starting to spread across your armor. Your allies seem to be effected as well, thin sheets of ice spreading across their forms as they move to prepare for the relentless assault.

HP: 1210% (+325% [Dominus: Activated], Tractus, HALO: Primed, FREEZE: 2/10 Stacks)
BIO: 1280% (+90%, 2x Double-Knighted-Nomlings, 1 Subversive Jackling, 1x Rook, 3x Knightlings, 23x Banelings, 30/30)
CONTENDER [LIONHEART]: Empty.
RAVENOUS MAW: Primed.
HUNDRED-HANDED: None.
ACT: 3/3

DORIAN HP: 759% (235%, Interitus, Caelorum, Gutgrab, HALO: Primed, [ELEC STACKS: 0] FREEZE: 3/10 Stacks)
NOVEMBER HP: 2420% (+200%, Deliverance, FREEZE: 34/10 Stacks)

Threat: Medium, targeting Dorian. B.33 Rounds x6, detonation in 2 turns.

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
am >>3793697
>>3793768
>it has done nothing on the first turn
well i was going to suggest that we either poke the dog and try to discern what it was guarding and pursue other options or we could back off and leave with our current spoils but since everyone went all “kill it now” with votes saying we should immediately go into combat without context I don’t have much of a say to suggest the alternative.
That and posting while at work is a dangerous thing.
>>
(Voting shall remain open for the next two hours, Gentlemen.)
>>
>>3793819
well, yeah as i suspected Heats not going to work on it. still hard to tell ,but its using it to boil the paintlings at least.

so it uses Cold at range to slow and kill targets, Heat for its constructs possibly, Heat as a shield against certain things, and possibly to grow aswell.
>>
>>3793819
So November is frozen? 34/10 stacks seems like she should be frozen by now

Ansd dorian is gonna have to fall back soon he wont be able to survive very long

This thing almost feels like we need to starve it of energy but how do we do it.... It will only continue to draw energy from its surroundings and us and we cant winn the race who loses all their energy first...

So overloading it might be the right call but i am not sure...

>>3793826
>>3793824
Even if it is not inspired by the blob it ccertainly feels like it with it growing the more heat it absorbs.

I feel like we are in a terrible matchup.
>>
>>3793819
Shu
>Retreat we aren’t equipped for this.
>apply baneling acid on Shu, November,and dorian. the heat from the acid will melt the frost and keep us warm.
dorian:
use slash damage. it’s weak to slashing damage.
>critic form and fibromancy wires
November
>Jester mask activate
>Flare step
>Talons and Sword
>have the sword set to protect Dorian. he has no way to generate heat damage and is more vulnerable
This is a tindalos hound.
>>
>>3793832
(My apologies, that's supposed to read 3/10.)
>>
>>3793819
>All hands retreat. we are not prepared
Shu
>banelings should pour their acid on the frost on our party members, the heat damage will remove the frost.

November
>activate the mask
>keep the hound off of our backs
>Retreat
Dorian
>Retreat
>>
>>3793834
>>3793841
if we didnt retreat for Lepisma we wont retreat here.
>>
>>3793819
Shu;
>have half the Banelings still focus on keeping its constructs at bay.
>see if one Baneling cant eat away at the frost on each of us slowly to avoid heavily damaging ourselves.
>Load up 6 parabellums.
>Prime the Rook to teleport yourself, step forward and go for a swing.
>If it takes the bait, teleport back and jab the Contender into it, pulling off a Stun with the Dominous before unloading the Contender into it.
>Otherwise, stay back and keep your Banelings trying to keep its size down with acid.


Dorian;
>pull back, and keep a shield of Threads around you and your allies.
>if the thing gets caught, pour out Paintlings to cover its form. Even if it burns them away, this should still slow it down and waste its energy.
>Stay in Critic form, have your Scythes ready to Hack at it should it come for you again, or you see an opening.


November;
>Step forward and Haiser Flare the thing. Both to try and blind it, and to see if the heat cant knock FREEZE stacks off of yourself.
>Then, step back if you can to see if it’ll take Shus bait. If it does, be prepared to bring the Gauntlets against it, getting off those extra attacks.
>OTherwise, take up a guard position to defend your allies with the reach weapons, trying to bat the thing away as necessary.
>>
>>3793819
Okay, so it can drain momentum away, too. The BAR' rounds wouldn't have fallen to the floor if it was just draining heat. We suspected that, but still, damn. Seems to have a mass limit, though. Small bullets got drained, the larger B.33s got through. Are we working on Mass Effect kinetic shield rules? And alright, it does seem to be unharmed by the heat it absorbs. Doesn't really make sense from a thermodynamic standpoint, but whatever, that's on me for assuming. I wanted to test it and it's been tested, no use complaining now.

>>3793826
It probably needs to expend a fair bit of energy to do that heat-draining. We can switch Exsanguinating Leash to drain Bio instead of Health, think that's worth it? We should also attach a second Dominus Bloodline to Dorian, boost his Health regeneration.
>>
>>3793841
It hasnt actually dealt to much damage if we can keep the Frost under control we can beat it

And if it grows ever large then we might have to retreat but not yet its a bit early to say it

>>3793848
It is also very fast that should expend a lot of energy as well so switchign the line might be a good idea
>>
>>3793848
we can try it. would depend on if it needs Bio for this, or if its ability build up Heat stacks it can expend instead. if the second, we will be wasting our time. but we can try it.

im fine with sticking Dorian with one though sure.
>>
>>3793848
>>3793851
oh, right, we still have the Tank and id think if November didnt think she could get a good thot through the walls she would've said so. risky, but if we can get an opening id think the standard solid shot tank shell would still work, but thats if we could get an opening.

or, its also possible Shus ammo is immune to it due to all of them technically being Swarmlings. so its ability might only work instantly on attacks, and even then clearly mostly high speed attacks.
>>
>>3793855
You mean a standard High Explosive Shell?

That might work

If we can disperse the heat of the crature(with and explosion) we might significantly weaken it ,force it to refocus the energy on it self and making the frost much less severe

So dragging it out intot he open might work

THough we should still try and find whatever it is protecting. It might be a case of a strong cosntruct protecting a much weaker main body.

And there is also something that OP mentioned we could feel over our Empathic field. Like it was trying to protect something. If we find it we may be able to weaken it ´...... or piss it off
>>
>>3793855
>but if we can get an opening id think the standard solid shot tank shell would still work, but thats if we could get an opening.
Do we have solid shells? I'm pretty sure that when I asked a while back BHOP said that the tank's main gun is also a plasma cannon. He may have just been referring to November being able to use her skills through it, though, this was before we knew about that detail. BHOP, what state of matter does the Geschoss' cannon fire, by default?

>or, its also possible Shus ammo is immune to it due to all of them technically being Swarmlings. so its ability might only work instantly on attacks, and even then clearly mostly high speed attacks.
Yeah, I think it really is Mass Effect rules. Small and fast gets blocked, big and (relatively) slow does not. A big bee flying over and stinging you is unaffected, but a bullet gets its momentum drained.

Oh, speaking of big bees, we do have some Knights in this fight. Let's bring them in. Have them distract the Remnant and keep it off Dorian.
>>
>>3793837
Hey BHOP what options does the tank have on its own, without using one of November's own abilities?
>>
>>3793871
>>3793879
(You may have Marco load in one of the solid explosive shells November has on hand as opposed to the usual plasma rounds it usually fires.)
>>
>>3793896
hrm, alright.

>>3793869
>>3793871
so maybe one of these two options?

>Kaiser Flare it.
>Shu Stuns it
>Send a shell at it.
>Afterwards, see to Shu baiting it if possible.

or

>See to Shus Bait plan
>Switch to either November then Batting it away with a Sui strength increased then bombing it, or HAve Dorian drag its ass away with a speed and Strength boost, before getting the hell out of dodge before the shot lands.
>>
>>3793855
we need to do terraforming setups to pin the thing in order to deal max damage.
>Also, we should lock down that kinetic absorption ability since we have the tether on the amalgam
>>
>>3793909
we cant control what ability we shut down(do we even have that yet anyways?), and theres no ground to terraform. we might be able to put down a Spiral like in Ozmas home, but like before it would be at greatly reduced strength.
>>
>>3793819

>>3793845
Shu;
>have half the Banelings focus on being a defensive screen against its constructs.
>have other half of banelings shift (return and release from Shu) to Gurrenlings and act as an offensive force against its constructs.
>switch Halo to Isolation Mode
>Build a Crimson Jackling to try and catch this hot bitch and see if this thing thinks like Amalgam or Tindalos.
>Load up 3 Hollowpoint Hives and 3 Ravenous Parabellum
>Prime the Rook to teleport yourself, step forward and go for a swing.
>If it takes the bait, teleport back and jab the Contender into it, pulling off a Stun with the Dominous before unloading the Contender into it.
>Otherwise, stay back and keep your Banelings trying to keep its size down with acid.

Dorian;
>pull back, and keep a shield of Threads around you and your allies.
>if the thing gets caught, pour out Paintlings to cover its form. Even if it burns them away, this should still slow it down and waste its energy.
>Stay in Critic form, have your Scythes ready to Hack at it should it come for you again, or you see an opening.

November;
>Prepare the Margrave Sword to counter-absorb a Frost attack.
>Then, step back if you can to see if it’ll take Shus bait. If it does, be prepared to bring the Gauntlets against it, getting off those extra attacks.
>Otherwise, take up a guard position to defend your allies with the reach weapons, trying to bat the thing away as necessary.

Marco;
>Move to a firing position
>Load an old HE shell.

Reasoning for the changes:
Having our Banelings/Gurrenlings spawn directly out of where it is to immediately attack this thing no matter where it goes seems prudent. The Ravenous Parabellum will do good damage over time and then burst. I'd like to see how these things deal with the drills of our Gurrenlings because a giant spinning drill sounds like a good way to check Will They Blend?

I really do suspect this is a Tindalos with the Daughters, the lack of bioscape, the not quite there nature of the creature... I still think there is something worth investigating along those lines.

I suspect a flash freeze from this thing, and the Margrave's ability to nullify such an attack is going to be critical here.
>>
>>3793914
We do have that ability, it's Amethust Jack level four. You're right that it's not reliable, though, it's random and so we might just get its spawning ability.

You know what might actually be very effective, though, when it comes to terraforming? Water. We're not in a position to do it now, but if we can get this thing out of the center of the resort and closer to the lake we could crash a wave over it with the Jackling. Either it freezes the water and traps itself or it boils the water and loses a good deal of the heat its absorbed. Or it freezes the water, traps itself, and then has to boil its way out, which would drain it of even more energy than if it just boiled the water away because moving heat from a low-temperature medium to a high-temperature one consumes more energy than you get out of the process.
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>>3793932
We've actually already got a Jackling. And that's not making effective use of our Knights, either. Let's set them to guard Dorian, keep it away from him. I'm not sure why it's targeting Dorian, maybe because he's liquid? Or it could be capable of sensing who has heat resistances/immunities, and so is avoiding Shu and November because of that.
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>>3793933
> "Water. We're not in a position to do it now, but if we can get this thing out of the center of the resort and closer to the lake we could crash a wave over it with the Jackling"

OOOH, I like IT! Definitively a good idea to do, absolute support on the next rounds
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>>3793932
we cant spawn Gurrenlings from it. each Hive only has 10% max it can draw on, individually.its simply not worth it in my opinion, all we could get is two Banelings per Hollowpoint at best from it. Hollowpoint just isnt a good round.

im against this change.

also, without us using the Flare or something else, we wont get a shot with the cannon, and would be a waste of actions to not use it in my opinion.

also

>>3793933
maybe, but i dont see a good way to force it out. it might be ok just camping in the thing if we fall back, might even have a fallback point itself too for if we try and bomb it out. we dont know what its guarding so its gotta have a deep hole to some degree somewhere.
>>
>>3793819
>>3793845
Amending Vote;

Shu;
>have half the Banelings switch to Gurrenlings and still focus on keeping its constructs at bay.
>see if one Baneling cant eat away at the frost on each of us slowly to avoid heavily damaging ourselves.
>Load up 6 parabellums.
>Prime the Rook to teleport yourself, step forward and go for a swing.
>If it takes the bait, teleport back and jab the Contender into it, pulling off a Stun with the Dominous before unloading the Contender into it.
>Otherwise, stay back and keep your Banelings trying to keep its size down with acid.
>Test Switching the leash to Bio drain on the Hound, but stitch back if this seems to have no real effect on it.
>If necessary, and Dorian cant get our team out of the way in time, use the Cutis Tractus to wrap everyone up as best you can.
>Tag Dorian with a leash aswell.


Dorian;
>pull back, and keep a shield of Threads around you and your allies.
>if the thing gets caught, pour out Paintlings to cover its form. Even if it burns them away, this should still slow it down and waste its energy.
>Stay in Critic form, have your Scythes ready to Hack at it should it come for you again, or you see an opening.
>If you can aid November if batting back the Hound, do so, pumping yourself full of half Strength and Half speed.
>Once the hound is back, Use your enhanced speed and Strength to pull Shu and November back to avoid any backlash from the shot.


November;
>Step forward and Kaiser Flare the thing. Both to try and blind it, and to see if the heat cant knock FREEZE stacks off of yourself.
>Then, step back if you can to see if it’ll take Shus bait. If it does, be prepared to bring the Gauntlets against it, getting off those extra attacks.
>Use your last Attack to pump yourself full of Strength, and bat the Hound backwards.
>once its airborne and stuck, Have Marco unleash a solid shell at it.
>Otherwise, take up a guard position to defend your allies with the reach weapons, trying to bat the thing away as necessary. Have the sword ready to elemental absorption.
>>
>>3793936
Man we have so many pieces to keep track of. I don't know how BHOP does it. Guarding Dorian does seem a good use for them.

>>3793943

Ah, my apologies, I thought that if we had multiple Hives attached we could combine them for larger constructs, I relent on that then. Let's see if we can use the Jackling then.

Compromise to use the Kaiser Flare instead of the bait/hitting with reach weapons? I'm just afraid that it's going to suck up the energy to fuel a frost wave and freeze us solid. It's a risk I'm happy to take if the Margrave is prepped to counter-counter, but not without it.
>>
>>3793952
COuld we add in a couple Swarmlings that search for anything unusual in the adjacent rooms?

As OP stated >>3793572
it seems to protect something or has a bond to something
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>>3793960
that depends, let me ask BHOP something.

>>3793896
how many of those phantom constructs does it have out, and how effective have our swarmlings been against them so far?

>>3793958
in the past when asked BHOP has said they each count individually. maybe he changed it, but my personal guess is Contender rounds can get upgraded at later levels and thats one of the Hollowpoints upgrades.
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>>3793970

I don't know how you remember all these things. Oof. Thanks for the save. I'd hate to waste the shots.
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>>3793952
Don't forget to have the Knights on duty. I'd suggest adding something like this

>Have regular Knights guard Dorian, ready to intercept its attacks.
>Send Knighted-Nomlings in to attack it after the Contender gambit, assist November in getting it airborne.

>>3793960
My guess is that it's running off transplanted dog territorial instincts. It probably doesn't have any conscious awareness of what it's guarding, if there even is anything, it just knows to guard.
>>
>>3793976
trust me when i say i dont remember everything. on this case, i probably remember it because it is in part why we never use the round. i think specifically someone wanted a knightling once and the issue with them was revealed then.

>>3793979
well, some of those were supposed to guard the tank outside, incase something comes by while were busy.
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>>3793984
That's right, the Double-Knighted-Nomlings (does anyone else think that kind of sounds like a children's cereal?) are with the tank, I forgot that part. But we've still got the regular Knightlings in here with us, we should have them guard Dorian.
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>>3793984
>>3793979
or, with its odd speed/teleportation, if this shot lands it might go for the tank next, so being pre-prepared might be a good idea. granted, i dont think it can take the tank out before we can come to its aid, but damage is still damage.
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>>3793989
i mean, fair but one of each of them is already supposed to be protecting everyone. probably should've made them rooks actually, but too late now.

also Dorians Halo didn't go off i just realized. that is possibly really worrying.
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>>3793994
Yeah, I noticed that, too. Our Halo didn't go off when fighting Lepisma, either, I think that maybe we're just starting to see enemies with anti-autocounter abilities or something like that. Quit worrying.
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>>3793994
You are right that means that it has either super effective attacks or its base damage is extremely high. Not sure which is worse

Though a blow that would knock a daughter out counts as well to trigger the Halo so we get our crit unless the enemy manbages to defeat Dorian with the Freeze
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>>3794000
Pardon me, I meant "quite worrying", noticed that typo just as it posted. I was not trying to admonish you but agree with you.
>>
>>3794000
>>3794002
i suppose its also possible certain attacks have been too quick or somehow not counted as an attack, but it think Dorian at least could even out the first one.
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>>3793970
(It has six constructs out, and your acid is very effective.)
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>>3794014
oh, well in that case switching to Gurrenlings sounds like a very bad idea.
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>>3794008
Considering the Halo is capable of overcharging the body it is bonded to too allow feats that the body by itself could never achieve i doubt that but i cant be certain .

In the fight against Lepisma we also did not receive critical when she chopped off our arm so it didnt trigger. There were also no crits directed at Shu and Dorians still went off to counter the rogue.
>>3794014
Thank you for the Info OP
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>>3794015

Agreed. Banelings for the win.
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>>3794016
it doesn't have to be a critical, its just we can perfectly counter any one attack thats incoming with an auto-critical ourselves. meaning either BHOPs simply choosing what attacks are worth them going off, or our current enemies have had conditional anti-auto counters. considering losing an arm and the contender is very bad, im gonna say Lepisma had the second.
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>>3793952
>>3793819
Further Amending Vote;

Shu;
>have half the Banelings focus on keeping its constructs at bay, if they clean them up, help the other Banelings with their jobs.
>see if one Baneling cant eat away at the frost on each of us slowly to avoid heavily damaging ourselves.
>Load up 6 parabellums.
>Prime the Rook to teleport yourself, step forward and go for a swing.
>If it takes the bait, teleport back and jab the Contender into it, pulling off a Stun with the Dominous before unloading the Contender into it.
>Otherwise, stay back and keep your Banelings trying to keep its size down with acid.
>Test Switching the leash to Bio drain on the Hound, but stitch back if this seems to have no real effect on it.
>If necessary, and Dorian cant get our team out of the way in time, use the Cutis Tractus to wrap everyone up as best you can.
>Tag Dorian with a leash aswell.
>If we can afford to send a few, have a few Benlings slip back and go and see what the Hound is guarding, if they can find it.


Dorian;
>pull back, and keep a shield of Threads around you and your allies.
>if the thing gets caught, pour out Paintlings to cover its form. Even if it burns them away, this should still slow it down and waste its energy.
>Stay in Critic form, have your Scythes ready to Hack at it should it come for you again, or you see an opening.
>If you can aid November if batting back the Hound, do so, pumping yourself full of half Strength and Half speed.
>Once the hound is back, Use your enhanced speed and Strength to pull Shu and November back to avoid any backlash from the shot.


November;
>Step forward and Kaiser Flare the thing. Both to try and blind it, and to see if the heat cant knock FREEZE stacks off of yourself.
>Then, step back if you can to see if it’ll take Shus bait. If it does, be prepared to bring the Gauntlets against it, getting off those extra attacks.
>Use your last Attack to pump yourself full of Strength, and bat the Hound backwards.
>once its airborne and stuck, Have Marco unleash a solid shell at it.
>Otherwise, take up a guard position to defend your allies with the reach weapons, trying to bat the thing away as necessary. Have the sword ready to elemental absorption.
>>
>>3794016
>>3794018
(Per yur deductions, Lepisma did have an auto-counter to counters to negate their activation. In this case however, the damage/condition threshold for auto-countering was not reached. There's a bit of a flowchart for auto-trigger powers like this one if they're not binary, to prevent the players from having to make a series of 'if-then' conditions. If the attack on Dorian had been a critical hit, a severing blow, or taken off 75% or more of his health, then it would have triggered.)
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>>3793819
Supporting >>3794019

I will head to bed now since i have to leave on a three day business trip tomorrow so i most likely wont be able to vote...... I hope we made the right call to fight. I trust you Anons not to let anyone die

Have a great night anons
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>>3794022
night Anon, Hope your trip has at least something to enjoy!

>>3794021
makes sense, thanks for clarifying.
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>>3794019
Works for me. Supporting >>3793819

>>3794021
Ah, so it's less that it didn't trigger and more that it wasn't worth triggering for. Well, that's good to know. Thanks for clarifying.

>>3794022
Good night, anon. Sleep well, and wake refreshed.
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>>3793819

On this, >>3794019 we can agree. I feel like for once I actually contributed to a round.
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(Gentlemen, I'm finishing out the work day, so I shall resume writing when I get back home and shall post as soon as I am able. I hope your day is going well, and take care.)
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(Gentlemen, I'm terribly sorry but I am afraid I will have to pause here for the evening. I just got back home from work far later than expected, and after this weekend I need to try and get an early night's rest. I shall update tomorrow morning at 9:00 AM Eastern time, and my sincerest apologies for not being able to share the news sooner given the situation at work. I hope you had a good day, and I shall see you all in the morning.)
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>>3794401

Something something something we all understand and will wish you to take care of yourself.
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>>3794401
hey, we understand. you have a good nights sleep BHOP, and thanks for trying your best and at least letting us know. i look forward to tomorrow, though will not lie, this fights making me nervous. i think we can do it, but really it'll depend on if we can actually get these Frost stacks off of us. (Worse Case Dorian does have his slouch, but thats very last resort due to losing all his armor doing it. better than being frozen though, just hope it wont come to that.)
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>>3794412
(I appreciate that, greatly. I kept trying to get everything in order when I got home, but I know if I'd push myself it would just result in some silly mistakes and that's something I don't wish to have happen.)

>>3794407
(This made me chuckle, I'll admit. Thank you for understanding.)
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>>3794401
No worries, BHOP. We understand, you've had a long day and you deserve to get some rest. Go get some sleep, man.
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>>3794412
also, thinking about it, very odd it was so focused on going for Dorian. id say him being liquid made it hope to freeze him sooner, but it really doesn't seem like it made much actual progress there. but i also cant see anything in his profile it might be afraid of, unless it has a very strong weakness to lightning damage and could smell that. granted its liquid(ish) so maybe, but i feel like if its clever enough to know that much it would also know he doesn't have space to make use of that. or maybe it can just 'smell' he has lightning damage and doesn't know how. im unsure simply brainstorming here.

>>3794428
hey, you're learning! good on you BHOP!
please know this is meant fully as a joke and nothing serious, just incase it comes off wrong.
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>>3794438
(Ha, it's thanks to you all that I'm starting to learn my limits. No offense taken, it made me laugh.)
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>>3794438
I have two theories on that.

Theory One: The Remnant can sense that Shu and November both have defenses against thermal attacks. Shu only has resistance against heat, but even that might be enough for it to shy away from tackling her first. So it goes after Dorian because it knows that he's the most vulnerable to it and wants to cut our action economy down by taking out a party member.

Theory Two: It's afraid of his ability to conjure bloodlings. That's a big thermal mass, if he swamps the Remnant it will cool down and get a lot weaker. It's possible that cooling it might not just remove the burning touch but also shrink it in proportion to how heating it makes it grow. So it targets Dorian to keep us from cooling it and removing a lot of its powers.
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>>3794508
im unsure. on the second, it burned through his paintlings so fast that it seems odd it would consider them an issue. i suppose it could be worried about being overwhelmed but it wasnt a small amount we threw at it and it basically just ignored them. if its worried about that Shu and her Banelings would be a bigger target, as we're easily keeping its phantoms at bay while having more to spare melting it down, which hasnt been the most effective but clearly can work on it.

the first works i suppose. that and he has the least cold resistances too, as Shu gets a bit from the Cutis Tractus.
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>Back from work. body is tired, but mind is still active.
>reads update
hmm...figured as much. It does bring to mind a good question: what if we sucked away the heat from the amalgam or make it bleed heat? Think about it. Its amorphous physiology is great for retaining heat, but its gotta retain it with a membrane layer. otherwise it'll spill out all of the heat its absorbed.
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>>3794548
November already got some good, deep gashes into it and it didn't seem to lose any heat at all, so dont think so. it also might be immune to bleed, considering its form.
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>>3794547
Oh, right, I forgot she had cold resistance from the Tractus. So yeah, Shu has cold and heat resistance, November has cold and heat immunity, Dorian is the most vulnerable. That makes sense, then, it's targeting him as the weak party member.

Though I'm not sure on the banelings being a better target if it's worried about losing heat. The acid is hot, it can absorb heat from that. But you are right that the acid should still be considered a big threat to it. It's a bit odd that it's not more worried about that. Given the sort of experience we've been having lately, I half expect it to turn out that its lack of concern is part of some big scheme on its part.

>>3794548
Could be. It's able to cauterize cuts close pretty fast, though, too fast for it to lose much heated fluid. It's not something we can rely on.
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>>3794559
nah, the acid already was being shown to have a good damaging effect on it, and with how the crucible works, we have no reason to believe an anti-heat power can also gain heat stacks from acid, at least not just because thats what would happen in the old world. the crucibles doe not care for the rules of old, remember? its acid damage, unless the ability specifically absorbs both, acid is good against it as we have seen, and can tell, by this point at least.

hell without more data, for all we know its growth isnt even related to heat. i mean, it probably is, but for all we know its just pumping raw biomass into its form for a size upgrade.
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>>3794551
>>3794559
damn. Point still stands, everyone should be bathed in heated acid in order to combat the frost build-up. we can't really afford to "test" the idea out since it's either we go all-in on the idea or everyone freezes.

I've also noticed that Shu accured Freeze stacks despite not getting into melee range, therefore the hound's frost ability is a Phantasmal Conduit/Generator hybrid ability. It's a passive aura that produces frost and freeze stacks by the passive aura it radiates.

The other issue that I'm taking with the fact that it's targeting Dorian's paintlings is because the hound used an ability to vanish from our sight. If we can tag a paintling on the Hound, then we should be able to keep track of it regardless if it goes invisible.

Another observation: It used the heat stored inside to flash boil Dorian's Paintlings. So the heat it absorbs is also a resource pool of the Amalgams. It can't generate heat because of its frost gimmick, it can only absorb and store it away. That's why everything around it is so cold. It sucks the heat away so it can store it for later combat use. And when it does, it can use the stored heat as a combat resource.

And given the fact that you pointed out that the heat absorption goes by the ME kinetic shield rules, why not use Terraforming to attack it with random spikes?

We should also take advantage of the Margrave Sword's ability to mark an ally as November's Ward.
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>>3794579
theres nothing to terraform, remember?

also, a decent amount of thats already on the plan we have so far agreed to, if you, you know, actually go and read it.
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>>3794578
>nah, the acid already was being shown to have a good damaging effect on it, and with how the crucible works, we have no reason to believe an anti-heat power can also gain heat stacks from acid, at least not just because thats what would happen in the old world. the crucibles doe not care for the rules of old, remember? its acid damage, unless the ability specifically absorbs both, acid is good against it as we have seen, and can tell, by this point at least.
It managed to absorb heat from one of the Banelings exploding, though. I think our flaming acid is close enough to normal physics that the heat absorption can target it. It's just that the effect of the acid is still enough for it to hurt the dog.

>hell without more data, for all we know its growth isnt even related to heat. i mean, it probably is, but for all we know its just pumping raw biomass into its form for a size upgrade.
Possibly. I've got a theory that the growth is actually related to heat management instead of being a direct result of absorbing heat, but that needs more evidence for me to be confident about it.

>>3794579
We are using the acid to try to melt the Frost stacks off, don't worry. As for terraforming, there's sadly not much biomass in this area, it's all been killed off by the cold.
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>>3794609
the explosion actually has heat damage too it though, so that makes sense. the acid on its own does not.

though, with ironblood you are right, i forgot we have that. but thats not it absorbing the acid even if it is that, but the fire on it. you're still thinking too close to home, despite that already biting us in the ass once, which id like to avoid again thank you very much.

>>3794462
BHOP, is there any way if we can tell if our acid was doing more damage than it was absorbing from it lighting on fire? or can we produce acid that has Ironblood turned off? if we cant shame that its now biting us in the ass so hard, but fair enough.
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>>3794620
(The acid damage is outpacing the heat regen it's giving the Amalgam.)
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>>3794620
>though, with ironblood you are right, i forgot we have that. but thats not it absorbing the acid even if it is that, but the fire on it. you're still thinking too close to home, despite that already biting us in the ass once, which id like to avoid again thank you very much.
Oh, no, it's not absorbing the acid itself. My apologies if I implied that, it was not the intent. To get back to the original topic, all I meant was that hot acid would be less effective at quenching its heat than blood-temperature...blood. If it was choosing targets on the criteria of "which combatant is most effective at cooling me down", it would still be Dorian. But that would require it to ignore the other problems that being doused in acid causes it, so thinking about it I'm now more confident in it being the first theory, that it's just targeting him because he has no heat or cold resistance.

>BHOP, is there any way if we can tell if our acid was doing more damage than it was absorbing from it lighting on fire? or can we produce acid that has Ironblood turned off? if we cant shame that its now biting us in the ass so hard, but fair enough.
Here's hoping.
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>>3794587
Read your plan, looks solid but I have a few points of contention/critiques.

First off it's gonna go for Dorian no matter what. It's used about 2 actions for its main body to attempt to attack Dorian Twice.

Second....hold the phone. I just had an idea.

>>3794624
Instead of splashing acid onto its body, what if we injected the acid directly into its body?
IronBlood Brood's napalm effect triggers when it's in open air remember? so if we inject the acid inside the body where there's no oxygen or air, then the fire damage won't proc.
bhop, would the above work in order to circumvent Ironblood Brood's augmentation effect? Is it possible to toggle on/off the augmentation or do we have to figure out a workaround?

So Stun the amalgam, have the Banelings swarm and latch onto the amalgam and then inject acid enmasse.
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>>3794624
>>3794627
kickass, whew, thank fuck for that. otherwise this could've gone badly. still might get it Heat STACKS which isnt good, but the acid clearly had a good effect on it, so i think if we can get it on the Hound in a large enough sum it will still be worth the trade off for sure. i suppose then its only a matter of that 'if we can get enough on it' as i said, but, so far we have outpaced its own constructs pretty heavily so im willing to think we can.
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>>3794628
its not going to ignore a direct threat to itself especially with Dorian being so heavily guarded now. plus, with the stun, it very likely wont matter. i mean, it might be able to resist it, but still.

even moreso, if its dumb enough to go for the same target again i very much think our action economy already has that easily taken into account to block it.
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>>3794628
also also, banelings are already sending half to help attack it anyways.
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>>3794628
(While you cannot turn it off, the injection method would work well. The Amalgam's swarm has been torn apart by melee attacks from your brood fairly quickly.)
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>>3794634
Thank you very much for the information.

>>3794632
you didn't specify if it was by splashing it with flaming acid or injecting it with regular acid.

Fair point on the fact that the general order has been given, but the devil is in the detail.

Given the fact that Frost doggo is super fast and can go invisible, we need a window of opportunity to have it hold still in order to pull off the mass inject and Macro-shell bombardment, hence why I'm advocating for the stun.
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>>3794646
and for all we know it can melt our Banelings if they get close, before they get to inject. i left it open ended for a very good reason, so they can attack it however they get an opportunity, instead of being forced into a method that very easily could not work.
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>>3794662
fair enough. Do you think we should have November activate the Jester's mask in order to fire off the Kaiser Flare first?
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>>3794692
depends on if you think our plan will go according to plan well enough to be worth another 5% of her total Health cap. i, of course, think the plan will work well enough to be worth it and has enough avenues covered to work well enough even if things dont go perfectly, but another 5% total health cap drop? unsure. our plans never go perfectly so all depends on how well you think it will go.
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>>3794692
I actually think getting the Kaiser Flare off immediately might be counterproductive. We want the Remnant to take the bait Shu is presenting, if it's blind it will be more likely to thrash about instead of target the person we intend it to. Let's wait until after Shu has stabbed it for it to be blinded, which will play well with immediately taking advantage of its sensory disorientation to throw it up in the air.
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>>3794711
also a good point. So, what I'm understanding is that we need to present Shu as the next most vulnerable target for Frost Wolf.
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>>3794719
The question is, how are we supposed to convince the wolf to go after Shu...
...Wait.

Do we happen to have that barbeque sauce bottle relic on us?
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>>3795114
While im laughing my ass off (at 2:30am no less), and im sure BHOP would let us decide where it is, besides any guesses to if that would actually work im sure and positive we can do this without wasting the useful and limited use relic.
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>>3795114
This gave me a good laugh
But I think you saw too many Saturday morning cartoons

I don't think it would work on an Amalgam due to the pure fact they don't really have a sense of taste(they are least wouldn't really need one except for bitter). A daughter could maybe be convinced by the smell sure(My guess is that Gina would love to help clean up Shu, should she make a mess of herself)

But we don't want to advertise Shu as a tasty snack that has already prepared herself for consumption
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>>3795222

Besides Gina already considers Shu a tasty enough snack.
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>>3793819

November's chestplate blooms, and you have to shield your eyes as the room becomes washed out in a tide of pure white. Switching your Dominus from health to biomass, you’re stunned at the sudden and powerful influx of regeneration that siphons into you from your blinded foe as you interpose yourself between it and Dorian, your second tether bolstering his regeneration.

Banelings dart forward on silent wings, tearing into the Remnant's constructs with abandon as it hurtles forward in its mad, sightless charge. While one Baneling tries in vain to keep the encroaching frost at bay, another six Parabellum rounds slide home in the Contender as you charge to meet your foe, a hefty, shield-shaped broodling matching your movements two meters to your right. Heedless of what comes between it and its prey the Amalgam lunges, sinking suddenly-formed fangs into the chitin of the Rook that now occupies the space where you once were as you bury the Contender deep within the writhing neck of the Remnant.

It would fight you, if it were able to move at all.

Body pulsing with amethyst, it's helpless as you rake your armored fingers over your weapon's hammer, sending all six Parabellum rounds screaming into your target. November darts forward on ivory wings of thruster flame, bringing her gauntlets down repeatedly on the Amalgam’s snout and chest as electricity arcs through its seizing form. Dorian joins her in the melee, your allies mirroring each other as they give a final, savage double-uppercut that the beast flying skyward as you stand in awe of November’s peerless form, your impression of their skill taking a backseat to the creeping realization that you feel working its way into your very bones.

The frost is getting worse.

>>[5/10 Stacks; -1 ACT/Round + Movement Halved]

Dorian's fluid form is sluggish, straining to keep moving at the speeds he's used to as the ice slows his actions to a fraction of their original pace. He’s barely able to pull you and Novembers back, his threads stiffening mid-air even as the Amalgam reaches its peak when the cannon fire sounds across the resort. The shell simply stops against the creature as it hits the floor in a heap, the round cracking into the floor harmlessly beside it as the stored kinetic energy makes its form shudder and shake as it struggles to half-formed legs.

It’s barely keeping itself together…but as you feel the frost working its way through you, you know time’s a luxury neither of you have.


HP: 1210% (+105% [Dominus: Amalgam/Dorian], Tractus, HALO: Primed, FREEZE: 7/10 Stacks)
BIO: 1280% (+490%, 2x Double-Knighted-Nomlings, 1 Subversive Jackling, 1x Rook, 3x Knightlings, 23x Banelings, 30/30)
CONTENDER: Empty
RAVENOUS MAW: Primed
HUNDRED-HANDED: 0
ACT: 2/3

DORIAN HP: 960% (353%, Interitus, Caelorum, Gutgrab, HALO: Primed, [ELEC STACKS: 1] FREEZE: 8/10 Stacks)
NOVEMBER HP: 2420% (+200%, FREEZE: 6/10 Stacks)

Threat: Medium. B.33 x6, detonation in 1 turn.

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two hours.)
>>
>>3795325
BHOP, shouldn't the BBs be going off now? it was two turns last round, but striking the Hound with the Contender should've taken one round off, meaning it should be this turn, no?
>>
>>3795327
(Good eye, and the fact it didn't indicates that it has a passive ability that's fighting your efforts to speed it up. It has a number of anti-stack/timer powers that wouldve become more apparent and troublesome had Julia encountered this particular foe.)
>>
>>3795330
alright.
not happy about it but alright.

hrm... so folks im thinking, like most things, these frost stacks are not coming off. like most abilities, it seems like they are simply an ability, irremovable except of counters. which is bad, very bad. luckily, Shu and November have decent ACT counts and Dorian has a work around.
>>
>>3795330
oh, and you didnt list the Parabellums on the 'Threat'. that a mistake or did they just burn up inside of it?
>>
>>3795339
(They're still in there, I just ran out of space for the post, which happens more than I'd like. They are still active and doing considerable damage.)
>>
>>3795342
alright cool. thats at least one good thing going on.
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>>3795335
I'm not liking this. We need to retreat and find a way to lower or remove those freeze stacks.

Those freeze stacks function similar to Julia's Rigor Dermis Augmentation. But it's in the form of an aura.
We're past 5 stacks, if we hit 10 stacks we're dead meat. We can't move unless we apply fire/heat based abilities on ourselves in order to thaw ourselves.

And we simply cannot ignore it. Ignoring it is a fucking death sentence if that Frost encroachment hits 10 stacks because hitting 10 stacks means Shu, Dorian and November will be completely frozen, unable to act and move. And the Amalgam will likely kill everyone with a slow death or simply shattering our frozen statues. And we can't counter-crit if we're frozen despite the halo.

I'm thinking that we should shower our party members in heated acid in order to reduce the freeze stack. One baneling won't cut it. I'm thinking about 6 banelings per person and showering them in enough heated acid that despite the acid, the flame would reduce the freeze stacks..

>>3795342
Did the baneling acid slow down the Freeze stack encroachment?
>>
>>3795322
>Switching your Dominus from health to biomass, you’re stunned at the sudden and powerful influx of regeneration that siphons into you from your blinded foe
Ha, I knew this thing's energy requirements must be huge. That's some slight bit of vindication, knowing that it's not actually cheating thermodynamics, it just looks like it is.

>The shell simply stops against the creature as it hits the floor in a heap, the round cracking into the floor harmlessly beside it as the stored kinetic energy makes its form shudder and shake as it struggles to half-formed legs.
Ah, so it's not a matter of mass and speed, but just speed? The slow blade penetrates the shield? Thank god the Kaiser Flare isn't more focused, then.

Okay, I have a question: What is the Remnant's current size and surface temperature? Has damaging it and taking out half its energy regen forced it to cool and/or shrink in response?

>>3795335
I think it's less that they're irremovable and more that we just couldn't safely bring enough heat. If we doused ourselves in flame, I think we'd be fine. Regardless, it doesn't matter, we need to kill this thing fast. It's possible that we can outlast it, that the B.33s going off and Parabellums eating into its flesh will kill it even if we freeze, and then we'll be able to unthaw on our own time. But let's not count on it.
>>
>>3795346
(I'm afraid the acid was ineffective, as it's been able to close the gap and get close to keep you in the aura's range.)
>>
>>3795350
(The Remnant has not been able to divert any more BIO to bolstering it's stats, as it's been unable to accumulate more heat due to damage and Paintlings.)
>>
>>3795350
I'm not risking it. We can keep it busy with Banelings and paintlings and long range bombardment while it's blind. for the following round, but those Freeze stacks need to be reduced. We need to get out of Frost aura range now and dethaw asap.
>>
>>3795360
>use your Slouching Armor to remove the Frost Stacks from yourself.
>Pump 150% Health into speed and 150% Health into Strength.
Aren't these contradictory orders, given that using Sloughing Armor will remove the Interitus?
>>
>>3795354
Is the Freeze stacks a subcutaneous debuff?
>>
>>3795363
fuck yeah i forgot about that stupid shit. still, having him not freeze solid is worth it and hes fast enough on his own.
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>>3795322
Orders;

Shu;
>Have the Rook fall back and Primed as a safeguard.
>Have your Banelings Swarm the Hound. Swarm it, try and not just inject acid, but chew its limbs off and bite into its neck.
>Load up 6 Fullbores and be prepared for your opening.
>Wait til it takes the bait against either Ally, then activate the Stun and unload the Contender into it.
>Then, Try and use the Maw to get around your frost and drag yourself to it to bite it apart.
>If it goes for you, then simply you are the bait. Teleport with the rook and then as above.


Dorian;
>use your Slouching Armor to remove the Frost Stacks from yourself.
>Protect November while she opens up with a heavy net of Threads, while slowly spawning a blender of scythe blades.
>If it takes the bait, simply focus on making sure your Threads punish it for going for November.
>If it does not take the bait, Whether you or another target, rush it With Inspired Critic form, intercepting its route dig your Daggers, Scythes and Threads into it to try and hold it still for your allies.


November;
>Take a risk, be bait. Open up your forge core and pump to get heat out. While seeing if this will melt the Frost stacks isn't a bad idea, the main goal it to try and act as bait, see if the Heat draws it in.
>Have the Mask Primed for your Initiative burst.
>If it takes the Bait, use your Initiative bonus to time its charge so you can pin it through with sword and spear alike.
>If it refuses the bait, Get the spear ready to spear it through, using a Nova Lunge to slam into the thing once you see an opening.
>>
>>3795365
If our insides were freezing I think we'd be in a way worse position than we are right now. That would be dealing heavy damage, not just slowing us down.
>>
>>3795360
The Canine is still blind for this turn so it'll still be stumbling along blind with a severe accuracy debuff.
>>
>>3795377
im not seeing anything saying that.
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>>3795382
I think that might just be BHOP running out of space like with the Parabellums. Kaiser Flare lasts for two rounds, three at very close range. Maybe it's recovered faster thanks to some ability we don't know about, but unless it has it should be blind for at least this next round.
>>
>>3795377
>>3795384
ah, yeah just read it. to be fair the flare has never lasted more than one turn and im not going to trust our luck that it will this time.
>>
>>3795384
>>3795377
>>3795387
(Amusingly, this foe is actually one of the few yoyve used the Flare on that doesn't have a way to ensure it can see or have another sense to fall back on. As such, it's still blinded.)
>>
>>3795387
It hasn't? I don't think we've used it that much, just here and against Lepisma, and Lepisma managed to block her eyes. When else have we used the Kaiser Flare?
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>>3795382
why did you bamboozle me?

>>3795372
Having November open up her forge core to vent the heat? Too risky. It would give the Amalgam a big power boost if November can't parry/riposte its charge. I'd rather have November go through an acid bath to melt the ice. And besides the Freeze stacks seem surface level unless bhop says the Freeze Stacks aren't.

>>3795352
Bhop. I'm still waiting for your answer on the specifics of the Freeze stacks. Are the freeze stacks surface level or is it a deep freeze down to the bones? Because This will decide whether or not we should retreat to remove the freeze debuff or keep fighting.
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>>3795392
nah, we've used once or twice before then. but just like BHOP said here
>>3795391
its never lasted more than at best part of the same turn we used it, so while not useless its not super memorable.

>>3795394
we already know the Acid wont work. literally the enitre point is to protect November if it goes for her with basically everything. shes bait, bait comes with risk.
>>
>>3795394
(It's a deep freeze, meaning it can only be avoided by moving and staying out of range of the field. Surface level attempts to remove it won't work, much like Julia's stacks. Just as there's no way to remove them except by a status removal power, there's no way to remove these unless you stay out of range. The power's considerably low stack cap comes at a cost.)
>>
>>3795391
>>3795403
alright. i kinda need confirmation because what you just said might change things drastically.

when you say 'or have another sense to fall back on', do you actually mean that? no hearing? no smelling? no weird emphatic emotional aura or ground based movement radar? or are you just doing wordplay and still only mean to say its just blinded, no eyes but other senses?
>>
>>3795406
(Ah, I revealed my hand a bit unintentionally. It's purely visual, I'm afraid...a necessary weakness in a kit that's quite powerful. You'll notice it hasn't resumed it's charge, and for good reason. It's waiting for something to go on, so it didn't use its remaining actions in an effort to wait for you.)
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>>3795395
>nah, we've used once or twice before then. but just like BHOP said here
If you say so. I can't think of who we would have had the chance to use it against, though, November hasn't been around that long. B'Ni, I guess.

>>3795403
Oh. I assumed it was just surface build-up, since freezing our internals should cause a lot of damage from cell walls lyzing and what not. Unless our bodily fluids vitrify instead of crystallize. Does Daughter blood include cryoprotectants?
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>>3795322
Shu:
>ALL HANDS RETREAT. GET OUT OF ITS AURA RANGE NOW
>Divert 12 banelings, to showering Shu and Dorian in a fiery acid bath. The rest of the banelings are to be injecting acid into the Amalgam and harassing it with melee.

November
>ALL HANDS RETREAT. GET OUT OF ITS AURA RANGE NOW
>Heat up your forge core and your body temperature, try to get rid of the freeze stacks.


DORIAN
>ALL HANDS RETREAT. GET OUT OF ITS AURA RANGE NOW


>>3795403
>>3795406
YUP. I KNEW IT. this is bad. We need to get out of there now or else we're done for.

>>3795411
This is even more ominous.
>>3795414
I do have a thought. what if it has a mechanism that allows it to absorb kinetic energy and store it.
>>
>>3795414
(It does, yes. It's to help prevent extreme temperatures from killing Daughters in odd places, mostly. Freezing to death or succumbing to heat isn't an end the Crucible promotes...it's a rather boring one narratively, in any case.)
>>
>>3795411
im... still confused? you sound like you're giving both answers here BHOP. just... does it have other senses right now to go on or not?
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>>3795422
Makes sense, the Crucible wouldn't want people dying in ways that don't lead to them being eaten by something. We've probably got a lot of subtle preservation mechanisms, don't we? Neat.
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>>3795419
BHOP already said Acid wont work or remove stacks. all you're doing is wasting Banelings.

you're panicking for no reason, its almost dead. Dorian can remove the stacks from himself. Its blinded at the very least, all running will do is give it a target(if it does have other senses).

look,
>It’s barely keeping itself together…
ITs very clearly close to death. also, we have NO idea how far the aura goes, we were feeling this all the way out on the beach, that could mean at the very least we wont lose stacks that far out. not to mention, we have limited movement speed. if we want to live, we KILL this thing now, with all we got, if we run now all we do is freeze to death instead.
>>
>>3795425
(It has no other base sense other than sight, and it's currently completely blinded by the Flare. Apologies for the confusion!)
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>>3795431
>you're panicking for no reason, its almost dead. Dorian can remove the stacks from himself.
No, he can't. BHOP just said that it's not a surface condition, we have to just stay out of the field and thaw out normally. We can retreat and try to fight it at range, or we can kill it fast, either way we need to get rid of the field as a factor.
>>
>>3795446
Dorian can remove both Topical and Subcutaneous alike, she can still remove them.
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>>3795455
It's a deep freeze. Yeah, Dorian can shed his dermis and his hypodermis, but the rest of him is still freezing.
>>
>>3795403
>>3795455
>>3795459
lets just put the matter to rest.
BHOP will Slouching Armor work here? it says both Subcutaneous and Topical, and in the quoted post you gave a sorta double meaning again. you said surface level cannot remove, but Dorian can remove non surface level too. its also a status removal power, which you did say can work.
>>
>>3795461
>>3795455
>>3795459
(I was actually just working on a reply to this. To clarify; Sloughing Armor CAN clear all Frost Stacks. What I meant by saying it was 'subcutaneous' was to prevent you from wasting Banelings' efforts in removing the Stacks when such a thing wasn't possible, but I should've clarified further. My apologies.)
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>>3795470
Huh. Alright, then. So it's not a completely deep freeze, yet, and hasn't penetrated past the fat layer. Okay, great. Let's flay our man Dorian, then.
>>
>>3795470
thank you for the reply.

>>3795459
>>3795419
the things weak. its blinded. its WAITING on us to do something like try and run away and give our position away, while we cannot run away properly due to lowered Acts AND movement speed. Dorian can clear his stacks. Shu and November are at a precarious point but have a round to spare. our best bet is to use its blindness to draw it in, Use Dorians ability to reset his status and move freely protect those who cant move as fast and kill the thing on our terms.

>>3795477
im not sure thats the wording id use. is it a flaying? hes liquid, so its more of... gooping out the corrupted layer, or something.
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>>3795479
>im not sure thats the wording id use. is it a flaying? hes liquid, so its more of... gooping out the corrupted layer, or something.
The right word is actually in the ability's name. Sloughing. Dead tissue half decaying, half peeling, all coming off in a big mass. It's going to look nasty.
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>>3795470
one last thing. is November capable of tossing the Spear with enough force to have a good impact? i know that CAN be done but i dont think November has tried or if she is strong enough.
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>>3795492
(Yes, she is.)
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>>3795322
>>3795372
sorta edits/amendments to Orders;

Shu;
>Have the Rook fall back and Primed as a safeguard.
>Have your Banelings Swarm the Hound. Swarm it, try and not just inject acid, but chew its limbs off and bite into its neck.
>Load up 6 Fullbores and be prepared for your opening.
>Stay Still Stay Silent, let November work her magic.
>Wait til it takes the bait against either Ally, then activate the dominous stun and unload the Contender into it.
>Then, Try and use the Maw to get around your frost and drag yourself to it to bite it apart.
>If it goes for you, then simply you are the bait. Teleport with the Rook and then as above.


Dorian;
>use your Slouching Armor for 50% Bio to remove the Frost Stacks from yourself.
>Protect November while she opens up with a heavy net of Threads, while slowly spawning a blender of scythe blades.
>Stay Still Stay Silent.
>when it charges, focus on making sure November is Protected, but otherwise move to intercept the Hound with Inspired Critic Form, and pin and slash it down with Daggers, Threads, and Scythes alike, everything you got to give your allies the time they need to react and keep it further from them.


November;
>Take a risk, be bait. Open up your forge core and pump to get heat out. see if the Heat draws it in. otherwise, give the ground a hard stomp and let out a battle cry to try and draw it in.
>Have the Mask Primed for your Initiative burst.
>If it does get drawn in, be prepared to pin it down if it gets past Dorian, otherwise, once Dorian intercepts it, Toss the spear into the bastard, then immediately recall it to tear it to shreds.


>>3795507
awesome.
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>>3795511
>>3795507
I just had a thought. If Francine modified Etain's frame to be as energy efficient as possible, would it be possible for November to redirect spare forge power into excess body heat to combat the frost? We can shut down the power diverted to the Adrenal Nail in order to get more heat produced to reduce the frost stacks.

Because if we're continuing this fight to finish off the Frost wolf, and it seems like it then we'll need to make the most use out of November and Shu as much as possible before one or both of them completely freeze.

It also gives me a thought, if Shu's completely frozen, would Shu still be able to command the swarmlings that have been already fielded/deployed?
>>
>>3795511
>Stay Still Stay Silent.
I'm pretty sure that's what's going on in Fleshscape Scandinavia.
>>
>>3795527
(Any active Swarmlings would continue to fight, but could not receive additional commands.)

(Also, Etain will get a power in line with that sooner rather than later either through a Forge upgrade or Relic.)
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>>3795537
probably. i mean fuck the Fleshscape likes to make amalgams based off myths and folklore, and theres some very unfun things to draw from in those countries.
its also a reference to something that the monsters at least from it fit this astetic very well.
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>>3795322
Final amendment to my vote

Shu:
>Do what you can, lay on as much damage as possible. Fuse 7 banelings into a knightling, load up 6 fullbores and then fan the hammer into the Amalgam.
>Send all Banelings, Nomlings, and Knightlings set to all out attack on the Amalgam. Have the Rook primed to teleport with this command set: [If Shu's body is about to be attacked by Amalgam, Initiate Teleport swap with Shu.]
>If Freeze stacks reach 10 leave this message to Dorian: [I've hit my limit. This is the most I can do before the Frost freezes me completely. I'm counting on you and November to finish this.]

Dorian:
>Sloughing Armor, remove freeze stacks, shed armor. gain one more act.
>Inspired Critic. Spend as much health as you can in your inspired Critic attacks and lay on as much damage as you can.

November:
>Fire the Dainsleif and pin the amalgam down, then Recall it.
>Then Flarestep and Impale the amalgam with the dainsleif.
>Then use the sword to chop it. Deal as much damage as possible while it's still blind.

Will Shu still be able to give empathetic commands or is she unable to do anything because she's completely frozen.
>>
>>3795554
>>3795322
Another amendment:
>Extend the message of leaving the situation into November and Dorian's hands also to November. Let her know that Shu's about to freeze completely and that she has complete trust in them and that they know what to do.
>>
>>3795554
>>3795558
yeah, still sticking with my own plan. this one feels way too much like it relies on the thing doing absolutely nothing or not falling back when it feels overwhelming power coming at it all at once. baiting the enemy will work better than relying on it just throwing attacks at the wall as it was and seeing what sticks.
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>>3795561
Yeah, I'm inclined towards baiting it, too. We're missing a lot of our usual battlefield control methods, we can't rely on the thing standing still. Need to formalize the vote, though.

>>3795322
Supporting >>3795511

So, anyways, after this fight want to end the hunting expedition? We'll have gotten a pretty good haul for a day's work, already we've acquired thirty-eight levels worth of biomass and this thing should probably be worth at least another four, plus whatever (if any) can be scavenged from the ice sculptures. Six levels each, at minimum, that's not bad. Throw in the four Relics we picked up and the possibility that the Remnant is guarding something in particular instead of just being territorial and I think we'll be at a decent point to stop. Maybe talk to the Ant Queen again if she's ready for it by the time we're done, but otherwise I think we should head home.
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>>3795575
lets not count our chickens before they hatch, but considering this fight especially, yeah i think our hunting teams been through enough honestly, if nothing else. plus we seem to have cleared the area out... or well, cleared or befriended the area. id be nice to hunt more but at this point i think all three of our current team deserve a break. a 'simple hunting expedition' this was not, not at all. im surprised Shu isnt mentally screaming loud enough for the others to just hear in in passing by this point honestly.

id love it if the Ant Queen was ready to talk to us, but thats up to her not us.
>>
(Writing now, Gentlemen. I have the sneaking suspicion my lunch is going to get interrupted shortly, but I'll post as soon as I am able.)
>>
>>3795595
We've done a lot considering we're working with a smaller party than usual. We've fought a pretty tough Daughter, negotiated with the Queen of the Pyre Ants, briefly hunted a tiger, and then fought this bastard. It's time we let the party take a break. We'll kick back, absorb the flesh of numerous monstrosities, tell everyone about Ambassador FuzzBuzz, and then share various information that's been gathered. Tell the rest of the party about Yurei's offer, hear what they learned from the Amara Investigation Team, consider our options moving forward. We've got Yurei, Francine's plan for dealing with the Wests that we still need to address, and whatever new plot threads the team has uncovered. Plenty of things to pursue.
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>>3795612
well, id say dont let us interrupt your lunch, but it sounds like a worse fate might await ya, heh.
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>>3795612
My condolences for the impending interruption.
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>>3795612
oh dear. I wonder what is the dice table for random office encounters then... Don't let it keep you. And don't let us keep you.
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>>3795615
yeah, im actually really looking forward to what the research team may of learned. i mean, ive got a suspicions its not gonna at all be pretty, at least some of it, but still, in a way knowing something bad is out there/ going on is a good thing, better than being blindsided all the time at least. hopefully it wasn't all bad though and they got at least some fun out of the experience.
>>
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>>3795322

November exposes her radiant Forge core a second time, pouring out heat to try and draw the blinded beast’s attention. It remains still as your Rook falls back and you load another six Fullbores into the Contender’s waiting chambers, while November takes a slightly different approach to garnering the Amalgam’s attention. She roars, stamping her feet on the ground as the creature’s muzzle aggressively points towards her, and in an instant it’s started to charge. Behind November Dorian’s armor clatters to the floor, followed by a sizable amount of scarlet flesh that sloughs off onto the Relic as the artists shakes his limbs experimentally, finding them freed from the frost in time to put your plan into motion.

It’s the Amalgam’s turn to freeze mid-leap when it slams into November’s armbar, the Jester-enhanced clothesline coming out with the force of a gunshot and sending the hound cartwheeling through the air. Your stun echoes through the Dominus, and with your last ounce of movement you empty the Contender into the beast as it collapses on the floor, and your body seizes up entirely as you watch Dorian and November unleash their fury on your helpless foe.

>>[SHU: FROZEN. -4 ACT, Stunned]

November leaps back, hurling the Dainsleif at the Amalgam with terrible strength, pinning it to the floor and allowing Dorian to close the gap. It occurs to you that all too often the artist works on the fringes, darting to and fro and robbing you of the chance to really, truly see what he brings to the table. Now, with your eyes frozen open, you get to witness the resplendent beauty and horror that is Dorian at work.

The man practically unfurls as he falls upon the creature, the Dainsleif tearing itself free to return to its owner’s waiting grip as Dorian’s body erupts into a bloody storm of scythes and strings. It’s a whirlwind of carnage as the beast tries to freeze him, spawn constructs to stop him, or simply move…but it’s all in vain. Wires lacerate, electricity hisses, and the jagged blades that are Dorian’s fingers shear the Remnant to pieces before your very eyes until there’s little more than slivers of cooling biomass left, the coherent being that was whole a mere three seconds before now reduced to nothing. You draw a rasping breath, your faculties restored upon the creature’s demise as Dorian’s form returns to that of a caring gentleman, as opposed to the hellion he was only moments before.

“Miss Shu, are you alright?” He asks frantically, his gentle, worried tone at stark odds with his visceral method of death dealing. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m…I’m fine.” You reply with a weak smile, just as pleased to be thawed as you are to have this man on your side.

>>[COMBAT: Ceased]

>>[8 LEVEL-UP POINTS ADDED TO POOL]

(Continued)
>>
>>3795804

The chill’s still leaving your system as you take stock of the situation. The Metall Geschoss remains blessedly unassailed, and through your Swarmling scouts you feel the temperature of the area increase to more reasonable levels. After a good ten minutes of examination November just starts punching the walls, and on the sixth punch her brutal efforts yield fruit. Tearing away at the shorn wallpaper and rotting wood, she reveals a simple pair of items resting in a walled-off room. The child’s bedroom is filled with a thick layer of dust, everything in the room choked with biomass or degraded beyond recognition…but a single teddy bear and a simple book remain conspicuously untouched by the Crucible.

Though perhaps not as untouched as they seem.

>>AFFECTION’S ANCHOR: This Relic, despite bearing the visage of a faded, well-loved teddy bear, is in fact an invaluable tool for a Phantasmal Conduit of any caliber. Instead of attuning to a waking individual, this Relic may be permanently bound to a Dream Daughter instead, granting any constructs that the Dream Daughter is placed in a considerable boost in all stats and ensuring that they remain immune to all status ailments and unable to be turned against the user. What’s more, the Daughter to whom this Relic is bound no longer has any risk of being deleted or lost, and upon the death of the waking Daughter she is bound to the Dream Daughter is instead locked safely within the bear, surviving deletion. (RELIC: Unattuned and Empty. Free Slot: Grants one additional Death Saving Throw. Also, the Dream Daughter bound to this Relic grants November a HEALTH bonus equal to DOUBLE that of her Core power’s HEALTH stat.)

>>PANDORIC SCRIPT (Consumable): A small ledger filled with indecipherable and child-like writing, this unreadable script must be read cover-to-cover in order to have any effect, and the writing disappears once this process is complete. The Daughter whose mind has been exposed to the Script has their intentions and aims rendered unreadable by any and all sources, with attempts to invade or read the user’s mind rendered completely ineffective. Additionally, any power that would reveal the reader’s combat intent is instead fooled into thinking the user will do the opposite, drastically increasing the success of the reader’s actions against the offending foe if such a technique is used.

“A creepy doll and a madman’s scribbles.” Dorian mutters, eyebrow cocked as he looks to you with a grin. “Like I said…spooky.”

You pocket the items as November gathers the Amalgam’s remains, and you decide where to go from here after another successful hunt.

>>Return home to rest and review your spoils of a hunt well done.

>>Swing back by the Pyreant Hive and see if their Queen is ready to talk.

>>Continue the hunt. The chill in your bones is fading, and despite everything that’s happened you’re not really all that worse for wear.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for the next two hours.)

(So, a quick primer regarding Stacks along with the whys and hows of their workings; Stacks are potent things, and are one of the main methods of tracking some of the more potent status ailments available to Flesh Artisans, Humoral Paladins, and Phantasmal Conduits. In earlier versions of the system I’d allowed different ways to remove stacks, just like how certain positional ailments and the like could be negated, counter-terraforming the ground to free yourself and an ally or tearing projectiles out of oneself, which is still certainly possible.)

(However, by applying this same method of removal to Stacks, I found that it rendered Flesh Artisans and Phantasmal Conduits incredibly under-powered, and Humoral Paladins just became less impressive Calcite Armorers in the long run. Thus, at the same time that Stacks became uniquely unable to be removed through clever ability use, several status-removal and mitigation abilities were worked into the system to simultaneously make Stacks more dangerous and less-easily removed, while still offering a plethora of ways to work against them or even turn them into buffs, shuffle stacks from one type to another, and a host of other tactical interactions.)

(Just thought you’d like to know, to help explain the previous fight and have a better idea of how to deal with such threats as they come in the future.)
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>>3795814
>>Return home to rest and review your spoils of a hunt well done.

>When we arrive home and when Gina and Rath return home have Shu draw them both into a deep hug and go something like "Just stay like this I need to get the cold out of my bones"

>Then tell them off what we have done ande they tell us what they have been up to
>Then a feast

Am this Anon>>3794022 now at the end of my first day of the company trip. Out in the boonies incredibly bad internet and only a phone to write on a great day........ At least my colleagues are nice and the weather good

The Ant Queen can contact us if she is ready to talk
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>>3795814
>Return home to rest and review your spoils of a hunt well done.

Neat relics.

Affection's Anchor...now that would be a good way to give FuzzBuzz an actual personality as well as making a good gift for Amara.

Pandoric script: While it's super useful to prevent our tactics from being discerned, the mindscrambling ability makes it hard for us to decide whom to use it for, not to mention if it has a "double edged sword effect that affects allies, but it's a consumable so we don't know if the effect is permanent after consumption.

>>3795816
So what you're saying is that you're making Stack effects more unique to Flesh Artisans, phantasmal conduits, and Humoral paladins and made them more dangerous and harder to remove (unless we are clever enough to turn them into buffs or counteract them with clever abilities) in order to keep up with the overall power scaling.
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>>3795804
Oh, Dorian, if Shu wasn't gay Julia would have some sharp competition.

>>3795814
Huh. So my guess that the Remnant was once someone's beloved family pet and was acting on repurposed loyalty instincts gets some further evidence. It was just guarding its human's home, waiting for them to return. Well, I feel a little guilty, but the knowledge that it was also a horrifying monster who would probably not have recognized its human and actually attacked them ameliorates that somewhat. Also, that bedroom was boarded up, which makes me think the child was already dead and the family boarded the room up in grief, so I doubt anyone would have come home anyway.

>>AFFECTION’S ANCHOR
Interesting. Something to give to Amara, I suppose, or possibly Francine if we get her a Conduit power off of Lepisma. Though if we did give it to Amara, it would not go over well with FuzzBuzz. "No! I am the fluffy thing she hugs! Get out of here, usurper!"

>>PANDORIC SCRIPT
Well, that's something to give to Shu, immediately. Assuming it doesn't affect allies and the Daughter who's used this is still comprehensible when they want to explain things to their friends or just socially interact. Just to clarify, can we still interact normally when we want to? I'd hate to cripple Shu's communication skills.

>>3795816
That does make sense. If we could undo Stacks so easily a lot of enemies would be far less threatening. I don't think it would actually impact us that much, because all of the Stack abilities we have are pretty difficult to ameliorate with your actions. Like, what action do you take to remove Julia crystallizing your flesh? Bathe in acetone? But yeah, I understand why you'd want that for balancing enemies. I guess Gina just got a lot more valuable, then, with her ability to remove Stacks.
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>>3795834
(Regarding the Pandoric Script; it's effects only apply to foes, so there's nothing double-edged about it. No weird effects, just an incomprehensible mind to those that would bear you ill will.)
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>>3795845
Oh, that's very good, then, definitely give that to Shu. She's our team's tactician, making her incomprehensible makes our whole party harder to predict.
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>>3795839
You're forgetting about Rath.
Rath has the Immutable form ability too, but Rath would primarily use it to render herself Immune to debuffs, although the option to purge other allies of their status effects would make Rath another secondary status healer if Gina isn't available.
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>>3795814
>>Return home to rest and review your spoils of a hunt well done.
We've done enough hunting for now. Six levels each, a few bonus if we want to boost Francine further to get her closer to spec. As for the Queen, we left her a way to communicate and she said she wanted time to think. So let's give her that time to think, she'll contact us when she's ready.

>>3795853
Oh, yeah. But Gina's a lot better at it, Rath needs to have suffered the status effect herself, and be in contact with the person she's curing. Gina can just glance at a party member and remove the negative Stacks on them, very effective.
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>>3795814
IF can be interpreted more as the Queen calling us OR us needing to call her in the first place, as i have no idea if she even knows how to actually use what we left her, then;
>Swing back by the Pyreant Hive and see if their Queen is ready to talk.

otherwise, if its just us or we can infer she actually knows how to properly contact us, dont press the subject, she knows to call us when she is ready, so;
>Return home to rest and review your spoils of a hunt well done.

holy fuck though, that fight, geezus. i woke up and saw the update and thought id overslept to a continued fight for a moment, that wasnt fun.

>>3795816
thanks for letting us know.

>>3795814
>Affections Anchor
neat, but we still are missing the key ingredient to use it.

>Pandoric Script
very good, and the debate on who to put it on will probably be brutal. id say save that for later, honestly.
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(Gentlemen, a question for you; in the interest of voting, would you like to decide in advance which of the three sources of Level-Up Biomass you'd like to use the Sauce on, if any? The vote's not necessarily open now, but I wished to start gathering everything together in advance of the level up decision tonight, since the odds are high that I'll open that vote at some point in the early evening and leave it open until late tomorrow morning, if that suits everyone.)
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>>3795816
i will say though im kinda not a fan of that. having to have a specific ability to counter something, rather than being able to use any other method at all, really is the type of thing i personally dont find enjoyable. it just turns things into too much of a tedious match of counter stacking, and in my personal opinion actually makes such classes always overpowered as all hell, as it really actually forces you to find ant take those specific abilities to counter them.. and then what? you either counter them or you dont. it personally feels like it throws out the point of allowing for creative solutions in exchange for either things like this, where its stupidly tight a time limit to win, and if it had been a daughter who can think? horrible. or... you have a counter to it, and thus basically negate the point of it to a degree, and end up gutting their kit and then them.

allowing for creative solutions to a problem is always better than forcing the only one to be a hard mechanical one. it would've been much better to just make the stacks each individually do a bit more, and other methods (like acid wash or heating ourselves up), be very difficult or even dangerous, and/or only remove so many stacks worth really. force the removal to be a ACT or resource intrusive process, rather then just "do you have a counter ability? no? good luck" or "Do you have a Counter Ability? yes? good luck to them then." honestly i kinda knew it worked like that but was hoping i was wrong. just gotta say its something you've revealed that irks me a bit, because it honestly just makes it to where id prefer to just avoid such abilities all together in either direction now. not in my opinion a fun or exciting way to go about it at all, which is a shame because it seemed like it could go the other direction which would be much much more interesting.

i think another part of the issue is, for Stacks and other abilities impossible to counter with just being smart, even if you're an ass willing to hunt and kill anyone, actually finding the counter ability you need would be difficult and tedious on its own to find and then consume. just feels like it strangles the point of trying to make the system more open ended to letting the players think creatively heavily, in my opinion, and in some ways id argue strangles those classes and abilities too.

>>3795906
that works, though without knowing what abilities are on what, i am unsure anyone will go for the sauce at all. im still of the opinion very few abilities would be worth taking, and ever fewer if any without re configuring builds, so using it would be a good idea i think. Augments have proven to be powerful afterall.

personally i think the mystery meats the best for it, but yeah, its probably best to see what Arbiters shows us first, though id hate to make you do double the work over that.
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>>3795814
>>Return home to rest and review your spoils of a hunt well done.

We've got a number of points we need to spend.

- 24 from Lepisma
- 14 from the meat pile that the Queen gave us
- 8 from the Frost Wolf

That comes to 46 altogether. And this amount of points means only one thing...

A vote marathon.
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>>3795814
Wait, I almost forgot - there are a bunch of frozen daughters in here. BHOP, is it possible for us to investigate the area and see if there's something (or someone) worth noticing?
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>>3795922
Considering that we have a family of 8 and one of them is in a Forge Frame, that leaves us with 7 hungry mouths and 46 level up points to spend.

With the power of Math, that divides to 6 points per person with 4 points left over that will be diverted to Francine so Francine gets 10 points while everyone else gets 6.

And considering that Francine is currently lvl 3 with her core and doesn't have much in the way of a solid kit. This feast will more or less define Francine's overall initial build with her basic kit to compliment her Ditto fighter tactic that is her core.

>>3795927
see >>3793605 to the question posed in >>3793589

>Are the bodys still worth Levels if we kill this thing? Can we potentialy safe some of the Daughters here as dreamdaughters?

>(I'm afraid the remains are quite decayed, and little more than ice fossils in a way.)
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>>3795930
I see, I must have missed that earlier. Thanks for the info.
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>>3795922
otherwise known as, no sleep tonight.

>>3795853
>>3795869
>>3795825
id actually suggest we do Francine first. besides how many we end up giving her to help her catch up setting the precedent for the rest, she also is the only one who outright needs to consume new abilities, so letting her have first pick will help things flow alot better for sure, even if it is mostly an issue with Cores. well, that, and seeing whats best for her, rather than getting stir crazy with the others then leaving her nothing special is also a thing, but mainly with that, it feels like the best and most useful way to actually ensure she fills her own unique role, rather than ending up just a weaker version of everyone else or too unfocused.

>>3795922
BHOP already said theres nothing worth taking from the frozen daughters.
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>>3795933
That is agreed upon, but therein lies the issue of how many extra points to we divert to Francine for the feast. We've got 46 points and seven mouths to feed.
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>>3795933
I have to say I won't be able to participate as I am still on a business trip

I would love to...... But I just cant
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>>3795906
I don't actually want to use the Sauce, really. Lepisma is too important to keep her Core around for stat boosts, since the meat mass is a grab bag I want to take a chance on what's in it, and the Remnant would probably just be a waste. I guess Rath might benefit from Augments taken off it, but otherwise I think we're just going to use it for leveling existing skills.

>>3795915
You have a point, though I'd argue that we already have a similar condition with Neuromancers. If you don't have the counter-skills to deal with them, the only recourse to facing a Neuromancer is to blast them before they can pull anything off. There aren't any real creative solutions to fighting a Neuromancer, the best you can have is "don't get hit by whatever medium they use". We have precedent for this sort of all-or-nothing class ability, and it's worked okay.

Also, as I've mentioned, there are a lot of status conditions that I'm just not sure how you'd defeat them by taking actions. Being frozen, sure, that's plausible to defeat with heat, and I think that our trying to heat up should have done something there. But how do you mitigate Julia's Stacks without an ability specifically meant for undoing flesh-warping? How do you defeat a Phantasmal despair aura without some ability that blocks mind-effecting powers? I suppose some Humoral abilities could be undone by washing off the Humors involved, but most of them it's too late once it already gets into your system, the best you could do is prevent further infection. Also, some Humoral powers don't have a physical component and work more like a Phantasmal field that's just aligned with that Humor's themes. These classes tend towards exotic attacks that it really doesn't make sense to be able to thwart without exotic effects of your own.
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>>3795906
we aren't gonna use the sauce.
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>>3795814
BHOP I just spent the week reading the archive after finding this randomly and it's been a great time, hopefully I can participate when I have a minute

Goddamn do I have a lot of questions about the Gear and the DO that I've been holding onto though.
Mainly, does the Gear teleport only work inside the crucible? Could we give a spoke to the DO and have it work? (really how does it work physics wise if that's something you've considered, could one launch a spoke into the air and then teleport to it? Would you continue moving with the spoke?)
And what was the level of technological advancement before the Crucible? Because it seems similar to IRL, at which point the DO seem to have made decades of scientific progress in a year or two which is pretty astounding. I guess collaboration through adversity and all that.
If these are off limits OOC kind of questions that makes sense but I have to at least ask.
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>>3795943
To answer part of the question regarding the DO's technological leap. It involves Alien Technology and the Biological know-how granted by the Crucible's Superpower granting setting given the body horror. So Lots of Neuromancy, and many advancements and breakthroughs at the literal speed of thought.
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>>3795937
well, at least the 4 for sure. id be fine leaving it at just that personally. mostly, while im sure it will turn out fine, im still weary of investing more into her until she makes her choice.

>>3795942
>>3795939
oh come on! Augments are supper potent, id argue many are 2-3 of the base levels worth all on their own. and with that thinking, we will NEVER use it and it will have been a waste to make in the first place. the grab bag is the perfect thing to use it on. the Cat Amalgam had nothing we dont have similar of already, and we didnt take anything in the past for good reasons, and nothing there will be worth adding another levelable to anyone i can almost guarantee it.
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>>3795943
Hi, welcome to the quest! I'm glad you've been enjoying it, BHOP does great work. I look forward to you participating.

And yeah, it sure is weird how fast the Disassociated advanced, huh? Even with alien technology to reverse-engineer, they made some really impressive strides. At a guess, I'd say that their cybernetics research has included intelligence augmentation, and that they're approaching the Singularity.

>>3795947
Speaking of her Choice, when do we want to do that? I feel like having her go for it now might be too soon, let her spend some time around us for a bit before making it. Want to raise Creation's Strings just to level four and spend the rest on fleshing out her build with other tools?

I suppose you do have a point about the meat-mass. It is the one that has the best balance of not caring much about the skills it provides versus not wanting to waste the Sauce. If we did any of them, it would be it, but there's still that tiny little voice in me saying "But it's a mystery box! Don't you want to open the mystery box?". I'm worrying too much about the opportunity costs. Chances are anything that we'd want to give to Francince (because she's the only one I want to give new skills to) would be better off taking from Lepisma. So yeah, okay, I'm coming around to the idea.
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>>3795947
Okay, you had me at the grab bag, but I feel that the grab bag may have core abilities that may be lucky polls from the meat gacha and would synergize super well. That said. I'll tentatively agree on using the sauce

so what part of the other two corpses abilities (FrostWolf and SilverFish) do we salvage for Francine?

Lepisma's ability to do Flesh Artisan Surgery to effortlessly cleave limbs and dissect constructs to turn into temporary power ups would go well with Francine's doctor theme...which I find Ironic considering that Francine basically shuns that sort of practice after being away from her other clones and West Prime.

There's also Frost Wolf's Freezing Aura to think about. That ability's a powerful one considering it's a mass aoe encroachment, but it leaves to be desired about the friendly fire, unless a single target variation of that ability is found.
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>>3795906
Changing my vote to a tentative "Yes" on using the Sauce on the Mystery Meat pile.
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>>3795939
>>3795915
>>3795906
>I'd argue that we already have a similar condition with Neuromancers.
and ive been holding back alot of issues i have with that too, i dislike that greatly aswell and have the same issues with it. the difference is, its been implied that ones actual willpower can affect nueromantic resistance to a degree. that, and unlike auras, good armor or a block or other creative or non specifically anti-neuromancer methods can prevent neuromancy. only Gina so far has a work around, but that required an alien artifact custom built for neuromancy to do, and even then distance effects peoples natural ability to resist her too.

>We have precedent for this sort of all-or-nothing class ability, and it's worked okay.
i disagree, its an issue ive had for awhile honestly and have had it bugging me for said while. i was holding out that i was wrong or it wasn't so common, now i now i was wrong, so im bringing it up.

>there are a lot of status conditions that I'm just not sure how you'd defeat them by taking actions.
some maybe, but that doesn't mean you should be barred for at least having the option to think of something at all.

>But how do you mitigate Julia's Stacks without an ability specifically meant for undoing flesh-warping?
see, at least for touch stacks, you have to TOUCH them, and that means they have to actually get a hit off on you. even then, id argue just like Isabelle could dig a tumor out of her brain, you could cut away or clean or something the specific area she touched. not the best, but just an example of one way that makes sense honestly to be able to do.

>How do you defeat a Phantasmal despair aura without some ability that blocks mind-effecting powers?
like i said, some are difficult to think up for, but personally that only points out the issue with them in general to me more, not less. you could argue simply having allies would help, or spending a moment to collect your thoughts and get your mind in order would work. im not saying fighting them should be easy or not costly, only doable without a specific ability.

(1/2)
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>>3795966
>I suppose some Humoral abilities could be undone by washing off the Humors involved,
honeslty im not seeing it for Humorals. even with the midnight crew, and even our own, Humorals actually seem to use stacks very little and are far from just 'Calcite armorers', they have been very varied and useful in their own rights without that. even Aces debuffs seemed to be more an all or nothing from how it was described, not stacks.

>Also, some Humoral powers don't have a physical component and work more like a Phantasmal field that's just aligned with that Humor's themes. These classes tend towards exotic attacks that it really doesn't make sense to be able to thwart without exotic effects of your own.
i really haven't seen any id agree with you on this on.

but, moot point. i mean, not against discussing it, its just not you my concerns matter if they listen to them or what their opinion on it is, and I dont mean that to be dickish.

(2/2)
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>>3795954
>>3795957
>Speaking of her Choice, when do we want to do that? I feel like having her go for it now might be too soon, let her spend some time around us for a bit before making it.
i kinda disagree. her making the choice is only part, but still a major part of seeing who she really is and if we can trust her. while again, its far from all she needs to do, i think doing it now and letting our allies see she at least has the sense to turn mother down, however easy it may be in the circumstances, will still do a good bit to calm them down about her.

>>3795954
>>3795957
so sauce on meat?

as for Francine, we're going to see all of the choices at once, so im withholding judgment on what to give her til we see what the ability actually is. the details in the actual ability write-up do matter, and could change whats actually good on her significantly due to the method of actually getting to what we see our enemies use, or other minor details.
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>>3795960
>>>3795978
>>3795954
also, id actually be willing to give Francine an extra point from Gina and/or Shu.

Ginas actually stat wise decently ahead of a few others, so i think one less point wont hurt her too much. Shu also less likely to ever miss out on a consumption, so one less point wont hurt her too badly either. i still want them to at least get 5, but rounding Francines up to 12 wouldn't be bad.

that said, im fine either direction. 10 or 12, shes getting a good bit extra to help her along.
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>>3795943
(Welcome to the Quest, I'm so glad to hear you've had a good time catching up. Regarding the Disassociated, there's actually quite a bit of lore surrounding them that has been glossed over due to certain choices, but to not go too far into spoilers I will reveal that their leader has been able to speed up and enhance her cognition drastically through Neuromancy, allowing her to walk through vast amounts of possible timelines to save her researchers time and effort, hence the leaps and bounds of technology.)

(Regarding the Gear, you could certainly launch it and then teleport to it as long as you're out of ncombat, though initiating the teleport while the spoke is in motion is...ill advised, shall we say. The last character to try that died a comical death.)
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>>3795968
Blarg. Computer just crashed. Phoneposting now. Can not give detailed response right now, not trying to ignore. Will respond when working again.
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>>3795992
off, sorry to hear, and take your time. though, honestly, might be the wrong time to discuss something like that, with details on the main event being discussed and said event fast approaching.
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>>3795994
Maybe. There will be time to diacuss leveling philosophy when we level. Fortunately, that won't be for a few hours. Give me time to fix this and try to salvage work. Thank God I save often.
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>>3796005
well, id argue getting questions like i proposed here:
>>3795978
>>3795980
out of the way will help us tremendously. its already going to take long enough to do this without trying to squeeze stuff like that into all of it. and as much as i enjoy the level up votes, id also love to use the time we have now to do anything we can to shave off time from what could end up being an hour per character without asking such questions in the mix.
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(Regarding the upcoming vote; given the number of factors in play in addition to not wanting to keep everyone up until all hours of the morning, I would be happy to extend the voting period well into tomorrow afternoon or evening to allow time for everyone to get a vote and, more importantly, some decent rest between voting sessions. Let me know what you think as I finish out the work day, and I hope everyone's day is going well.)

>>3795992
(Ive been there, and I'm so sorry that happened. I wish you luck in getting back on track!)
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>>3795954
Thanks for the welcome, everybody here seems pretty relaxed which definitely encouraged me to post. I am normally one to just lurk endlessly.

>>3795906
I'd be comfortable voting for sauce on the mystery meat with the info we have now.

>>3795984
Interesting answers, I figured it was something closer to a singularity as someone else suggested but very cool nonetheless. And I guess that answers my internal question to how I would die in the crucible as well (assuming its not just because she hit the ground rather hard).
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>>3796015
eh, maybe. one issue is the way we have been doing it works tremendously well, but involves keeping the flow going. spreading the time too thinly will just lead to chaotic wall votes again that are hard to discuss and keep track of.

that, and as much as i like the time given to votes, i also dont want the level vote to eat away at the rest of the quest or drag on past its welcome. so, while maybe keep it past the usual morning time of 8 for closing votes by one voting block, ill actually have to vote 'no' on keeping it open for an entire day personally.

>>3796020
>Thanks for the welcome, everybody here seems pretty relaxed which definitely encouraged me to post. I am normally one to just lurk endlessly.
overall yes but were getting near the one section everyone can get a bit high strung over. which is why i voted as i did up top, as no matter how odd it sounds, the method we have had has worked tremendously well to cut down on that and keep everyone calm, collected, and organized, compared to the old method.
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>>3796015
That would be great, thanks BHOP. I'll be busy soon with work until the end of the day, so this would be super helpful and considerate.
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>>3796015
Given that some of us have different work times, combined with the fact that this vein's on page 5, I say that I prefer to have it all done in one go in one night. Dragging the voting session invites mis-counts and a general disaster of the ballot count as well as invite voting trolls. it's 46 points, and we have 7 people to go through, most of their builds have been solidified, and it's usually a matter of diverting which points go to where to progress their power/corruption value instead of trying to figure out if Power A would mesh well with their current set of abilities.
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>>3796031
>>3796027
so whats your opinions on;
>>3795980
>>3795978
really, i guess on the extra levels wraps back around to 'do we want to invest that much into her before shes even passed her first trial' as it was? honestly unbridled scientific curiosity seems like an odd addiction to have to kick, but i guess everyone's issues are different.
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>>3796061
I would personally be fine with giving Francine some extra points to get her caught up with everybody else. However, I also don't want to imbalance the point distributions between every party member.

If we wanted to give Francine some extra points, I would like to propose the possibility of taking a point from everybody and giving them to Francine. That way, everyone else gets 5, and Francine gets a whopping 16, giving her a tremendous boost.

I'm also fine with Francine making her Choice now as well. As for the sauce on the meat, I'd prefer to wait until we see what the meat would offer in regards to abilities before making the decision to turn them into Augments.
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>>3796067
im highly against taking a point from everyone, as i still feel the family is going to need every point they can going forward. i had specific reasons for Shu and Gina, and no one else fills the same criteria.
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>>3796061
Honestly, it's a hard decision. The Grab bag nature of the meat pile means that there are things the Pyre Ant Colony knows are valuable and rare and have been willing to give us a small slice of that cut. Applying the sauce on them seems like a waste. On the other hand, the grab bag nature of it means we don't know what we'll get, other than the fact that Bhop has explicitly told us it will be consisting of mid-tier and high tier abilities, which by itself is enough for me to hold the sauce for Francine. on the other hand...it's Francine.

>(The Meat is literally a grab-bag of mid-to-high tier abilities from the Amalgam and Daughters skills I have compiled, with some repeats of past skills for your perusal along with a selection of other new skills, like the disgustingly powerful crit and speed skills wielded by the Cat Amalgam. That would probably be my recommendation for the Sauce should you choose to use it, solely on account of the associated augmentation options would be the most diverse if you were planning to strengthen pre-existing skills without leveling them directly.)

Fuck it. let apply the sauce.
>>3796015
Hey Bhop, can we dress the lvl up feast in the flavor of a Korean BBQ?

>>3796061
As for Francine's point distribution, I'm all for giving her extra points from Shu and Gina, but having her make the choice this early feels too soon. Francine hasn't been given the time to settle down and make new bonds, and socialize. Have Francine develop more of the side that isn't "The too curious doctor with lack of ethics" before giving her the confidence to make the choice.
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>>3796078
well, as i said, i disagree. the choice is a prefect gateway towards her seeing who she truly is, seeing if despite everything, she can turn down the power and knowledge that comes with agreeing to Mothers choice. if she passes making the choice, its not only the perfect first step for her, but also a really good way for her to put our family at least a bit at ease over her being around them.

>>3796078
korean BBQ is disgusting. true american Southern Style is the only way to go.
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(Gentlemen, it appears my evening has been hijacked by a series of matters that I must rapidly attend to, both professional and otherwise. As a result of not wishing to push the start of the vote any later today than I must, I shall be pausing here for the evening and spending what little time I'll have to myself by putting the finishing touches on the level up options for when I open the vote tomorrow. I am planning to open it from roughly 11AM until 7PM Eastern time, though I'd be more than happy to shuffle those times around accordingly, depending on your input.)


(These past two weeks have been filled with an unfortunate level of silliness, and I appreciate you bearing with me through it all. I will likely be either attending to work or in transit for much of the night, but I'll touch base as soon as I am able. Thank you one and all, and take care.)
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>>3796086
What? I like BBQ of any variety. Why you gotta diss on other types of BBQ? I just like the DIY quick and easy nature of Korean BBQ and the like. And I like my veggies like I like my meats: Marinated in sauces and grilled over open flame.

I have no ill will towards Southern BBQ and their 6 hour long roasting times. they're delicious too.

>>3796101
>when I open the vote tomorrow. I am planning to open it from roughly 11AM until 7PM Eastern time
>tfw I've got work tomorrow, the usual dinner rush that starts at 3 and ends at 8
well shit. Might as well start planning on writing out my early ballot. these past two weeks have been completely too silly and frustrating for all parties involved.
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>>3796101
sorry to hear that, hope its nothing too major and gets resolved well enough. a bit disappointing but maybe it works out better, we'll see. still, you take care of what you have to, we understand. keep your focus where its needed and have a hopefully at least not too iffy night BHOP.

though to be fair i do think you've started voting before as late as 8pm before, so we're used to and were preparing for late times for that.

also, i cant help but feel sometimes pic related is how BHOP feels trying to juggle his timeframes. (you do a good job though, so chin up my friend.)
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>>3796108
Korean bbq sauce is garbage, and i never liked the taste of how they do the meat at all. also im picky about vegetables, and bbqing them and putting sauce on them is a terrible way to do it thats just nasty.
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>>3796101
No worries BHOP, we've all had tumultuous periods of time in our lives, we know how it feels. Looking forward to the vote tomorrow, take your time and polish things up. Thanks again for running today, we really appreciate all the work you put into this.
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>>3796108
There you go, I like all kinds of BBQ as well. Korean style is perfectly valid, I love the self-serve nature of it.
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>>3796115
different strokes for different folks I guess. I'm not one to judge, but I do respect your opinion.

>>3796112
>Kaz from Devil's Candy
Devil's Candy is good shit. Pandora is bae. RIP Skeleton Ninja Sensei
>>3796101
Take your time, I'd prefer if the vote is opened tomorrow night at around 8pm after you've managed to conclude your urgent business. That way, everyone is on the same page and timetable.
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>>3796122
i mean, if you like it, you like it, i just dont want to subject Shus family to a substandard meal. plus, they are in America and with where the cord is, potentially good territory for that type of bbq.

or not. we really have no actual clue where we are, do we? we know were east of the cord, but thats really it. could be Northeast, Southeast, and even distance we only know so much. actually, what river did we even cross? Missouri maybe? damn son, looking at a map real quick, a boat would actually be a really good investment, as if were going from the east west towards the cord, im actually super surprised we have only had to cross one river so far, or well, only really run into one at least.

Devils Candy is indeed great and so is Pandora. im genuinely surprised how many comics i read others here also do.
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>>3796129
Well... Lets give a rough estimate of the landmarks and their closest analogues in America:
From start, east to west

Shu's College (somewhere on east coast
College town,
Gamma West's lab
Follicle plains (Pennsylvania breadbasket?)
Calcite Peaks (Appalachian mountains?)
Rust Town (inside Calcite Peaks)
Dead Marshes (Michigan/Ohio Swampland)
River of Tears (Mississippi River?)
Crystal Peaks (??? Canadian Mountains?)
Molar Wastes (Dakota Badlands?)
Mushroom Forest (Louisiana?)
Spire Lake and Lake Resort (???)
???
???
???
???
Cord (Literally Colorado)

So confusing.
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>>3796137
not trying to harp on you but honestly im not sure alot of those are correct. it also doesn't help it feel like we've gone in a pretty straight-enough line westward overall, yet alot of the terrain doesn't seem to fit that path. even a zig zag would be hard to justify some of it. granted, to some degree Mother can alter the land, which makes it harder to try and figure out, but she only has so many point and alot of this just seems way too nonsensical in placement or changes, even for Mother.

the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River are both the only ones im positive on, and only due to sheer size. but otherwise im at a loss. Marshes/swamps are much more a southern thing for sure, but plains are all over the place, but mostly in the midwest. i dont think we've entered canada, as from our angle we would have to see the great lakes first most likely, which hasnt happened and i doubt they are gone either. Louisiana really doesnt have terrain that would fit becoming a mushroom forest either.

eh, you know what? nevermind. we simply wont know for sure unless we find a much more definitive landmark that terrain types, as even without Mothers its still possible we just ran into small patches of map wise insignificant terrain in states otherwise not known for them.
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(Gentlemen, as my final shift of posting/voting times, I'll likely be moving the voting period to 7PM-10Am, Thursday evening to Friday morning Eastern Time. Looking at how the night's progressing I'll be lucky to be home at some time after midnight, so I hope this voting period works a little better for everyone involved, as it'll give me time to look over everything without it being unduly rushed. Thank you for understanding, and take care Gentlemen.)
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>>3796221
Oh, my. I'm sorry to hear that your night is going to run so long, BHOP. I hope it doesn't take as long as you're worried it will. See you tomorrow evening, man.
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>>3796221
wow, sorry to hear that your nights going like that, and i hope everything ok. thats a pretty significant time jump, but if thats what you think will work best, then so be it, ill be there. you take care of yourself though man, that sounds like it might naturally make Thursday not start off to great either.
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>>3796238
Yeah, I hope he gets enough sleep. Take care of yourself, BHOP.
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>>3796221
Yipes. Work can be such a nightmare. Take care of yourself and take your time. Sounds like the silliness at work has gotten out of hand.

I'll be a little late for the actual voting time given that my shift ends at 8pm tomorrow and won't be at the computer until around 8:30pm , but I'll make it to the voting time.
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well, im gonna take a nap. think one Anon still had things he wanted to discuss, so know ill get back to ya when im awake again, just so ya know im not ignoring you or anything. which will probably be way earlier than id like but so be it, damn odd sleep schedule of mine.

besides, it does seem we have gained some free time to fill with something anyways.
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>>3796302
>think one Anon still had things he wanted to discuss, so know ill get back to ya when im awake again, just so ya know im not ignoring you or anything
Oh, I think that was me. Nah, don't bother, it took me so long troubleshooting this thing that it would just feel weird to roll back the momentum and start again tonight. We can talk tomorrow, resume conversation about level allocation and what to do with Francine then. Also about what to do once we've leveled up, got a few different plot threads to pursue. Yurei, Francine's plan, whatever the Investigation Team uncovered, maybe something with the DOs (not sure on that one, but I think BHOP's implying there's more to do there) and the other groups we learned about, the Apex Sisterhood and the Altered Altar. So much to do, so little time. It's an exciting time for the Defiant Fools. Anyway, see you in the morning. I'm off to bed myself, now.
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>>3795984
>>3795943
I am also VERY curious, would like to get answers for those questions. Regarding the DO, there is the prosaic possibility that they are a holdover from the old Nechronica system, in which you have the flesh parts and the robotic parts to augment the PCs with.

FLUFF-wise, I have ALWAYS wondered if we weren´t missing something MAJOR with the DOs. I think they are two to three centuries advanced to our current scientific level (advanced transhuman mind uploads), while things like the Orioncraft are a century to fifty years in advance.
This opens several disturbing possibilities, all of them non-exclusive:

1º) The DOs have contacted a set of ALIEN minds preserved by the crucible, which taught them most of the science necessary for their plan. Either very advanced Hexxane space engineers, or members of a race which was mentioned by BHOP to try to escape the crucible via colony ships...and failed.

2º) Neuromancer powers overclocking cognition and thought FAR beyond anything achieved before, which allowed the design of the advanced optical/quantum supercomputer brains that the DOs use once upload takes place. Near-FTL speed of thought, massively enhanced intuition and reasoning at meatbrain level, BEFORE even the powerful hardware that uploaded run on becomes available...and once such a skillset is discovered, duplication via sparagmos engine to the entire DO crew is possible. BHOP just gave us confirmation that their leader had a powerful cognition-enhancement and future-sight abilities...wouldn´t that be Cassandra?

3º) The Crucible had a SCOUT probe sent to Earth, where it buried itself on the crust and gave coordinates to its progenitor. The government discovered it and studied it in an AREA 51 equivalent which just happened to be the DOs underground base...And the DOs have the best tech around because they ARE the personnel and staff of that base, with all the resources and decades of reverse-engineered Crucible-tech they could gather from that scout probe at hand. They were rendered daughters, but their original mission wasn´t forgotten, and when they rose, they did so on a safe and secure location, surrounded by their coworkers, united in purpose and loaded for bear. This raises the terrible question that maybe the crucible arrival WASN´T as unexpected as we thought...
Ever wondered why NOVEMBER felt so guilty as to be willing to commit suicide via upload, why a seasoned marine happened to be on the DOs base (hint: She was posted to guard it when the crucible started) or why DOs try to erase their emotions? Cue ERASING THE GUILT from letting mankind get eaten. Maybe they didn´t know what was going to happen, maybe they didn´t wish to spread panic before the inevitable, maybe the OrionCraft was Earth´s ark ship and the Crucible stroke too soon for it to rise with a living, unaltered crew as it was originally intended....

Will we ever get to know the truth, dear BHOP?
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>>3796955
well, BHOP kinda already told us the answer. otherwise, i think you're not giving November enough credit, i dont think at this point she would hide information like that from us. her guilt seems to mostly be from things she talked about relating to her family, which clearly weighs heavier on her shoulders than her augmented armored form ever could.

i will say i had the same thought about Cassandra, but i think thats just happenstance. it was hinted Cassandras sorta isolated to a degree from the rest of the DOs, and while she arrived early apparently, they still would've needed a leader before then, and honestly even for them someone retreating into the basement and becoming a wall plugin feels like a poor choice for a leader, super brain or not.
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>>3796973
Yeah, but KINDA told us...a little bit. He also said that there are tons of undisclosed lore, of spoilerific nature.
I still think that we may be missing something major with the DOs, and checking it, just in case, might be a good idea.

Also, take into account that NOVEMBER is a professional and a soldier, and the army takes intel security VERY seriously; if she has been ordered to keep it a secret, she will (particularly if it is for a sensible reason). Remember that we have a LOT of trust with Rath, and she never told us explicitly about her sister. We have known November for a lot less of time, and we know she has a...HISTORY with the DOs, and one sprinkled with serious disagreements.
I still think this scenario I outlined in >>3796955
might be possible, to a certain extent.
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>>3796973
> "Her guilt seems to mostly be from things she talked about relating to her family, which clearly weighs heavier on her shoulders than her augmented armored form ever could."

Okay, I might disagree on your prior evaluation, but you write pure gems sometimes. Solid gold, love this writing of yours. ;-)
About Cassandra, you might be right, but she is also in the most secure and secluded area of the base. In such a violent world as the Crucible Earth is, you put your valuable people in the safest, most isolated location you van manage.
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>>3796984
yes, but Raths issue was entirely personal, what you are suggesting would be very important information for if we can trust the DOs at all, in which especially with her disagreements, November would not without info of that caliber from us given the context, soldier or not. if the DOs are hiding information like that, it greatly effects how much we can trust their word, mission, or interactions with them, and November would NOT let us, especially Rath, go blind against that.

and we also really have no reason to think that, or more importantly, no reason IC to think that or care. they already have shown themselves to be... somewhat aloof and not worth the time. furthermore, they are in their endgame, trying to actually convince them, much less find someone who can even afford the free time, to have our random suspicions discussed is highly unlikely. not to mention, both IC and OOC, we certainly have much more important things to get to than unfounded and unknown massive 'what ifs' about the DOs. and besides, we have both November and Francine from their ranks. if theres really something so major, we have access to people who would tell us. obviously, they might not know, but Francine at least was oddly trusted to a clear and high degree. if such info was hidden, she either would know hints about it, or have found it out herself, and given everything about Francine, if there was something that major about them, she either wouldn't of trusted them that much, and at this point, probably wouldn't hold it from us, as shes trying to win our trust, not hold massively important info from us only for us to find out she knows later and have us have very good reasons to stop trusting her suddenly.

>>3796995
i disagree. especially with all the major hardware and software being brought to the ship and the main base being empty, on top of the fact a leader can always command better in person, especially because the DOs are still each their own enclosed system still, it would make no sense for Cassandra to still be down there. if shes their leader, at the very least, transferring her to the ships systems to run things from there would be a very early step in their process. instead, she seems to be considered a back burner project to get onto the ship, imply very much she is not involved in that process much at all, unlike a leader would be.
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>>3796955
I think 2 is most likely personally, I hadn't considered that Cassandra could have been that leader. I'm not sure they even need supercomputer brains though, the Crucible seems to be capable of compressing people's cognition into gems like we did with Sam.

I doubt the Crucible needed to send a probe. If it's only method of sensing was probes (rather than optical) it would have to create some kind of crazy infinitely propagating Von Neumann probe which doesn't seem to align with Crucible goals (more planets consumed for probes means less planets for life, also not meat based). Very hard to say though as Crucible goals are super unclear.

As for alien minds, I think that's definitely possible but the Hexane at least were at a weird point technologically. They knew the Crucible was coming, so they have better optics than us or some other method of knowing the Crucible was coming (another point for drones, even if I think it's unlikely). But on the other hand, BHOP has said they didn't have nuclear because radiant is a new damage type this Crucible. Maybe humans are all just insane though and we are the only ones willing to touch that.
If they can peek farther back than that though, who knows what they might have gotten. Hell, Cassandra might have gotten an old mind from inside the Cord and brought it back to the DO.

Overall, I think we are a bit late on the draw for a DO gallivant, they are launching in less than a week now (5 days?). We also don't seem to have a lot to offer them other than teleportation with the Gear, which is why I asked. But if the Gear doesn't like it when people teleport while moving it really won't be happy if we try to teleport to a rocket in a wildly different reference frame (although if we get Dorian to teleport in mist form who knows? still too risky to try imo). That's also a lot to consider and not something I really want to curse BHOP with keeping track of.

I think we can ask November and Francine for info and get most of what we want, but it seems a bit weird for Shu to suddenly care while we have other things that are higher priority (getting stronger and hunting down Mother's statue amalgams)
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>>3796995
I think it's probably against some law of poetry to have a precognitive named Cassandra who is the leader of a group. That requires people to listen to her predictions and be convinced by what she tells them. You can't have that! More seriously, Cassandra struck me less as the head of the Disassociated and more as their senior archivist. Important in the hierarchy, but not the boss, and with her high mass of secondary priority for getting onto the ship.

>>3796973
>i think you're not giving November enough credit, i dont think at this point she would hide information like that from us. her guilt seems to mostly be from things she talked about relating to her family, which clearly weighs heavier on her shoulders than her augmented armored form ever could.
Mostly related to that, but she also said that she feels guilt for things she did during her tour of duty. Nothing in specific, just that she saw a lot of things she would rather not have and that when she first awoke in the Crucible she considered it might be punishment for things she had done. It's not really something we have a tactful way to bring up with her. Hopefully being around a new family in the form of our party (with Rath bridging it to her old one) will help her come to terms with it on her own time.

>>3797129
Yeah, it's a bit of a shame. I want to interact with the Disassociated, they're pretty interesting, but it's hard to come up with plausible reasons for Shu to do so. She doesn't really have anything to offer them, barring performing some fetch quest for "oh, we forgot, we need this one item before we can launch". I really want to ensure that they succeed and escape to space and are cool post-human cyborgs out on Ceres or wherever, but there's no way we have to assist them. Certainly not when they're so close to launch. It would be silly to put a ton of focus on trying to work with them now. Best we can do is stand back and watch the rocket show, and hope that the Crucible doesn't knock them out of the sky.

>getting stronger and hunting down Mother's statue amalgams
Ah, crap, I forgot about those guys with all this hunting excitement. We've still got two Phalanges out there. I wonder if we have to kill them, though? The longer the Phalanges were active the more they came to resemble the Ascendants they were modeled on. Phalanx Vultha eventually reached the point of realizing "wait, I shouldn't be fighting to defend Ozmas, she killed me and the rest of our species" and stopped fighting.. Maybe we could interact peacefully with them?
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>>3797129
Actually something I hadn't considered until just now is that the Crucible might BE the great filter and it could be targeting planets based on technological complexity. I think in the past Mother or BHOP has said that there are more Crucibles out there which means they could have been created all at once by an incredibly advanced species and if you reach all the way back in the Cord you might really find something crazy. Although who knows if we'll ever get there, we could get frozen and die tomorrow (like we almost did yesterday.

>>3797151
Yeah I'm not even sure I have strong confidence that the DO will all survive the exit but I'm looking forward to it.
We definitely need to hunt down the statues though, I think there are 3 left, which is coincidentally how many chips BHOP has said Mother has left. We kill them and kick Mother out, which means no more Charon hunting us (unless Mother pulls some more bs, which I expect, she's not dumb). I think Vultha only regained opposition to Ozmas when he was dying though, so I don't expect the rest of them to be friendly.
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>>3797168
>I think in the past Mother or BHOP has said that there are more Crucibles out there which means they could have been created all at once by an incredibly advanced species and if you reach all the way back in the Cord you might really find something crazy.
That was Karma, she said that cosmic world-parasites like the Crucible are very common. She didn't specify if she meant just the same ecological niche as the Crucible, or if the other world-eaters were of the same species and shared an origin with it. But yeah, if world-eaters are common that would give a pretty handy explanation for Fermi's Paradox. Why aren't there any aliens coming to visit us? Because another alien already came to visit them, and it didn't end well.

>Yeah I'm not even sure I have strong confidence that the DO will all survive the exit but I'm looking forward to it.
It's going to be spectacular, at the very least, succeed or fail. You don't rise into the sky on a pillar of nuclear fire and not give one hell of a show.

>We definitely need to hunt down the statues though, I think there are 3 left, which is coincidentally how many chips BHOP has said Mother has left. We kill them and kick Mother out, which means no more Charon hunting us (unless Mother pulls some more bs, which I expect, she's not dumb)
I think it should only be two. We killed half of the initial ten with the Autumn Protocol alpha strike, then fought three back at the Lair. Maybe we miscounted, though, and November actually only took out four. It was a hectic fight. If it is only two left, though, then that would leave Ozmas with the one token left. On the one hand, she'd be crippled and that would be quite satisfying. On the other, she wouldn't be completely powerless, and could still act against us if she decided spiting the party was worth her death.

>I think Vultha only regained opposition to Ozmas when he was dying though, so I don't expect the rest of them to be friendly.
Maybe. They weren't quite dead yet. Who knows, we might be able to reach the surviving Phalanges and just talk instead of fight. Or we'll have to kill them and get to eat their corpses. I'd like the party to at least try to talk first. Hell, we might be able to drain Ozmas' tokens without killing them, now that I think about it. The secondary token cost is for the Daughter that cheating was used against overcoming the challenge placed before her. Befriending the challenge and subverting it to our goals might count as overcoming the challenge.
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>>3797188
It's also something to consider that Amalgams if left alone for long enough or through high proportionate diet of human biomass, would have a probability of breaking their initial Amalgam programming.

>>3797129

>Overall, I think we are a bit late on the draw for a DO gallivant, they are launching in less than a week now (5 days?)
I still want to have the whole family watch the Rocket launch. It would be a nice "Slice-of-life" outing and have some people say their final goodbyes and see if the DOs manage to breach the Membrane atmosphere. I have a feeling that their Ark Ship will look like the Macross Frontier Colonization ships, given their general theme of Sci-Fi Technology
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>>3797151
>>3797168
>Statues
i dont think the statues weill 'be themselves', as BHOP only said they would regain their skills and abilities, not their minds. the one guy only started to break his mental blocks due to deaths door clarity. also theres two im pretty sure. 10-5 from November, -3 from our home fight, 2 left.

>>3797168
>>3797188
Karma didnt say Crucibles were 'common', only there was more than one, and from her wording, she made it sound like they were indeed other crucibles, not unrelated but similar organisms. of course, we need more context. it really depends on how common life is aswell. while we can infer sentient alien life is not 'rare', it still might not be 'very common' as it was, just not something you will never run into. however, depending on factors, that could still mean theres only 10 crucibles running around total, but thats still enough to do their job compared to how much life there is, or it could be one per 20 civilizations. really, im surprised we didnt have her clarify that question, seems like something we would've done, ah well.

im also thinking its not the great filter. besides the fact just destroying 'threatening upstarts' clearly not being its actual purpose, if it was just after technology or civilization levels, it wouldn't of gone fro the Tindalos. sure, angular dimensional sentient super dogs are terrifying to encounter, but the fact it was able to deal with them on a singular planet implies that dimensional power certainly has its limits, and they still didnt have an actual civilization or technology. the simple fact is, even despite their impressive evolutionary path, from a... whatever the word is, being a 'threat to an advanced civilization' level, they wouldn't even be on the radar yet. their numbers are even implied to not have been as great either.

the Hexxanes also might of been skipped over. much less likely, and theres still argument to be made here, but they had been stagnant to generations upon generations. they were both content and stuck, and while they clearly had some nifty advancements, honestly before the crucible hit, didnt seem to have much it seems of mindbreaking levels of highly advanced. the crucible coming for them itself is the only reason they broke out, otherwise they really didnt seem like they were worth the effort to wipe out at that time either. similar to humanity, if our tech was to the point it is today, we are a far cry from being a threat to a space faring civilization. of course, this all is based on the idea its an automated system, which it does seem to be to a big degree, but we really dont know just how advanced that system might actually be, only it seems to have clear limits. more things to figure out, i suppose.
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>>3797210
I'm still losing my sides at the fact that mother nature is fucking up the Crucible by triggering big old evolution on the amalgams, AND that the power of cute fluffy bees can conquer flesh-warped monstrosities
Well done earth-chan and Fuzzbuzz i'm proud of both of you
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>>3796390
right, now onto actually important topics.
whats there to even discuss to help things go smoother?

>Francine's choice, yay or nay?
we seem pretty split so far on it, two have said yes, one no, and one or two undecided. its not the biggest thing and can be done easily once voting actually starts, but it is a very big factor t decide.

>Francine's points. 10? 12? 16?
im still not wanting to give her one from everyone. i feel like Dorian and Amara at least could still use all 6 points, and Rath and Julia i feel could use it just to offset the fact they wont be at every consumption. my only argument for Shu and Gina giving a point is Shu will be at every single Consumption, and both Stat wise, and in the potency of the quality of abilities she has, Gina i do think is slightly ahad of the curve, so while i dont want to gut her levels she gets, i do think giving one to the shortstack of the group wont harm her. that, and i think Gina would understand the feeling of the position Francine is in, given she herself may of ended up very behind, so its a nice thematic touch aswell.

>A Reminder
something to remember, especially with Francine, is due to the engine, we are not limited to only putting a single level towards new abilities, which will help greatly, as i think we can all at least agree she doesn't need 8-10 new levelable abilities.

this also means anything we want to replace on others if we see an opportunity can get all the replaced levels on it to make the new one not fall behind. mind you, before people freak out, im in no way saying we have to do that, only no harm in remembering its an option we have.

otherwise... just some shotgun stuff...

>Shu
maybe at least see what Tread and Drill can make together? honestly im still having lack luster feelings towards the Drill, i still see it as the only reason we have it as a 'lets double up the spirals for a meme!'. to be fair, the meme fits our group very well, but i do feel the meme also fits Raths personality better, so i guess thats why im still lackluster about it on Shu.

>Julia
Hybrids. lots people want to try, and lots of good options still. no idea myself what id even want to do here, so im open for being convinced in any direction basically.
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>>3797674
>Karma didnt say Crucibles were 'common', only there was more than one, and from her wording, she made it sound like they were indeed other crucibles, not unrelated but similar organisms. of course, we need more context. it really depends on how common life is aswell. while we can infer sentient alien life is not 'rare', it still might not be 'very common' as it was, just not something you will never run into. however, depending on factors, that could still mean theres only 10 crucibles running around total, but thats still enough to do their job compared to how much life there is, or it could be one per 20 civilizations. really, im surprised we didnt have her clarify that question, seems like something we would've done, ah well.
She described it as "a virus on a planetary scale....and like any virus, it is but one of many". That's ambiguous, whether she means that there are many iterations of the Crucible (though given how it evolves, they would have differentiated into different strains that might be unrecognizable by now) or whether she means that there's an entire pathology of different world-viruses. But fair, "very common" is an assumption on my part. Still, I expect them to be reasonably common compared to how much intelligent life there is out there, based on Karma's wording and Ozmas describing the Crucible's life cycle as "the only way".

>im also thinking its not the great filter. besides the fact just destroying 'threatening upstarts' clearly not being its actual purpose, if it was just after technology or civilization levels, it wouldn't of gone fro the Tindalos. sure, angular dimensional sentient super dogs are terrifying to encounter, but the fact it was able to deal with them on a singular planet implies that dimensional power certainly has its limits, and they still didnt have an actual civilization or technology. the simple fact is, even despite their impressive evolutionary path, from a... whatever the word is, being a 'threat to an advanced civilization' level, they wouldn't even be on the radar yet. their numbers are even implied to not have been as great eithe
The great filter doesn't have to intentionally target advanced life, though. It just has to kill enough things that statistically, nobody gets to the point of interstellar civilization before they die. In our world, most theories on it assume that it's just a natural disaster that kills civilization in the cradle. Gamma ray bursts were a popular theory for a while, though more recent data suggests they're probably not common enough to do it. Point is, there doesn't have to be any plan in mind for the Crucible and other world-eaters, they could just be following their natural instincts and if they were voracious enough they'd still prevent any species from reaching the stars. Even if the point of the world-eaters is just to suppress possible threats to their creators, which is not certain, ruthless enough creators might be fine with a scorched-earth policy.
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>>3795814

Your world re-aligns itself as Escher’s Gear carries the Metall Geschoss back home, and a few minutes later you’re back topside to find Gina and the rest of your little family safe and sound in the living room. Amara nearly bowls you over when she throws her arms around your waist, and you’re knocked over completely by Gina's sudden tackle-hug. Laughing, you you struggle to right yourself on the couch as Amara darts over to Dorian, and you high-five Rath as she passes you to give her aunt a side-hug.

“I trust the hunt went well, Darlings?" Francine muses, glancing over at the box of trophies November's adding to, throwing the biomass inside as she speaks.

"It did. How did things go on your end?" You counter, looking to Gina for an answer as she gently nods to Fran, urging her to take the lead.

"Oh, me? Well, I...very well." The woman relents, and you stifle a smile as she stands a little straighter before delving into an overview of their findings. "In brief; we’ve discovered the location of a West Proxy laboratory, and we’re ready to move on it at a moment’s notice. Additionally, Amara and Julia discovered three foreign Daughters that are currently on the move and are tracking them via the Joyous Many. We've also learned about a possible threat known as the Barbers, a group of four Daughters that may have abilities rivaling those of Daughters that have made it stateside As far as locations, we've located a town of reasonable size that appears to have a bar, serving as a waystation of sorts to travelers. Information flows freely, so I'm certain there's much to be gained from there. Finally, we've located the remains of a Hexane structure, and from what Cheruem said it looks like it could be one of Silvis’ old haunts"

“Poor choice of wording on that last bit, but yeah, we made out alright.” Gina says, smiling at her crew. "We'll go a little more in-depth later, but looks like we all had good luck out there."

"Nicely done." Dorian murmurs, impressed. Julia gives him a little curtsy and smile, making his face goes a slight scarlet before Amara pipes up at his side.

"I'm hungry, can we eat now?" She groans, tugging on the hem of Julia's dress impatiently.

"Yo, hold it! I wanna hear about the ants!" Rath chimes in as she strides up to you, giving you an affectionate pat on the back.

"Aunts? But I'm right here." November replies in a deadpan tone, and Rath just shoots her a withering glare as both Dorian and Julia start to crack up.

“Honestly guys, I think the stories can wait. ‘Cause right now...” Gina glances up at you, giving you a once-over before cracking a playful grin and turning her attentions over to the spoils of your hunt.

“I think we could all use a snack.”

>>LEVEL-UP POINTS AVAILABLE: 46

>>GENERAL GENERATOR'S SUCCULENT SAUCE: Consumed, applied to Mystery Meat. Uncommon and Rare Abilities replaced with Rare Augments.

>>HUNT'S REWARDS: https://pastebin.com/2rK0T4LV

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
still at work, somewhat wrapping up. i hope the vote hasn’t started.
>>
>>3797860
to be fair on the second one, at least the other Anon was implying the Crucible was very deliberately set up to attack advanced civilizations, which was the part i was countering. i just saw both of you had similar threads of thought/ the topic was related, and may of misread your half of it when replying.
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open until 12:00PM tomorrow, with posting to resume at some point afterwards, work willing. Thank you all for your patience with my schedule, and I hope you have had a good day. I'll be around all evening for questions and the like, so please do not be afraid to reach out if anything is unclear. Good luck, one and all.)
>>
>>3797863
right, well before everyone goes crazy, lets take some time to review things shall we? lets take 30 minutes to an hour to let everyone get here and review the choices, then go in order of the characters as they are on the character sheets page?

otherwise, the only major thing to discuss before starting is how many points to give Francine, but i think most agreed she should be first, so we can take a moment to do that once we start.
>>
>>3797696
>Francine's choice, yay or nay?
I'd like to get Francine's opinion, personally. Same with Lepisma's Core. Lay out the options for her, let her weigh in on it before we decide. I'm inclined towards her not doing the Choice yet, but if she thinks she's ready then I'd go for it.

>Francine's points. 10? 12? 16?
I'd say twelve. Sixteen is too much, but I'd be willing to take a point off of Shu and Gina to help her catch up faster.

>A Reminder
Very true. I'd like to give her three, maybe four skills out of this, not counting the Halo (which we'd do the Engine points-shuffle trick to make come out of her budget by copying one of us). Though can she even use the Halo, now that I think about it? Technically, she has a Neurotic Halo already, it's just one of the jailbroken ones that West uses to link the collective. I guess giving her the skill would restore hers to full functionality?

>Shu
Agreed, I'd like to give Drill/Tread a look. I'm with you. Drill has been useful, I won't deny that. But useful enough to bother leveling on its own? I don't think so, I think people mostly just wanted a Heaven-Piercing Giga Drill.

>Julia
Yeah, there's way too many to look at, here, that debate is going to take so long.
>>
>>3797873
(Regarding Francine's choice, she would be willing to go ahead and get it over with. Like any incarnation of West she's no coward, and putting things off is anathema to her.)
>>
>>3797875
And Lepisma? How eager is she to get a headbuddy that seems to share to most of the traits about herself that she dreads?
>>
>>3797877
(She would be willing to deal with whoever Lepisma is. To put it in her words;)

"I've been fighting the urges of a monster, for as long as I've drawn breath, Darling...what's one more, in the grand scheme of things?"
>>
>>3797883
Fair enough. Okay, then I think Hand of the Queen would be a very good power for her. I'm not sure if Spiritus Ex Testa is, though. It just feels like that moves too slow for it to be worth it. Though if Monozygotic Birth and Fearful Symmetry apply to it, that would be pretty powerful for the slow wind-up.
>>
>>3797883
BHOP, do percentile Phantasmal abilities still count as applying stacks, or are the two types mutually exclusive?
>>
>>3797890
(If you're referring to Emotion's Casing, the percentage build-up is doubled, as well.)
>>
>>3797883
Damn, Francine is badass. I'm liking her more with every thread.

>>3797870
Sounds good, we can start putting some builds together and review choices before coming back and voting on possible point allocations.
>>
>>3797892
Does Knowable Kadath work with skills that have been hybridized, or does the skill have to retain in the form we acquired it in?
>>
>>3797901
(It absolutely works with Hybrids, as long as the given Dream Daughter's Core is a part of said Hybrid.)
>>
>>3797905
Huh, nice. What happens if there are multiple Dream Daughters contributing to a skill, whether from hybridizing two Cores or the skill merging we got with things like Solar Pugilist? Does that increase the number of free levels per session because there are multiple Dream Daughters to get lessons from? Or is that asking for too much?
>>
>>3797912
Oh, and how does it interact with the Neurotic Halo raising the rate of Dream Daughter conversation level-ups? Does it just supercede it? Sorry that I'm asking so many questions about it, but this is an amazingly powerful skill even if it only does a tenth of the things I'm asking about.
>>
>>3797912
(It simply works once per session...currently. Not to spoil anything, but as has been alluded to that there is a way to alter and strengthen Augments...one of which may be closer at hand that you may think.)
>>
>>3797918
(It simply gives a guaranteed level-up, with Neurotic Halo's ability still having a chance to proc naturally. Thus, even at base level it's entirely possible for the Augmentation and Halo to go off, granting two or more free levels.)
>>
>>3797918
(Also, please never feel like you have to apologize for asking questions; I welcome them, and I'm happy to help.)
>>
>>3797919
>>3797922
Ah, okay, still worth it. The Augment pays for itself, and will just keep adding up free levels. I want this on every party member. Like, even if it levels up a skill we're not interested in, that's a free level and we've got a fully-unlocked Sparagmos Engine. We can put that level in anything.

>>3797924
Okay, good, because I actually have one more. Does it proc per-skill or only once per session among all skills the user has acquired from Dream Daughters?
>>
>>3797934
(Once per session, with the decision up to you to choose one skill among all the Daughter gave you.)
>>
>>3797934
im gonna go ahead and tell you im not putting it on every Team Member.
>>
>>3797942
Cool. Still worth it.
>>
>>3797945
Why not? I know that you have this issue about doubling-up on skills among party members, but it doesn't change anything about playstyles. It's just free levels. It's not going to make any of our party more similar in abilities.
>>
>>3797951
doesn't feel worth it. one level per session and forcing us to try and find the time to use it? simply wont happen even every other session. also most people dont really have enough to be worth it either in my opinion. Ginas really the only one id put it on. plus, feels alot cheaper to talk to them just to accumulate forced levels off of them.
>>
>>3797873
>>3797696
>Francine's choice, yay or nay?
yea, lets see what shes made of

>Francine's points. 10? 12? 16?
10 is my vote, and even for everyone else. We need to power her up but I am remiss to dump too many points into her too soon

>>3797863
In regards to SPIRITUS EX TESTA, is there a penalty for the dream daughter in the suit on death or otherwise? And could we make a suit for a dream daughter in the dreamscape? Seems pretty amazing regardless

>>3797934
One level now for more levels in the future? Seems worth it to me. Do the others talk to their dream daughters of their own accord though? Obviously BHOP can't write every conversation everybody has so it's kinda unclear
>>
>still at work
hang on don’t start without me please
>>
>>3797957
Shu at least usually talks to a dream daughter at least once a session. Even when it's a combat focused vein they usually come into play one way or another. Honestly, thats one of the cooler parts of them sticking around
>>
>>3797961
(Regarding your first question, there is a chance that the Dream Daughter may face deletion upon outright death, but they do get death saving throws as per usual. For the second part, I'm afraid I don't quite understand; would you mind elaborating?)

(Also, your allies do speak with their Dream Daughters, when they have time to do so. Anyone with this ability would activate it as often as they could, time and situation willing, of course.)
>>
>>3797964
>>3797961
>>3797951
>>3797898
im fine giving this Anon another 30 minutes extra(7:30am CST for me) to let him have a chance. everyone else ok with that?

>>3797971
true but honestly unless people like, agree to get rid of the drill, what i want to do for Shu is already out of points. similar for others. i simply see our points better spent elsewhere.
>>
>>3797977
(I would prefer that Anon gets the chance to fully participate, as well.)
>>
>>3797957
>doesn't feel worth it. one level per session and forcing us to try and find the time to use it? simply wont happen even every other session.
Even if it only procs tonight after the party goes to bed, this one time, it will still be worth the investment. Because then it would have paid for itself, plus we'd get the added Bio from the augment. Any further from that is bonus.

>also most people dont really have enough to be worth it either in my opinion
See my comment about the Sparagmos Engine. Even if we don't like the skill it goes to, we can just repurpose that free level. Plus, we've got plenty of good skills coming from Dream Daughters. Shu's got Ravenous Maw, Fear To Tread (or whatever giga drill we hybridize it into), and Gluttonous Brood though I'm not sure how it would interact with an Augment. Rath has Indignant Ignition and Erupting Grasp. Gina has most of her character sheet, now,. Julia has Elemental Digestion and Badger's Barbarism. Dorian only has Resplendent Thread, though that's proven quite useful so I'd be fine with the level staying in that. Amara has Hunter's Honor, Joyous Many, Queen Crimson and maybe Incomprehensible Form (again, not sure how it would interact with another Augment). And Francine will almost certainly have Hand of the Queen. Plenty of good stuff to upgrade this way.

>plus, feels alot cheaper to talk to them just to accumulate forced levels off of them
Well, that part I will admit could be an issue, making our relationships with our head-buddies feel more transactional. But we've already established ourselves as wanting to be friends with them. I think that so long as we're not too craven and manipulative about it, having a reason to spend more time hanging out with them isn't a bad thing. Yeah, we get something out of it, but it's not like we don't spend plenty of time in the Dreamscape talking to them already, this is just a neat perk.

>>3797977
Sure, I'm fine with giving them more time. I need some time too, honestly, I still haven't done dinner yet. Should get to that before we start.
>>
>>3797981
eh, im just not interested in it. only person id be willing to change something on is giving it to Shu aswell as Gina, as im very in favor of the points spread i have for everyone else, while due to something i want to do with Shu, my other plan for her is impossible, so its kinda a 'whatever' moment of just preparing for next time with her.
>>
>>3797976
If we end up having to fight in the dreamscape again where we have unlimited BIO, could we use that to power up a dream daughter in some manner? Like an exosuit or something

>>3797977
>>3797981
Yeah actually good reminder to eat
>>
>>3797991
(I would say yes, it would be possible.)
>>
>>3797980
BHOP, i do have two questions, one serious, one not;

First, how would Queen interact with Francines Strings? it feels like Queen is just a straight up upgrade to part of Francines Strings kit. but it also feels like both could go down similar routes. not asking for much, just, i dunno, im still for giving her Queen even if just for the stats, but im trying to decide is its worth keeping on her besides that. sorry is this is kinda an ambiguous question.

Second, how would Kadath work for Amara and the Soroitas? obviously, she has no core from them, but its still amusing to imagine Amara having to run around and find each and every one of them wherever they are to get the upgrade. and being kids, you just know they would turn it into a game, if it did work that way.
>>
also, does anyone else wish to be the... arbiter? counter? the person who keeps track of the vote tallies and tries to keep things organized with the whole system we have used before. im fully and totally willing to do it, mind you, i just didnt want to step on anyone elses toes if thats something they really wanted to do.

having someone do that has helped us tremendously for sure so thought id at least ask and see if anyone else already had it on their mind too.
>>
Am >>3797964

>>3798004
I'll be the arbiter.
Give me a few minutes to get a read through of our options. I just got back home.
>>
>>3798009
you got time, most seem fine to start at 7:30 CST like mentioned above.
>>
>>3797997
(For your first question, her Core ability is going to evolve in an odd direction as a result of her Augmentation, to say nothing of how her choice will lead it, so even though it appears that there may be some similarity at current, the two powers will become very different in short order. Much like how many Calcite Armorer Cores look similar, within about four or five levels they're quite distinct.)

(Second, that's hilarious and I'm rather disappointed in myself for not thinking of that sooner. They would absolutely turn it into a lovely game, though Amara is quite good at tracking now, so I have faith she'd win consistently enough to get her free levels fair and square.)
>>
>>3798014
alright, good to know. kinda actually did want to keep it on her, and good to know it will have its own unique uses.
>>
Time now is 7:30 CST or 8:30 EST

Court is now in session.
>Obligatory Voting music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5j5rRvAvY4

First order of business:
>Point Distribution

Points Available: 46

Persons Eligible: 7
>Shu
>Gina
>Rath
>Dorian
>Julia
>Amara
>Francine
>November (Except due to Forgebody)

Please decide on point distribution and reply to this post in order to make votes valid.
>>
>>3798049
Correction:
November is Exempt from eligibility.
>>
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>>3798049
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>>3798049
>Francine, 12 points
>Shu, 5 points
>Dorian, 6 points
>Rath, 6 points
>Julia, 6 points
>Amara, 6 points
>Gina, 5 points
>>
>>3798049
>Francine, 10 points
>Shu, 6 points
>Dorian, 6 points
>Rath, 6 points
>Julia, 6 points
>Amara, 6 points
>Gina, 6 points
>>
>>3798049
>Shu: 6
>Gina: 6
>Rath: 6
>Dorian: 6
>Julia: 6
>Amara: 6
>Francine: 10
>>
>>3798049
also, id assume we're just gonna go in the order of the character sheets like usual?
>>
>>3798057
From the google spreadsheets left to right? Yes.
>>
>>3798058
thought so, just wanted to double check.
dont forget to vote yourself!
>>
Some stuff came up, might not be able to participate for the first little bit. Don't wait up on me, I shouldn't be too long. See you later, anons.
>>
>>3798049
My vote distribution:
>Francine: 10
>Everyone else: 6
My reasoning is thus, Francine's only got her ditto fighter core ability, and doesn't have much in the way of other secondary abilities. Two of those points will go towards pushing her core up to lvl 5, one of them will go towards picking up Lepisma's core, which leaves 7 points left, and considering what I've seen from the Menu, there isn't much in the way of level-able abilities that synergizes with Francine enough to consider her to pick up since her main gimmick is being a ditto fighter. We can splurge a point or two for augmenting Francine, but otherwise, not much can be done for Francine until we find other useful abilities that can supplement her fighting style.
>>
>>3798080
>>3798056
>>3798055
>>3798054
Ballots have been tallied.

>>3798072 has abstained.
3:1 in favor of point distribution proposal

>Francine: 10 points
>Everyone else: 6 points.

Next order of business:
Francine
>Core level: Creation's strings lvl 3, 1 altered augment.
>Points to use: 10 points.

>Points available from Feast Pool: 46
Please submit your proposals and reply to this post.
>>
>>3798086
Francine, 10 points;
>Strings (x2)
>Hand of the Queen(x3)
>Primordial School (x4)
>Borrowed Stoicism

Lets have her make her choice. Shes up for it, so she can handle it.
She needs Abilities AND stats, and if nothing else, we can melt Queen down for its stats, but I actually think it'll work good on her. It kinda overlaps with her core, but but after BHOP gave confirmation they will be quite different, im willing to give it a shot.
School because it will at least hold her over until we get better options for her to work up close with, plus a calculating mind could do alot with a Hive Mistress ability.
Stoicism just to get her a little bit of protection.
>>
>>3798086
I'll second this post here:

>>3798087
>>
>>3798086
>Creation's Strings x2
>Hand of the Queen x2
>Primordial School x4
>Borrowed Stoicism
>Knowable Kadath

I really want Knowable Kadath on everyone. It's really good, I don't see why not to do it. It is at worst an extra 80% Bio. We'll recoup that level of Hand of the Queen tonight when Francine sleeps.
>>
>>3798106
or we could just get it now and focus on our abilities, instead of wasting a point in something that we really wont use often enough to be worth it over focusing on other things.
>>
>>3798113
Again, it's not a waste. It will pay for itself by the time Francine wakes up. Before we go do anything, the opportunity cost will already be recouped. There is no point to not lowering any Daughter-derived skills in these voting plans by one level in order to grab a level of Knowable Kadath.
>>
>>3798086
Francine:
>Creation's Strings x2
>Hand of the Queen x4
>Primordial School x3
>Borrowed Stoicism
>Knowable Kadath
Putting 3 points into Creation's strings in order to see where the diverging point is located between the two cores of similar ability. Knowable Kadath would be a good long term investment.

Although it does make me wonder what would happen if we hybridize the two cores. Creation's strings is a Neuromancy/Fibromancer hybrid while Hand of the Queen is Neuromancy/Flesh Artisan Hybrid. there's a point of similarity between the two. The resulting Tri-hybrid would be a Neuromancy/FleshArtisan/Fibromancy tri-hybrid....ah who am I kidding that's too much mucking about with Francine's kit.
>>
>>3798116
>>3798119
we dont even know how the Vein will end. hardly can guarantee it will be with sleep or a dream daughter visit. plenty, hell most, Veins have no visit to our dreamscape at all.

its not an investment, its a gamble and not worth it either, at least no one people with very little to spread it around in for sure.
>>
>>3798113
Upon further consideration, if I may raise an observation:
Knowable Kadath triggers, at the very least, once per session, every time a character goes to sleep. It may be a one-time investment now, but it has the potential to reap enormous amounts of points in return. It's like buying a money printer.

For that reason, I shall respectfully retract my supporting vote of this post >>3798087

In favor of this one:
>>3798106
>>
>>3798119
er, you have 11 points and they dont match up with what you're saying either.
>>
>>3798127
no, it doesn't. we have literally had a ongoing joke about how Shu doesn't sleep except once every few days at best. trying to force it is also a horrible idea that could easily ruin the flow of a scene or the quest just to use it.
>>
>>3798127
Also, my apologies for any confusion: this
>>3798088

Is my normal handle, but I have to attend to a bit of work away from home, so I'll be using my phone for the remainder of the vote.
>>
>>3798122
We're at the Lair. Everyone has had a long day. We'll all soon have had a big meal. Why would we not sleep? Unless we're attacked out of nowhere, I feel confident that we're going to get the chance to rest. Maybe it's a gamble, but it's one with very small odds of not paying out.
>>
>>3798135
i disagree. especially as it interrupts many other things i want to do trying to hap haphazardly force it onto every character uselessly.
>>
>>3798131
No one is intending to force a sleep schedule for the sake of power leveling. I am merely pointing out that before the end of Body Horror Quest as a whole, we will absolutely have at least one opportunity to sleep again. And even that single instance will result in a point, causing us to break even on our investment. And with future rests, we will more than recoup our investments of a single point for each character.
>>
>>3798128
Oh shit. You're right. Re-amending my vote.

>>3798119
>>3798086
>Creation's Strings x2
>Hand of the Queen x3
>Primordial School x3
>Borrowed Stoicism
>Knowable Kadath

>>3798131
What about the other members of our family? They also need sleep too. I remember in our journeys (when it was still Shu, Rath, Gina, and Isabelle) that we would have our characters sometime sleep in shifts. Sleeping in shifts during travel or having a brief break would make sense.
>>
>>3798143
we cant guarantee it is my point. we simply dont sleep even every other Vein and i also dont like something that will make people try and force the situation to happen even if it makes no sense to do. and yes, i dont trust people to not do that.
>>
>>3798146
>>3798143
>>3798141
>>3798135
but whatever, not going to convince anyone here and its past the threshold for winning along with a few other things. think we have 8/10 points sealed in now.
>>
>>3798153
right. nearly forgot about my job.

>>3798143
>>3798141
>>3798146
>>3798106

Points locked in
>Creation's strings x2 (At least x2)
>Borrowed Stoicism
>Knowable Kadath
>Hand of the Queen (At least x2)
>Primordial School (At least x2)

Points used: 8
Points remaining: 2

All that's left is putting the last two points into a desired skill tree. There's some minor contention in which skill tree to give the two points in.

So Submit your proposals again, reply to this post. this is to finalize Francine's level up distribution.
>>
>>3798160
what? Primordial x4 had 3/4 people voting for it. it won.

well, fuck you then,
>Primordial (x2)
it won its what i wanted so that where im putting the last two.
>>
>>3798160
>Hand of the Queen x1
>Primordial School x1

For a nice, balanced distribution. :)
>>
>>3798165
oh shit. Sorry. my bad.

>>3798169
>>3798165
>>3798160
>>3798135
Vote's finalized.

>Creation's strings x2
>Primoridal School x4
>Hand of the queen x2
>Borrowed Stoicism
>Knowable Kadath
Points used: 10

Points remaining from Pool: 36

Next order of business: Shu
>Points available: 6

Submit Proposals to this post.
>>
>>3798175
Shu, 6 points;
>Spiritus
>Tread (x2)(Hybrid)
>Drill (x3)(Hybrid)

Look, i know it takes a bit of time, but Spiritus is EXACTLY the type of ability our family here would take, and Shu being the leader and one to give out second chances it fits her the best too. Only other person it might fit on(dream Daughter wise) is Gina, but i just dont feel Gina needs another ability like this. Technically Shu doesn't either but it just fits us too thematically NOT to take, and Shu feels like the best fit.
Otherwise, lets just see if the double spiral combo will get us that meme. Free up a slot for Spiritus, and maybe it’ll make me not so lack luster about the Drill. Worse case? Terrible combo and we keep them seperate or just recycle the Drill. Thread too is far from bad, but really fails to shine on its own. Not bad, but feels way too much like just a Terraforming augment to be too invested in.
>>
>>3798160
Actually, looking back, I believe Primordial School had at least 4 points on every vote.

>>3798143

Had three, whereas

>>3798160
>>3798106

Had four, with my vote supporting one of the two. Just double checking the math.
>>
>>3798175
Honestly, I don't think Shu needs anything new except for Kadath. She's got plenty of powers and none of those Hive Mistress Augments really appeal.

>>3798179
Hmm, Spiritus is tempting, your logic is good, but I just don't know. We've got so much on Shu already. Even hybridizing the Drill and Tread, that leaves us seven powers if we include Spiritus. It's a lot. Maybe if we consolidated some other abilities, too? I've noted before that we've got the Maw and Handed in a suitable range to hybridize them via the Sparagmos Engine, that would drop us down to just six abilities to manage: Hive, Double-Drill, Hand-Mouth, Dominus, Halo, Spiritus. But I know some people want to just keep raising Hundred-handed, so that might not go over.
>>
>>3798198
id be willing to give it a look i suppose. just, im not letting up on getting her Spiritus. i do agree i dont like harping on more onto her, but thats why i also want to hybridize the Drill and Tread, or at least see if its time to remove the Drill. this way, we at least are not making the problem worse, only keeping it the same. not the best, but for an ability thats not only that powerful, but so, so thematically perfect for Shu, it think its worth it.
>>
>>3798179
I'll support this. Spiritus is really thematically suitable for Shu, and just imagine a few of our Dream Daughters with insectoid carapaces, charging into battle like a bunch of goddamn Kamen Riders.
>>
>>3798205
Okay, so how about this?

>Remove one level from Ravenous Maw
>Hybridize Ravenous Maw and Hundred-Handed
>Knowable Kadath
>Heaven's Drill x3
>Fear To Tread x2
>Hybridize Heaven's Drill and Fear To Tread
>Spiritus Ex Testa
>If Maw/Hand or Drill/Tread hybrids prove unsatisfactory, revert with Sparagmos Engine, reallocate points then.

I figure that an unappealing Maw/Hand hybrid should just be returned to its components, but if Drill/Tread isn't great then we should either lower Drill back down to level one (just to keep it around in case we ever decide to experiment with it again) and reallocate its points into Dominus, Hive and Spiritus.
>>
>>3798219
This actually sounds like a reasonable approach, I'll change my vote to support this.
>>
I really like fearful symmetry and monozygotic birth. They are too good to pass up. Don’t know if spiritus is worth anything but I do like it
>>
>>3798219
i guess ill agree to this. honestly though we might just have to put the caveat of
*have second vote for Shu later*
as that IS alot of 'what ifs' and possibly very different opinions on what do do if we dont like what we get.
>>
>>3798231
nah, neither one of those is really that good. not bad, but not worth it over other options we have.
>>
>>3798219
Supporting, this is exactly what i was going to suggest

>>3798231
I liked them too initially, but thinking about how we use our constructs, I dont think they are as useful as they seem. We would only save like 30% bio per fight and have a buffed swarmling for maybe 1 round.
>>
>>3798219
>>3798175
well thats 4/5?6? voters?
still a very big majority. no idea how to write that down properly though so its less muddled looking.
>>
>>3798231
Fearful Symmetry, maybe, but I'm unconvinced of Monozygotic Birth. Once per fight, it saves us a bit of Bio. It's not bad, but it's not great, either. The one use I can think for it is that it might allow us to make two Spiritus Daughter-clones at the same time, but since we're unlikely to use Spiritus mid-fight unless high levels greatly reduce the time it takes to use, it's not going to get much use anyway. And even if the high levels are faster, that's still a long way away. I'm in for a long-term investment on Kadath because I see it being a continuous drip of gradual improvement here or there, this is something we'd have to put a level in and then sit on for months of real time. Very unsatisfying.
>>
>>3798243
Hm youre right, Fearful Symmetry does affect all constructs, not just swarmlings like Monozygotic Birth. Might be worth based on that, not sure what we would trade away though.
>>
>>3798243
>>3798247
id be cautious of how that affects the fact a Dream Daughter has to go into one of those constructs. might mess with it in a very bad way. it also might basically be useless, as it might be impossible to use out of combat, which is when Spiritus will work best.
>>
>>3798135
>>3798180

Please submit proposals to this post >>3798175. We are currently deciding on Shu.

My vote:
>Tread (x2)(Hybrid)
>Drill (x3)(Hybrid)

I'm keeping my final point open because I'm torn between Kadath and Spiritus

>>3798179
I have my reservations regarding the Spiritus Ex Testa. We've already seen there are abilities that allow enemy daughters to instagib Constructs (Exhibit A: Dorian's Red Death Crits) when certain conditions are fulfilled, And I would rather not deal with the fact that we have a chance to lose dream daughters like that. It's time consuming, and it more or less fits a solo build. It's nice to let them stretch their legs, but sending them into battle like that, I don't know if I can take that sort of thing. I do hope we can retrieve them and stuff the construct body back into Shu's back when they're done with their "Walk in the waking world".

Also, I do find something hilarious in Hindsight. Had Sam opted to stay inside Shu's body and hung out more often, we would've definitely picked up Spiritus and given Sam the privilege to freely walk around in a disposable Construct body that she could pilot and then return when she's done.

>>3798219
Well that's super finicky, lots of hoops to jump through, but it surprisingly works if we save a level up points worth of flesh in the feast and then used the Engine to fuck around.

I'll support this.

>>3798231
It's nice, but we're working with a 30 swarmling cap limit. If we took the Swarm path when we made our choice, then the Augments would've made much more sense. But with our current build? Not so much.

>>3798236
>>3798232
>>3798229
>>3798219
Looks like we have a general consensus then.

Shu
>Heavens Drill x3
>Fear to Tread x2
>Save one level up point from the feast
>Use engine to remove one level up point from Ravenous Maw
>Consume Feast meat while using the engine to gain Spiritus Ex Testa and Knowable Kadath
>Points used: 6 (Technically 7, but we're using the engine to shuffle points around)

>Points left from the meat pool: 30

>>3797976
Bhop. Is the above possible? Checking for confirmation.

>>3798247
Not enough points available from agreed upon distribution.

We done with Shu? We done Shu from the looks of the unanimous consensus.

Next thing on our list: Mr. Dorian Gardner.

Points Available: 6

Submit your proposals to this post.
>>
>>3798251
Yeah, it depends on how much the Daughter-copy differentiates during construction. If it's a blank template and only turns into a clone after the mindstate is installed, then making two iterations at the same time would work fine. We can just install two different Dream Daughters. But if you have to custom-build a different body for each Dream Daughter, then making two copies likely would be pointless. But as I said, I'm against taking it anyway. It would just sit there in our inventory, taunting us, for all those levels until Spiritus can be made quick enough for combat use. Pass.
>>
>>3798260
Dorian, 6 points;
>Blitzkatzen
>Red Death (x2)
>Thread
>Jack
>Charge
Blitz is perfect for Dorians build. The rest is just obvious, good abilities, level them up.
>>
>>3798260
(Your proposition is absolutely possible.)
>>
>>3798260
>Also, I do find something hilarious in Hindsight. Had Sam opted to stay inside Shu's body and hung out more often, we would've definitely picked up Spiritus and given Sam the privilege to freely walk around in a disposable Construct body that she could pilot and then return when she's done.
Yeah, if we had felt we could trust her. That ship sailed a long time ago, sadly. Sometimes I feel bad about Sam. Not for Sam, she's not particularly likable. But I do feel like there was possibility there for some interesting interactions that we largely rejected because we just couldn't stand her. Gives me a little twinge of regret for what could have been. Oh well.
>>
>>3798251
Yeah this one might require the word of BHOP.

I hadn't considered that the dream daughters we have might not want to fight either. Uzu for one definitely doesn't seem like she would want to come back out.
>>
>>3798260

My vote:
>Unrelenting Cold
>Blitzkaten
>Emotion's Casing
>Resplendent Thread
>Spring Heeled Jack
>Accumulating Charge.

The reason why I voted for Unrelenting Cold is because Dorian's penchant for running around would making him a Running storm of frost, wires, blades, electricity, and Fear. Simply running by an enemy without attacking and them entering Dorian's Frost and Fear field would make them accumulate so many stacks from his presence. Emotion's Casing would also make the Fear and Terror Effects that Dorian radiates more potent. Which I wonder. Unrelenting Cold and Verurteilung would make a very potent Phantasmal/Generator Hybrid.
>>
>>3798260
>Blitzkatzen
>Critical Pride
>Knowable Kadath
>Resplendent Thread x1
>Spring-Heeled Jack x1
>Accumulated Charge x1

Blitzkatzen ensures that when he uses his Spring-Heeled charges, he strikes first, and gives him first-strike capability with the Resplendent Threads. Critical Pride boosts his critical hits even further, criticals are one of Dorian's cornerstones. Kadath for the usual reasons. Resplendent Thread to further the usefulness of his wires, I'm looking forward to Dorian getting that monofilament field that Vultha had. And Jack and Charge to bring Dorian ever-closer to being the Flash. Should we hybridize those two at some point? Not immediately, I do want to see their native higher levels, but speed plus lightning has to hybridize together really well, right?
>>
>>3798279
I'll vote for this.
>>
>>3798278
Unrelenting cold is wasted on him, im saving that for Rath. the issue is, Dorian simply wont put it too good use, him moving around weakens its aura and ability to keep it at its strongest. plus, he doesn't need a way to keep opponents still, Rath does.

Emotions Casing is worthless on him. Verteilung does not do stacks, and his Cores stacks are too difficult and rare to be worth trying ot rely on.

>>3798279
i disagree on Critical Pride too. Another one i want on Rath, but mostly Dorian has Crit chance across the board already, he wont really be putting it on anything, and one level alone isnt worth it in my opinion over putting the point into another of his abilities.
>>
>>3798279
My plan, eventually, is to hybridize Jack and Charge at rank 10 for maximum potential.
>>
>>3798287
>i disagree on Critical Pride too. Another one i want on Rath, but mostly Dorian has Crit chance across the board already, he wont really be putting it on anything, and one level alone isnt worth it in my opinion over putting the point into another of his abilities.
You know, you're right. He's more about volume of crits than individual potency, he doesn't need that. Changing my vote.

>>3798260
>Blitzkatzen
>Knowable Kadath
>Red Death x1
>Resplendent Thread x1
>Spring-Heeled Jack x1
>Accumulated Charge x1

Putting that level into Red Death, instead, keep expanding his Core competencies.
>>
>>3798293
>>3798266
>>3798260
ill compromise and change to support this. was just about to put the offer forward anyways.
>>
>>3798289
Actually, non-hybridized skills top out at level fifteen, now. It used to be regular ten, hybrids fifteen, Cores twenty. But BHOP changed it to all non-Cores maxing at fifteen because he thought we'd reach level ten too quickly and he didn't want us to run out on those skills. We then proceeded to only get three skills to level ten across the entire party, after all this time, because we picked up too many shinies at the Spiraling Fear and now we're having to work to consolidate them together into hybrids so as to not completely bog down future leveling. What arrogant fools we were. I mean, admittedly, these are some really great skills and we've put them to good use, but still. Fools!
>>
>>3798289
>>3798301
i guess i can see those two working well together, but man, im starting to feel like we might have the opposite problem on Dorian than on everyone else.
>>
>>3798301
Oh my. I must have missed that - this changes things tremendously, thank you for letting me know about this.
>>
>>3798303
I'm not too worried. Dorian's got enough skills that it will be quite some time before he maxes them out. Worst case scenario, we can throw Verurteilung into Red Death and Resplendent Thread into the eventual lightning speed skill, that will get us another forty levels to fill up.
>>
>>3798309
o yeah, some want to add Ver to Red to make him even more of a scary vampire. i guess he'll be getting black and maybe yellow into his red color scheme possibly.

actually, wasn't someones goal to add a 'color' ability from each other rainbow or something to his core, so he eventually is back to having his full colors back? id actually think so long as it made sense, that also might be one of the few over 3 hybrids to work out, but personally that sounds like more work than is worth it.
>>
>>3798316
Yeah, I remember that idea. We were thinking about getting him other Humoral skills for other pigments with those humors, but we never did anything with that because of how Humoral skills shift to the user. They'd just become more sanguine skills, we couldn't toss in choleric for yellow or anything like that. We'd have to pursue other Flesh Artisan skills to give him more colors, I think.
>>
>>3798303
I sorta agree with you. Dorian's got too few diverse skills that help expand his skillset and role aside from being a Skirmisher.

>>3798316
You can always incorporate blue Frost by giving him the Unrelenting Cold ability. Dorian's gained a sort of running them where he has the potential to become this walking aoe aura of terror and electricity that insta-kills constructs. And I really wanted to add Frost to the mix, so that Daughters that don't flee Dorian's fear aura get frozen from the freeze stacks or from the rare TERROR status.

BUT ENOUGH TALK GENTLEMEN


Current tallies so far:
>>3798298
>>3798293
>>3798282

Unanimous:
>Blitzkaten
>Resplendent Thread
>Accumulating Charge
>Spring Heeled Jack
>Red Death

Knowable Kadath's got 3 votes which puts it into a winning majority.

Final votes have been locked in

Dorian:
>Blitzkaten
>Resplendent Thread
>Accumulating Charge
>Spring Heeled Jack
>Red Death
>Knowable Kadath
Points used: 6

Points left in Feast Pool: 24

Next topic: Rath

Points available from agreed upon distribution: 6

Please submit your proposals to this post.
>>
>>3798332
Rath, 6 points;
>Critical Pride
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Indignant Ignition (x2)
Unrelenting Cold will work spectacularly on someone who stays close to an opponent, and thats Rath. imagine having Rath hounding on you with her raw power while you slowly becomes unable to move or run away? Utterly terrifying and devastating. Rath also has some slots open id argue in her kit. Halos are kinda a passive on their own, and i dont count towards the total number of level ups personally. Then Fingers while nice, is wholly non combat based, so i feel giving it an exemption isnt unfair either. Alabaster...unsure of, but regardless i do feel she has some room for it without it bogging things down, what with Halo and Fingers really not being something in the way or to be leveled very often.
Pride actually helps Rath alot, as i dont think she actually has much Critical Chance, so any bit helps.
Pangaean plus Northern makes Raths entire Kit basically able to shift and become horribly potent against different enemy types. Being able to just shift basically her entire kit to cold damage with added benefits is insanely powerful.
>>
>>3798334
Critical Pride doesn't increase critical chance, it just allows abilities that can't normally score criticals to do so. Which is something I'm not sure if that applies to anything Rath has. BHOP, can you clarify for us? What skills does the party have that don't inflict critical hits?
>>
>>3798339
Forwarding question to >>3798014
>>
>>3798339
i think that means any that dont mention it, which i think little to none of Raths do.
>>
>>3798334
I think you're forgetting about a critical aspect of Rath's augmentation:
Pangaean Arsenal allows Rath to toggle off Cystemic Burn, which means Rath gets back the ability to throw conventional Cyst Bombs that explode and have the potential to rupture people's eardrums and the like. And Northern Lights would also alter Rath's bombs into Freeze Bombs.... Did we just make Rath into a Bomberman?
>>
>>3798347
i mean, fair, but that just sounds like more of a reason to do the combo on her, not less.
>>
>>3798344
I'm not sure. The fact that we have powers that increase critical chance in general instead of specifically allowing criticals (such as Frozen Fury) make me think that there's a baseline potential for criticals in a lot of attacks, and that the ones that don't are the exceptions.

>>3798347
Don't forget that Indignant Ignition would still inflict the effect of the Radiant Boils for three turns after striking an enemy, so Frost Boils would keep blinding the enemy over and over.
>>
>>3798339
(Passive damage and effect fields, for one. It essentially allows your status ailments to score critical hits. For instance, Vererteilung's fear flaring ability could crit, which has the potential to inflict the TERROR status and simply make a foe lose their mind. In another example, stacks can crit as well, essentially boosting their potency my several orders. Like >>3798344 said, if something doesn't seem like it could crit, it certainly can while Critical Pride is in play.)
>>
>>3798356
So on Rath, it would only be the passive damage aura from getting close to her in Ignition? I'm not sure that's worth it, then.
>>
>>3798356
oh, i was totally under the impression it only gave crits to attacks. ok, wow, that changes things a bit. to be fair though, Dorian still had little that would add to, but now im unsure if Raths the best of it either, hrm.

still hard to tell, as only Raths Super Limb eating Punch mentions anything about crits still.
>>
>>3798359
(Her cold fields and status effects could as well, accumulating FROST stacks at a dangerous pace and resulting in the blindness lasting for much longer than the boils themselves. It gives practically everything a Daughter does a chance to crit, essentially.)
>>
>>3798332
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Knowable Kadath
>Critical Pride (critting bombs? yes please)

More generally, what counts as a resistance? Are they always called out specifically? Because Hunger's Masochism seems powerful but I don't think any of the party has 3 levels yet. I would love for Rath to just be able to eat all cold, heat, and radiant damage. Or even more if we level up endoskeleton.
>>
>>3798370
Resistances are very clearly stated as such and at what level they are at, for the individual ability at least. id assume they stack if more than one ability is a source.
>>
>>3798370
also you defeat the purpose of taking Pangaean without taking Northern lights. without an entirely new damage type her kit really doesn't have enough to justify taking Pangaean.
>>
>>3798352
I was hyping the augmentation, I wasn't disagreeing with you.

What I do disagree with you is you skipping out on Glacial Form.
The Nullification of Accelerating Timer-based abilities and the cold resistance would Give Rath more control over the scenario as well as giving her a good defense against Stack Status ailments regardless while augmenting Rath's "FROST FIRE FORM"
>>
>>3798362
They're still attacks, BHOP wouldn't have specified passive damage if active damage didn't have a chance to crit already. I'm still not sure it's worth it. I guess it would be cool to give the Unrelenting Cold the ability to crit, but it doesn't seem that necessary. That thing is already a nightmare to fight in melee, as we saw. How about Glacial Form, instead? Helps keep the stacks off of her, so that she doesn't get caught by enemy auras while she's laying on with her own.

My vote
>>3798332
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Knowable Kadath
>Indignant Ignition x1

Not sure what to do with the last point. Either Glacial Form or a level of Alabaster Endoskeleton.


>>3798366
Yeah, I was just talking about her current build, got a bit mixed around. Oh, hey, I just thought of something, though: Does Cystemic Burn apply to Unrelenting Cold, if she were to take it? It's a Generator mod, Unrelenting Cold is a Generator hybrid. Would that turn it into...I don't know, some sort of sweltering aura instead? Inflict Stacks of HEATSTROKE instead of Frost, impair the enemy that way?
>>
>>3798382
eh, i dont see it was worth it over other options.

>>3798383
i guess fair. id like to get Ignition up more than just one level personally.
>>
>>3798383
(It would prolong the effects of her current elemental layout, and I may do a short write-up of it in the next day or so. As far as unrelenting cold, switching it to heat would absolutely shift the stacks to heat-based ones...and HEATSTROKE is a much better name than I had in mind, so that's what they're called now.)
>>
>>3798332
>>3798334
changing vote to;
>Glacial Form
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Indignant Ignition (x2)

Glacier is better than Kadath at least.
>>
>>3798332
My vote:
>Knowable Kadath
>Critical Pride
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Indignant ignition

This is to make everyone happy, as it's got a bit of everything that people like.
>>
>>3798379
Yeah sorry I just forgot it, it does buff the cysts too though.

>>3798332
Amending
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Knowable Kadath
>Critical Pride (critting bombs? yes please)
>Northern Lights
>Hunger's Masochism

Even though no one else is voting for it, I think masochism fits Rath thematically in facetanking for the team and will also become very powerful. If we upgrade Unrelenting cold to hopefully get resistance and alabaster endoskeleton to get other resistances there suddenly she is able to heal left and right, especially if someone else can buff her with other resistances. We can always recycle it later, but if we lose it now it's gone forever.
>>
>>3798383
well, we have a 5/6 points locked down, with you missing one that could lock the last one or move us on to a new vote for the last.
>>
>>3798393
I'll second this. Masochism sounds like a good fit for Rath's build.
>>
>>3798393
Glacier would do her much more good than Maso, if we are going to give her more defenses.
>>
>>3798332
>Glacial Form
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Knowable Kadath
>Indignant Ignition x1

Glacial Form worries me. On the one hand, lowering it to "just" three negative stacks per round still isn't great. On the other, what if that's actually really good and we'll face a lot of foes that can apply that many stacks in one round? I'm going to take a chance on it.

>>3798405
Yeah, I'll go for Glacial Form. It will help, I think. The cold resistance won't hurt, either. And hey, it will give the funny scenario of Rath feeling cold until she suddenly bursts into flame, that should make cuddling with her interesting.
>>
Unanimous
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Unrelenting Cold

Majority (3/4)
>Indignant Ignition
>Knowable Kadath

Edge cases split 50:50 (2/4):
>Critical pride

Singletons: (1/4)
>Glacial Form
>Hunger's Masochism

Well, then we have a consensus:
>Indignant Ignition
>Knowable Kadath
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Unrelenting Cold
>Critical Pride

>>3798405
Not by my tally. we have 3 unanimous, 2 majority, and 1 that's a 50/50
>>
>>3798413
well, yours was wrong at the time of mine posting then, as Purple ID hadnt fucked everything and gotten us Critical, which, you could've prevented and gotten us Glacier instead like you wanted if you hadn't tried to play all sides.

but yes, now it is all 6 locked in even if you change your vote.
>>
>>3798416
....
Goddammit. Should i re-tally or should we move on?
>>
>>3798422
up to you.
your Critical Pride vote will lock in either Critical or Glacier(assuming thats what you actually wanted)
otherwise everything else is locked in.

Re-tally if you like though, lord knows last minutes changes pop up on you unexpectedly.
>>
>>3798428
I'll stay by my vote then. Locking in. I've given it a thought decided that the Fibromancer aug that gives everything the chance to crit would be worth more than the Glacial form, considering the amount of things that could proc from Rath's abilities.

Moving on then....
Next up: Julia

Points available as per agreement: 6

Points left from level up feast: 18

Please submit your proposals, and if you ARE going to second someone's proposal please link your support to this post as well.
>>
>>3798443
Julia, 6 points;
>Emotions Casing
>Carnivorous (x2)
>Depressive(Hybrid)
>Frozen(Hybrid)
>Digestion
Emotions good for her. Carnivorous is kinda now a good central part of her build, so give it some love.
Lets see what Frozen and Depression make. I mean, both are right there, so may aswell check. Both are really good even on their own, so its hardly a waste of levels to see.
>>
>>3798443
also, i see some of the pain of being the arbiter is starting to show through, i know the pain. good job so far though.
>>
>>3798443
>Emotion's Casing
>Knowable Kadath
>Badger's Barbarism x1
>Depressive Weight x1
>Frozen Fury x1
>Hybridize Weight/Fury
>Elemental Digestion x1

Blarg. I am starting to crash. It's like doing late night accounting. Considered Iconoclastic Touch, combine with Artisanal Appetites so that Julia can just brush up against a Relic and disable it. But eh, it's not that important a deal, and she can still eat those things with her skin pretty fast anyway.
>>
>>3798455
er...do you mean Carnivorous? Badgers is hybridized.
>>
>>3798443

I'll support this vote.

>>3798455
>>
>>3798443
Julia:
>Azure Deduction
>Hunger's Masochism
>Depressive Weight (Hybrid)
>Frozen Fury (Hybrid)
>Knowable Kadath
>Carnivorous Carver.

Cold immunity and Hunger's Masochism would make Julia regain health if she fights alongside Rath if Rath's Unrelenting Cold damage type is switched to Cold damage from Northern Lights. Powerful combo. Not to mention Critical hit chance reduction.

>>3798450
I'm slow to respond when I play the Arbiter archtype as I usually try to compromise. Also, being the Arbiter gives me the precarious problem of being the swing-voter and the compromiser when the Arbiter's position is supposed to be unbiased. Being the Arbiter to keep track of votes AND participating in the voting makes me feel dirty when I have the power to tally the votes as well as having the potential to swing votes.

>>3798458
I do think so. He's crashing so I don't blame him.
>>
>>3798458
I got the names mixed around and thought that Carnivorous Carver was the component and Badger's Barbarism the hybrid. Yeah, I'm fading. Gonna try to push through to Amara, at least.

Hold up >>3798461, don't support it yet. I need to repost with right name.

>>3798413
>Emotion's Casing
>Knowable Kadath
>Carnivorous Carver x1
>Depressive Weight x1
>Frozen Fury x1
>Hybridize Weight/Fury
>Elemental Digestion x1
>>
>>3798462
we really do not need Maso when she had Digestion.

same with Azure, at least for the defense. the critical defense is good, but not really so over other options.
>>
>>3798469
Hunger's Masochism turns the damage resistance into damage healing.

Elemental Digestion at the moment doesn't have that trait. Right now it's just damage mitigation and damage resistance build up.
Azure Deduction provides at least cold immunity and the Critical hit defense. That stacked with Hunger's Masochism and Rath's newly unlocked Cold type damage would give Julia an unorthodox source of regen. Any other source of cold damage would be healing damage for Julia which completely protects her from one damage type.
>>
>>3798464
My bad. I saw Badger and assumed you meant Carnivore, but I'll change my vote to this anyway to clarify the situation.

>>3798443
For the sake of linking in order to tally votes properly.
>>
>>3798462
I don't think we need Azure Deduction, but I do like the fact that it would make Julia into a blue-haired dog girl. Amara is a blue-haired cat girl. Blue-haired monstergirls of the post-apocalyptic fleshscape, unite.
>>
>>3798469
>>3798478
Anyways. that's my counterargument. But the votes have been sent in, and I'll shall do the tallying.
>>
>>3798478
for all we know Digestion could too. Hungers also relies on having at least 3 levels, and relying on her being with Rath is silly.

well, regardless, unless Orange boi or another shows up, things look like theres already a consensus.
>>
>>3798483
>>3798462
>>3798445
>>3798461

Unanimous:
>Depressive Weight (Hybrid)
>Frozen Fury (Hybrid)
>Carnivorous Carver (At least 1 point)

Majority (at least 3/5)
Elemental digestion
>Knowable Kadath
>Elemental Digestion
>Emotion's Casing


Seems like a majority.
That's six points used.

Alright.

Next up: Amara

>Points available as per agreement: 6

>Points left in feast pool: 12

Post proposals here, votes that supports other proposals must also be linked properly in order to consider valid.

Two more to go.
>>
>>3798501
Amara, 6 points;
>Honor(x2)
>Joyous Many (x2)
>Queen
>Artillery
Basically just upgrades for her current ones is all she needs.
>>
>>3798502
You do realize that We might have to decide whether or not to hybridize Queen Crimson and Joyous Many since they both hit/passed level 5 at the same time.

>>3798501
My vote:
>Azure Deduction
>Honor's Honor
>Joyous Many (x2)
>Queen
>Knowable Kadath

First off, Amara likes to converse and play with her dream daughter friends. So having a benefit to her bedtime would work wonders. Second, I wanna turn Amara's Cat-ears blue. That and Cold immunity and Lowered Critical hit chance on our squishy Skintalker (and her clones) would make her less fragile.

And I'm also going to say No to Hybridizing Queen Crimson and Joyous Many.
>>
>>3798510
But Azure Deduction would make her a dog girl and not a cat girl!
>>
>>3798501
Yeah, I don't think any of the new things are that big for her.

>Knowable Kadath
>Hollistic Lexicon x1
>Oxygenic Artillery x2
>Joyous Many x1
>Queen Crimson x1

Make her more of a force multiplier. Big wind attacks, more clones, more Carnage symbiote, see what the grab-bag of the Lexicon has to offer this time. Open that mystery box, Amara.
>>
>>3798510
i dont think Azure is worth it and changing her color is a terrible argument for it. she has multiple other methods to stay out of trouble.

also hybrids only happen if both stop on 5/10
>>
>>3798501
>Knowable Kadath
>Queen Crimson
>Joyous Many (x4)

Joyous many has the potential to be absolutely gamebreaking and I am fucking here for it.

Also, separate vote but I would like to fold Verurteilung into something else, it doesn't fit Amara and she never uses it. Honor or lexicon maybe? Or Joyous many to 10.
>>
>>3798511
You're right! crap.

Changing my vote:
>>3798510
>>3798501
>Honor's Honor
>Joyous Many (x2)
>Queen
>Knowable Kadath
>Holistic Lexicon.
>>
>>3798510
>Second, I wanna turn Amara's Cat-ears blue.
I think they're already blue. Amara has blue hair, her ear-fur should be the same color.
>>
well, we could not all agree LESS on what do do here. gotta admit, i did not expect Amara to be the one to shatter consensus.
>>
>>3798520
>>3798512
Lexicon really isnt worth it honestly. i think of it more like a passive, it just really isnt that spectacular when it comes to actual level ups.
>>
>>3798530
I've just got this persistent hope that someday it will be. It feels weird to leave Amara's Core undeveloped, there has to be something good in there. One of these days, we'll find something really good. Might not be today, though.
>>
>>3798534
i mean, its really not. its actual use really is in the Lexicon of Flesh, which just got massively upgraded.
>>
>>3798518
I'm not sure on that. Verurteilung's got utility with it's active FEAR FLARE effect that can be used by all clones. It's a good zoning tool that forces enemies back as well as create confusion in trying to see which Amara is the "real" Amara.

>>3798524
Well there is a sorta-consensus

Unanimous:
>Queen Crimson
>Joyous Many (at least 1 point)

Majority: (At least 3 votes)
>Knowable Kadath

Edge cases (2 votes)
>Hunter's Honor
>Holistic Lexicon
>Oxygenic Artillery (at least 1 point)

Everything else is a toss-up...somehow. What's weird is that if we invest at least one point into the above list, it all adds up to 6 points used in the level up.
>>
>>3798534
I think we need to level it up.

It's a Magikarp ability, weak in the early game but an absolute gamebreaker by the end.

This is the power suite that helped Ozmas win the Crucible.
>>
>>3798540
>>3798518
>>3798511
>>3798535
Mind you I'm not calling the vote here, but just saying this is what I'm currently seeing from the ballot box.
>>
>>3798540
>>3798545
so... voting round 2 then?
3 points locked in?

my vote for the last 3 then is;
>Joyous
>Honor
>Artillery
>>
>>3798546
Sure.

>>3798544
>>3798534
>>3798518
Round 2 everyone!

Locked in:
>Knowable kadath
>Joyous Many (at least 1 point)
>Queen Crimson (at least 1 point)

Points left for Amara: 3

Post your proposals here.

>>3798546
I'll count yours as valid.
>>
>>3798548
My vote for the last 3:
>Joyous
>Hunter's honor
>Lexicon
>>
>>3798540
I think the sneeze cannon can take care of anything Verurteilung can but better honestly. We have other copies of it as well, so we could always get it back if Joyous many upgrades seem like they need it.

>>3798548
Voting
>Joyous Many x3

I want to see what BHOP has in store for later levels of this, anything with exponential growth is always bonkers. IMO this is absolutely the most potentially broken skill in the game we have seen, if it wasn't on an 8 year old whoever had it could probably solo anyone. Being able to fill the field with disposable clones that cost less to make than destroy is huge.
>>
>>3798548
>Joyous Many x1
>Hunter's Honor x1
>Hollistic Lexicon x1

>>3798558
>I think the sneeze cannon can take care of anything Verurteilung can but better honestly.
We actually got rid of the cannon. We swapped it for Oxygenic Artillery, a better version. Much stronger, more versatile.

And yeah, Many is OP, but it still needs the foundation to be pretty strong for the copied units to be effective. Let's not go all-in on it.
>>
>>3798548

I'll support this vote:
>>3798549

>>3798558
Also, Amara is seven, as opposed to eight.
>>
>choosing the useless Core over the Versatile Cannon
well whatever, that brings this to its conclusion then.
>>
>>3798567
Wait, shit, I thought we were already putting a point in Artillery. Sorry, not thinking straight. Let me change.

>>3798548
>Oxygenic Artillery
>Hunter's Honor
>Hollistic Lexicon
>reject hybrid of Queen Crimson and Joyous Many
>>
>>3798568
well, you change nothing but good show at least.

also, i mean, may aswell see what we get. im very positive i wont want the hybrid either, nor do i care to go for it, but if its there might aswell see it.
>>
>>3798562
>>3798558
>>3798549
>>3798546
>>3798563

>>3798567
careful on what you say there m8

Well then.

Grand Majority: (4 votes)
>Hunter's honor
>Joyous Many (at least 1 point)

Majority (3 votes)
>Lexicon

Locked in.

FINAL STRETCH BOYOS

WE'RE BREAKING A NEW RECORD IN THE VOTING TIME DEPARTMENT FOR LEVEL UP FEASTS OF 40 POINTS AND MORE.


Gina.

Points available as per agreement: 6
Points left in level up pool: 6

Submit your proposals to this post. Supporting other votes must also link to this post for validity.
>>
>>3798570
COME ON GENTLEMEN, THE FINISH LINE IS IN SIGHT
>>
>>3798570
Gina, 6 points;
>Knowable Kadath
>Swarm(x2)
>Perfectionist
>Torrent
>Neon
i want to see if Swarm and Perfectionist can help give her some defenses.
>>
>>3798570
Yeah, this >>3798573 is good, even if it took me several reads to figure out it had Neon Ascendant in it. Not sure that Perfectionist will be that good for Gina, it seems focused more on mobility than speed, but hey, we've got a Sparagmos Engine. Can always recycle it if it's sub-optimal. Supporting.

And now I go to bed, because I keep having to re-read sentences multiple times to comprehend them. Definitely need some sleep. Good night, anons.
>>
>>3798579
aw c'mon you're in the home stretch and there might be a round two.

but i understand. night Anon.
>>
>>3798570
My vote:
>Knowable Kadath
>Neon Ascendant
>Alabaster Perfectionist
>Gladiatorial Swarm x2
>Nervous torrent

Somehow Gina feels like she's got the most dysfunctional kit out of everyone in the family after being pigeon-holed as our resident Neuromancy Specialist for so long. I'm thinking that we should put a point into each ability and see what sticks out as unique. Gladiatorial Swarm's a triple hybrid so I'm gonna see if it has that tunneling ability that Meg displayed when we first met her by putting an extra point into it.
>>
>>3798573
I'll support this as well, I'm interested to see what some of these Cores do with a bit of investment.
>>
>>3798580
There might be? Oh, yeah, if enough people disagree. But eh, I think Gina's got a pretty solid set-up, not too much debate over that. I'll try to remain half-awake for a bit longer, though. Just don't be surprised if I make more mistakes like "mobility than speed" up here >>3798579. Meant "than defense".

>>3798584
I think it's because we haven't gotten the chance to play with these abilities yet, see how they interact to make a coherent set of strategies. Though I can already see one obvious one, using Neon Ascendant to control Nervous Torrent with Hydroformer. Just puke/cry/pee out a lake full of acid, then go waterbender on it.
>>
>>3798573
Supporting
>>
>>3798584
>>3798586
>>3798589
well nevermind we were all on the same page here. unexpected but i dont think anyone will complain.
now i guess just get BHOP the final results and hope a swarm of people dont show up and throw everything into a chaotic mess.

>>3798591
yeah ok at this point im getting worried Gina herself is doing this through the computer screen.
>>
Weren't we going to get Gina's capstones for Amethyst Jack and Neurotic Halo when we got the levels for it?
>>
>>3798595
potentially when SHE did, not just in levels alone. that would be insane to feed someone already slightly above the curse 10 levels just for that.
>>
>>3798580
>>3798586
>>3798579
>>3798591

Well sonuva gun. we've got a unanimous consensus from 4 voters which counts as a grand majority if purple ID abstains from input.

That's the end of the voting session. And we did it in record time too! It only took 4 and a half hour since voting officially started:
>Start time: 8:30 pm EST
>End time: 1:00 am EST

I'll consolidate all of the voting results.
>>
>>3798596
sorry, 15 levels, not 10. ones her core.

>>3798597
ive already got it, if you want to save yourself some time.
>>
>>3798598
I was going to do the work of consolidating since I volunteered to be arbiter. But since you've got the tallykeeping I'm not going to argue. Thanks for the help.
>>
>>3798600
no problem.

>>3797863
here you go BHOP;
46 level-up Points!

Francine, 10 points;
>Strings (x2)
>Primordial School (x4)
>Hand of the Queen(x2)
>Borrowed Stoicism
>Knowable Kadath


Shu, 6 points;
>Heaven's Drill (x3)
>Fear To Tread (x2)
>Spiritus Ex Testa
>Knowable Kadath
>Remove one level from Ravenous Maw
>Hybridize Heaven's Drill and Fear To Tread
>Hybridize Ravenous Maw and Hundred-Handed


Dorian, 6 points;
>Resplendent Thread
>Accumulating Charge
>Spring Heeled Jack
>Red Death
>Blitzkaten
>Knowable Kadath


Rath, 6 points;
>Indignant Ignition
>Unrelenting Cold
>Pangaean Arsenal
>Northern Lights
>Critical Pride
>Knowable Kadath
Julia, 6 points;
>Depressive
>Frozen
>Carnivorous
>Digestion
>Emotions Casing
>Knowable Kadath
>Hybridize Depressive and Frozen


Amara, 6 points;
>Joyous(x2)
>Queen
>Honor
>Lexicon
>Knowable Kadath


Gina, 6 points;
>Swarm(x2)
>Perfectionist
>Torrent
>Neon
>Knowable Kadath


i look forward to seeing you all at the Hybrid votes... because our work is never done, is it?
anyways, i need a shower then a nap. and by nap, i mean pass the FUCK out.
>>
>>3798605
>i look forward to seeing you all at the Hybrid votes... because our work is never done, is it?
And consumable Relics. The crazy scribblings and whatever those two jars Lepisma had are full of. So yay, we get to do this all again in twelve hours. And yet, despite it all, we're clearly enjoying ourselves. What is wrong with us?

Anyways, good night, everyone. See you tomorrow.
>>
>>3798605
Whenever voting sessions for Level-ups happen, I can't help but imagine a courtroom or a conference room full of Bumblebee swarmlings talking and debating among themselves inside Shu's spine.
>>
>>3798609
>>3798605
Goodnight gentlemen.
>>
>>3798605
I can look over these and consolidate whatever stat increases are earned from these abilities. Give me a bit and I'll whip something up.

>>3798613
>>3798609
>>3798605
Goodnight, everyone, and congrats on another successful voting session.
>>
>>3798610
Wow thats a great image
>>
>>3798615
Sure, but ill probably wait til after the hybrid vite to update the sheets.
>>
Had to scroll all the way back up to figure out when voting ends and Jesus this took a lot of back and forth, a chill time indeed though

>>3797863
>"Yo, hold it! I wanna hear about the ants!" Rath chimes in as she strides up to you, giving you an affectionate pat on the back.
>"Aunts? But I'm right here." November replies in a deadpan tone, and Rath just shoots her a withering glare as both Dorian and Julia start to crack up.

Also I feel like this joke did not get nearly the appreciation it deserves.
>>
>>3798619
Makes sense, once that all ends we'll have the full info from the rest of the abilities that BHOP will post. Until then, though, these are all of the stats from the abilities listed in the Pastebin.

FRANCINE:
>Hand of the Queen: Health +240%, Bio +240%
>Primordeal School: Health +80%, Bio +180%
>Borrowed Stoicism: Health +80%
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%

>Total: Health +400%, Bio +580%

SHU:
>Spiritus Ex Testa: Bio +100%, Bio Regen +20%
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%
>Ravenous Maw -1: Health -10%

>Total: Health -10%, Bio +180%, Bio Regen +20%

DORIAN:
>Blitzkatzen: Health +140%
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%

Total: Health +140%, Bio +80%

RATH:
>Unrelenting Cold: Health +80%, Bio +160%
>Pangaean Arsenal: Bio +200%, Bio Regen +100%
>Northern Lights: Bio +150%
>Critical Pride: Health +100%, Health Regen +40%
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%

Total: Health +180%, Bio +390%, Health Regen +40%, Bio Regen +100%

JULIA:
>Emotions Casing: Bio Regen +60%
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%

Total: Bio +80%, Bio Regen +60%

AMARA:
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%

Total: Bio +80%

GINA:
>Knowable Kadath: Bio +80%

Total: Bio +80%
>>
>>3798389
>>3798383
>Rath putting Heatstroke stacks on a daughter.
Heat stroke is a dangerous thing.

Victims of heatstroke experience heat cramps (muscle cramps caused by excessive heat), rapid breathing, and dizziness. Severe symptoms would start involving hallucinations, confusion, loss of IQ, and eventually comas and loss of consciousness.


Comparing that to Hypothermia and a deep limb freeze...it's a matter of Rath deciding "in what way Rath jams dildos up their asses?"
>>
And of course I miss the discussion and vote. Damn time zones.

It's a shame Shu isn't getting Fearful Symmetry and Monozygotic Birth, since those augments pair well together and really boost Shu's middle-of-the-road Hive Mistress progression. Of well.
>>
>>3798610
>>3798617
that is a funny mental image yeah.

>>3798626
i think its less no one appreciated the joke or had any thoughts on what was going on, so much as getting everything prepared and discussing the level-up options is such a big and time consuming task it didn't feel like the right time to discuss anything else.

>>3798656
worse? with Crucible rules, she can probably stack both on someone.

>>3798811
we had our reasons, if you go back and look.
>>
>>3798868
>worse? with Crucible rules, she can probably stack both on someone.
The only thing that's holding Rath back is that switching the two augmentations on the fly is that it takes 1-2 acts to fully switch. Cystemic Burn doesn't really jive with Northern lights when both Augs are Active since one of them changes the damage type to a fiery napalm effect while the other changes the damage type to cold.

By that logic they sorta cancel each other out?

Because this is the logic that I think applies when it comes to Rath's Cysts.

>Cystemic Burn and Northern Lights inactive = Regular Explosive Cyst bombs
>Cystemic Burn active, Northern Lights inactive = Napalm Cyst bombs
>Cystemic burn inactive, Northern Lights inactive = Explosive Frost Cyst Bombs
>Cystemic Burn and Northern Lights active = ??? (Something that deals cold damage over time by sucking out the body heat. Liquid Nitrogen payload?)
>>
>>3798875
probably liquid nitrogen basically yeah. just a sticky version. technically Cyst Burn doesn't change Raths Boils damage type, only effect how its applied, so the two actually dont conflict at all, and due to the fact Cyst technically doesn't deal with damage type it has no protections on it from stopping or interfering with Northern lights damage type change.

also dont forget Raths Core Hybrid is Generator too, so now she can be an ice queen. doesn't fit her personality but useful all the same.

actually, we have been thinking about this wrong.
Cyst Burn only applies to her boils, its an Ability Augment, not a Passive Augment. it works on Ignition only due to Boils being hybridized into it. so it cant effect Unrelenting Cold. Northern Lights however is a Passive Augment, so when it applies it'll change all her Generator abilities, not only the ones we want. granted that ones not as bad, as if we need to switch her damage type anyways its probably best to do it to ll her abilities at that point, but that does leave Unrelenting Cold behind a bit.
>>
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>>3798605

Wow. I either chose the right or the wrong night to be unavailable. Looks super tight though.
>>
>>3798887
Wouldn't Cystemic Burn would also be considered a passive augment since it implicitly has the Fire Damage tag applied on it? The DoT effect but that's a result of how Fire interacts.
Woe be anyone when Rath discovers the augmentation that changes her damage type to RADIANT (aka nukes) unless I'm mistaken.

Also, I just realized that Rath won't be hurting for Bio regen. Pangaean Arsenal gave her a big boost in bio regen which puts her at 120% bio regen. And the overall stat boosts from her new purchases would put her at 1580% hp.

Font of Suffering would give her a guaranteed hp regen of at least 158% hp per turn (current hp regen after consume purchases put her at 190%hp regen), but I'm not sure how that would play with Rath's Ignition mode.

>>3798389
Font of suffering says that Rath's Regen may not be suppressed, but Ignition says hp regen is negated in exchange for converting hp regen into bio regen while in ignition. So which ability has priority? Ignition or Font of suffering?

If Font of suffering overrides Ignition, then Rath would take 20% hp damage but then recover 10% of her maximum hp which would more than cover the cost of having Rath go human torch and theoretically let Rath burn forever, making her borderline broken in the mechanical sense.

If Ignition overrides Font of Suffering, then that makes Ignition an ability that Rath has go full burn in order to gain full effects, takes its mandatory 20% hp toll, but also reigns Rath's ability kit to a reasonable yet strong build, but leaves Font of Suffering at an awkward spot where it's only useful when Rath isn't on fire.
>>
>>3798929
poor wording on my part i guess? i just dont know what else to call the Augments in 'Other Abilities' that are Passive and apply to all her Abilities, compared to ones that are Ability specific like Cyst. Cyst may be passive, but i have to call it something different to point out it works differently, hence, due to it being Ability Specific, its an Ability Augment, over being a Passive Augment, for categorization purposes.
>>
>>3798929
also, he has answered the Font of Suffering question before... but for the life of me i cant actually remember what he said. think its the second one though. no idea which Vein he did it in either, but if i had to guess, would probably be at least after she gained Font of Suffering.
>>
>>3798940
It was discussed and speculated by us anons during voting session when we feasted on Isabelle on vein #26 but bhop never made a concrete ruling.
>>
>>3798605
Seems like a good distribution. I am sad i could not participate in the vote but i think the best choices were made.

Good God it feels good to be back at my own computer and not just follow the quest on a tiny phone screen with a shitty internet connection that dies every twenty minutes....
>>
(Gentlemen, apologies for the radio silence as I've had to focus on work almost exclusively these past few days. I'm picking away at the flavor text for all your new level ups, and I hope to post them some time this afternoon or early evening. I hope everyone is doing well, and I'll also update you all regarding the interactions between Rath's skills and Font of Suffering, but rest assured it's leaning more on the powerful side of the options presented.)
>>
>>3799018
sorry to hear works still not going too smoothly, but we understand.
>>
>>3799018
No worries, BHOP. I think you might have gotten your scheduling confused, though, because you're not late. You told us to expect this time frame, you've got nothing to apologize for. I'm sorry that work has been so hectic for you, though, and I hope it calms down soon.
>>
>>3799018
Just keep calm its no problem

We excpected this timeframe
To be honest i expected it to take even longer just for voting to start
>>
>>3799018
here, have a cute bee pic to lighten your day.
>>
>>3799037
You know, it just occurred to me that FuzzBuzz does not have eyelids and so his eyes are always open, even when sleeping. Not sure if that makes him less cute because it's creepy or more cute because it increases his resemblance to a stuffed toy.
>>
>>3799050
why not both?
Amara clearly doesn't care and really, thats all that matters. i bet FuzzBuzz has to put up with alot of shit from her though. cute, innocent kid shit, but still shit. FuzzBuzz, the anxiety riddled bee.
>>
>>3799056
But he loves her anyway. The ideal companion and probably the best aid a Mother could want when bringin up her adopted child with a voice that can kill gods.

And i am not sure if Guardian Buzz can feel anxiety about anything unless it is amara not being in sight
>>
>>3799056
Yeah, he's got both the anxiety of keeping up with a small child's antics and the anxiety of keeping that small child alive in a world full of things that want to eat her. He must get so much happier when we're all back at the Lair (or, in his mind, the Hive). Safe, secure, has many other humans to help guard child and help entertain her.
>>
>>3799050
>inb4 Amara forges a Sleeping mask for FuzzBuzz to wear should it decide to have a dormancy nap.
>>
>>3799070
im just surprised we haven't come home to a frazzled FuzzBuzz covered in a ludicrous amount of hair bows or something. or worse, glitter. maybe even self replicating relic glitter.
>>
>>3799086
That's why we keep Amara busy managing an information network. It is to safe FuzzBuzz from that fate.

>self replicating relic glitter
Oh dear lord no. Most horrifying grey goo scenario ever. Sparkle goo.
>>
>>3799088
>>3799086
>bishie sparkles on everything.
That just turns the horror in body horror into absurdity and back into horror depending on the volume of sparkles, and the viscera-to-sparkles ratio involved.
>>
>>3799088
but Amara can replicate herself to absurd levels. honestly i have no idea how anyone on babysitting duty stays sane.

also the glitter thing was more a joke about how you never seem to be able to fully clean up glitter, but i suppose that is an option it might take sure.

>>3799098
lets get Amara an augment where any bleed effects she causes on enemies makes them bleed out glitter instead.
>>
>>3799101
Fuzzbuzz always knows which clone is Amara Prime, call it a beekeeper's intuition.

>>3799101
>lets get Amara an augment where any bleed effects she causes on enemies makes them bleed out glitter instead.
That's lollipop chainsaw levels of absurd horror.
>>
>>3799101
>but Amara can replicate herself to absurd levels. honestly i have no idea how anyone on babysitting duty stays sane.
Well, currently the clones aren't too smart unless Amara focuses on them, so we can still distract her. Once the clones reach full independent multitasking, though, then we're in trouble.

>also the glitter thing was more a joke about how you never seem to be able to fully clean up glitter, but i suppose that is an option it might take sure.
No, I got it, that's why I'm so horrified by the idea. A tide of glitter, washing over the world. It would be awful.
>>
>>3799105
yeah, but can you imagine the horror of seeing your own blood turning into glitter? not a fun or sane way to go id imagine. it could even be a useful effect, make each bleed effect make Phantasmal stack/percentile abilities 10% more effective or something.
>>
>>3799112
>victims hallucinating their blood turning into rainbow glitter
welp. that's gonna be an insanity effect for Luna's Lunacy.
>>
File: FRANCINE - LEVEL UP.png (2.38 MB, 1280x1336)
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>>3797863

FRANCINE – LEVEL UP

>>CREATION'S STRINGS (Lvl 4): Do no harm. Francine's healing touch has increased in power, allowing her to restore the HEALTH of an ally at a 1 to 1.5 ratio of her own HEALTH siphoned to ally HEALTH restored. A physician's oath, one that Francine has taken to heart...selectively. Baby steps, after all. (HEALTH +40%)

>>CREATION'S STRINGS (Lvl 5): Francine's Core reaches new heights, as she may now use any of her copied skills at a 0% HEALTH or BIO cost on the first turn they become available for use. Additionally, while in the process of unwraveling a foe Francine automatically causes the target's first melee attack directed against herself or an ally to miss, once per turn. (BIO +60%)

>>HAND OF THE QUEEN (Lepisma’s Core - Flesh Artisan/Neuromancer Hybrid, (Lvl 1) - (HEALTH +240%, BIO +240%)

>>HAND OF THE QUEEN (Lvl 2): Curiosity breeds savagery, as for each stack of CURIOSTY Francine possesses, she now inflicts additional HEALTH loss against her targeted foe proportional to the number of stacks she has on hand. Additionally, this HEALTH loss applies to any and all skills Francine uses that directly affect HEALTH. (HEALTH + 60%)

>>PRIMORDIAL SCHOOL (Hive Mistress, Lvl 1): A rather unique power, this Hive Mistress ability grants the user the ability to generate a school of unusually ancient sea-based life forms, skeletal in nature and notably resistant to most elemental damage sources. Inflicting heavy slashing damage to those caught in the swarm’s wake, only time will tell what curious creatures the user will be able to summon from the depths of antiquity. COST: 10% BIO per Ichthyoid. (HEALTH +80%, BIO +180%)

>>PRIMORDIAL SCHOOL (Hive Mistress, Lvl 2): Oddly protective, the swarm now reacts automatically to the first sign of danger. Now, when combat is triggered, Francine automatically summons a number of Ichthyoids up to this ability’s current level. What’s more is that this summoning occurs first in the initiative order, mitigating any surprise attacks that may befall her. (HEALTH +20%)

>>PRIMORDIAL SCHOOL (Hive Mistress, Lvl 3): Francine’s swarm brings their resistant scales to bear against oncoming threats, as Francine now gains a stacking 4% damage mitigation bonus for each Ichthyoid that remains in close range of her. (BIO +40%)

>>PRIMORDIAL SCHOOL (Hive Mistress, Lvl 4): A swarm becomes a feeding frenzy, as each attack inflicted by a given Ichthyoid in a given turn grants all other attacks a 5% CRITICAL CHANCE and CRITICAL DAMAGE boost that lasts until the end of the current turn. (HEALTH +20%)

>>BORROWED STOICISM - (HEALTH +80%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

(Continued)
>>
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>>3799760

SHU – LEVEL UP

>>FEAR TO TREAD (Lvl 4): The sheer rotational force of Fear to Tread’s affected zone is now particularly potent against your foes’ constructs, pinning them to the ground and possessing a sure chance to stun. Curiously, flight-capable enemy constructs find themselves sucked down into the spiral with incredible force, perhaps hinting at this power’s eventual potency… (HEALTH +20%, BIO +20%)

>>FEAR TO TREAD (Lvl 5): Not content to merely retrain the movements of your foes, Fear to Tread now acts as a movement booster for you and your allies by increasing their movement by one additional zone per ACT used to move through the zone. Additionally, once per turn when you or an ally passes through the zone, you have a chance to be moved up in the initiative order, allowing you to act before your aggressors. (HEALTH +40%, BIO +40%)

>>HEAVEN’S DRILL (Lvl 3): Rather obviously for a drill, this skill’s potency against that which would get between you and your target has been increased dramatically. Attacks directed towards a given foe now possess a high chance of tearing through any barriers between you and them, be it terraformed terrain or Artisan-augmented creations. (HEALTH +40%, HEALTH REGEN +20%)

>>HEAVEN’S DRILL (Lvl 4): Strikes with Heaven’s Drill now thrust you forwards to meet your foe, allowing you to cross a short space with a sudden burst of vigor when you uses the Drill to attack. Additionally, stacks of REV-UP increase the area you can cross by once movement zone per stack accumulated. (HEALTH +40%, HEALTH REGEN +20%)

>>HEAVEN’S DRILL (Lvl 5): Walls, barriers, enemies…nothing gets between you and your target. Now, if a foe would attempt to block or counter a Heaven’s Drill strike, their efforts will only get their defensive efforts negated and turned against them, nullifying their defense and instead inflicting them with a severe and automatic critical hit at three times damage. (HEALTH +60%, HEALTH REGEN +30%)

>>SPIRITUS EX TESTA - (BIO +100%, BIO REGEN +20%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

ALERT: HYBRIDIZATION IMMINENT (Voting to follow after Level Ups)

(Continued)
>>
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>>3799764

DORIAN – LEVEL UP

>>RED DEATH (Lvl 8): Fear is a creeping, spreading thing. Now, upon a foe witnessing one of their allies or constructs suffer a critical hit at Dorian’s hands, all foes within line of sight will automatically be inflicted with an instance of FEAR. Additionally, Dorian’s Paintlings will now coalesce into one of his potent familiars if enough are present, with a percentage meter now provided to show how close they are to combining. (HEALTH REGEN +30%, BIO REGEN +20%)

>>RESPLENDENT THREAD (Lvl 2): Striking a target with Resplendent Thread now allows Dorian to initiate a long range and automatically successful grapple, allowing him to fling or drag them along for the duration of the turn to his heart’s content, and with damage continually inflicted equal to the number of movement zones the foe is moved. (HEALTH +60%, BIO +40%)

>>SPRING-HEELED JACK (Lvl 3): Pushing himself faster than ever thought possible, Dorian now gains the passive ability to outpace any foe that would shift their turn before him or make him slip down in the initiative order, locking his place in any given turn. (HEALTH +40%)

>>ACCUMULATED CHARGE (Lvl 4): Dorian now gains a high chance to generate two stacks of CHARGE when he would normally gain one, and at fifteen stacks of CHARGE Dorian becomes a living dynamo, automatically dealing high ELEC damage to all foes within medium range for as long as he remains at that threshold. (BIO +40%)

>>BITZKATZEN – (HEALTH +140%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

(Continued)
>>
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>>3799768

RATH – LEVEL UP

>>INDIGNANT IGNOTION (Lvl 2): Now, when a Daughter, Amalgam, or Construct is brought to Death’s Door or killed outright, two devastating effects trigger. First, Rath lets loose a powerful burst of heat and flame, inflicting considerable damage to all within medium range and marking a failure on the fallen foe’s Death Track. However, if the foe does not make death saving throws then it becomes a living bomb, able to be thrown at another foe as a free action before violently detonating. Second, Rath’s victory grants her a vicious second wind, immediately returning 1 ACT to her, once per turn. If you’re not going to go out with a bang, then why’d you even show? (HEALTH +80%, BIO+30%, HEALTH REGEN +20%)

>>CRITICAL PRIDE – (HEALTH +100%, HEALTH REGEN +40%)

>>PANGAEAN ARSENAL – (BIO +200%, BIO REGEN +100%)

>>NORTHERN LIGHTS – (BIO +150%)

>>UNRELENTING COLD – (HEALTH +80%, BIO +160%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

JULIA – LEVEL UP

>>DEPRESSIVE WEIGHT (Lvl 5): Despair only grows as all Corruption effect thresholds are subsequently reduced by 25%, drastically decreasing the amount of Corruption needed to trigger Julia’s devastating effects. (BIO +20%)

>>FROZEN FURY (Lvl 5): Sorrow turns away the good, as well as the bad. Now, if Julia has any stores of retaliatory damage built up, she will automatically spend them if inflicted with a critical hit to reduce the resultant damage by 2x the stored damage. (HEALTH +30%)

>>CARNIVOROUS CARVER (Lvl 2): Julia may now suppress her feral transformation until the time is right, revealing her howling form as a free action in the first turn of combat while in melee range of a foe, resulting in a high chance to stun said foe and increasing drastically all damage dealt to them until the end of the turn as she catches them off-guard. (HEALTH +40%, BIO +30%, HEALTH REGEN +20%)

>>ELEMENTAL DIGESTION (Lvl 2): No longer limiting your power’s elemental infusion to Julia’s Gluttonous attacks, any melee attack dealt by Julia now carries the elemental affinity of the types she’s absorbed, but with a clever catch. Mulvath’s discerning tastes will negate the elemental addition when striking a foe if it is an elemental type that will help them in any way, stifling the elemental touch if it would be absorbed or redirected. (HEALTH +60%, BIO +80%)

>>EMOTION’S CASING – (BIO REGEN +60%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

(Continued)
>>
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>>3799770

AMARA – LEVEL UP

>>HOLSITIC LEXICON (Lvl 7): Communing with the Fleshscape offers a host of benefits, and as it grows more accustomed to the errant queries of your young ward then so too does it become more forthcoming with secrets of all kinds. Amara now grants the party an increased chance to find more than one Relic at a time, a chance that multiplies itself when acquiring multiple Relics at once. (HEALTH+40%)

>>THE JOYOUS MANY (Lvl 5): Approaching a more perfect symphony of innocent voices, abilities used in unison by the Joyous now gain a stacking bonus to their overall effect or damage output equal to 0.5% per Joyous. While this bonus is lost at the end of the current round, the exponential growth that’s possible with this powerful ability is not to be underestimated. (HEALTH +20%, HEALTH REGEN +10%)

>>THE JOYOUS MANY (Lvl 6): Perhaps taking a page out of her adoptive mother’s handbook, Amara’s Joyous Many now possess the ability to survive a lethal blow with 1% HEALTH remaining. Additionally, Amara now gains a very small boost to her Death Saving Throws for each active Joyous that exist, regardless of their location in the Fleshscape. (HEALTH +30%, HEALTH REGEN +20%)

>>QUEEN CRIMSON (Lvl 5): Having begun to understand the nature and strength of Amara’s love for her family, Queen Crimson has matured accordingly. Now, any defensive properties that Queen Crimson would use to protect its ward now extend to any member of her family that is within close range to her, automatically triggering to protect those that Amara deeply cares for since her rebirth into this merciless world. (BIO REGEN +10%)

>>HUNTER’S HONOR (Lvl 2): A patient blade wielded by impatient hands, Amara may spawn a ‘sheathed’ blade of a given weapon type for 1 ACT and 50% BIO. Leaving this unused at her side begins to gather a powerful charge equal to the number of Amara’s ACTs that have been spent not using the blade since the weapon manifested, with each charge granting the first strike made by the weapon a BASE and CRITICAL DAMAGE boost of 10% for each stack accumulated. (HEALTH +80%, BIO +60%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

(Continued)
>>
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>>3799775

GINA – LEVEL UP

>>NEON ASCENDANT (Lvl 2): Close range is no place for a Neuromancer to find herself in a scuffle, but Neon Ascendant now ensure that she’s not forced into a melee against her will. By priming this ability as a free action, if Gina would be hit more than once by a melee attack from a single source Neon Ascendant now forces a combo breaker and terraforms the terrain to forcibly shunt the source up to one movement zone away at no cost. This forced movement cannot be countered, and the terraformed ground creates a stable barrier between her and the target. (BIO +50%, BIO REGEN +20%)

>>GLADIATORIAL SWARM (Lvl 2): Hungering for combat and the bloody boons it brings, the worms that make up the Gladiatorial Swarm now siphons HEALTH from foes struck by melee attacks while the Swarm is active, restoring Gina's own vitality a rate of 20% HEALTH per strike. (HEALTH +80%, BIO +50%, HEALTH REGEN +20%)

>>GLADIATORIAL SWARM (Lvl 3): A ravenous armor, a ghost with a shell. When wearing her Gladiatorial Swarm, Gina may now move through terrain at a cost of 30% BIO per movement zone traversed. Fully capable of traveling through barriers or underground, she is now granted the unnerving mobility wielded by the original user of this strange power. (HEALTH +60%, BIO +30%, HEALTH REGEN +10%)

>>ALABASTER PERFECTIONIST (Lvl 2): A manifestation of Eloise’s hobby-turned-career, this Calcite Armorer power now automatically manifests a pair of skates along with any melee weapons Gina conjures with it, granting her an extra zone of movement per move action taken. (HEALTH +60%, BIO +50%)

>>NERVOUS TORRENT (Lvl 2): The massive gout of corrosion loosed by Nervous Torrent now renders an area hazardous terrain until the end of the next round, and foes that take actions or end their turn within the affected area will be forced to take heavy acid damage to escape or wade through the roiling cesspool. Additionally, as an added…bonus…the first use of Nervous Torrent costs half the amount of BIO to produce, allowing a volatile opening to a combat that will inevitably swing your way. (HEALTH +50%, BIO +70%)

>>KNOWABLE KADATH - (BIO +80%)

(Continued)
>>
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>>3799788

- HYBRIDS -

HEAVEN’S DRILL & FEAR TO TREAD Hybridization in Progress…

>>FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL (Heaven's Drill/Fear to Tread Hybrid, Lvl 1): Two halves of a whole united at last, Uzu’s ultimate power comes to fruition. Taking the form of a drill creased with white-hot biomass, drills you spawn now completely bypass armor or defensive boosts that the enemy current befits from, and no longer triggers melee counter-attacks from foes it strikes. What’s more, upon drilling into a foe with the Spiral an instance of Fear to Tread is instantly opened where they stand, allowing you to make a quick getaway with its speed-boosting properties while your foe is stunned or keep a relentless pressure on them. Finally, you may now target the center of any active instance of Fear to Tread with a melee attack, increasing its size, efficacy, and stun chance by one tier for each ACT used to empower the terrain. (HEALTH+ 100%, BIO+100%, HEALTH REGEN +30%)

HYBRIDIZE: Y/N?

RAVENOUS MAW & HUNDRED-HANDED Hybridization in Progress…

>>ABBADON’S GRASP (Ravenous Maw/Hundred-Handed Hybrid, Lvl 1): Hands, fingers, joints…all of them grasping, yearning with an insatiable hunger. The hands you spawn now return HEALTH to you equal to half the damage they deal, in addition to their base damage being drastically increased against Daughters and Amalgams. Regarding Constructs, they now inflict an automatic critical hit on contact, allowing you to carve through large hosts of Swarmlings or deal catastrophic damage to a single elite. Finally, once per turn ABBADON’s GRASP can be primed to automatically strike out at the first foe to get too close, or alternatively pull you out of the way of an attacker or effect, moving you up to a medium distance away. Please also note that killing blows dealt with ABBADON’S GRASP also grant you a max HEALTH bonus equal to +50% max HEALTH for a normal kill, and +100% for a CRITICAL kill. (HEALTH +150%, HEALTH REGEN +40%, BIO REGEN +40%)

HYBRIDIZE: Y/N?

DEPRESSIVE WEIGHT & FROZEN FURY Hybridization in Progress…

>>SEASONAL OPPRESSION (Depressive Weight/Frozen Fury Hybrid, Lvl 1): A passive field and an energy storage mechanism now work hand-in-hand to law low the mighty, as Corruption and Stored Power feed into each other freely. Julia now gains a multiplier on her Stored Power equal to one-tenth the current amount, which in turn directly increases the Corruption she inflicts on nearby foes. Meanwhile, when Corruption meets a given threshold it will automatically grant Julia an amount of Stored Power equal to said threshold, allowing her even greater damage output when the time is right. Finally, the field’s effect expands, covering a medium area when active. (HEALTH +120%, BIO +100%)

HYBRIDIZE: Y/N?

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, your patience has been immensely appreciated. Voting shall remain open for the next two hours and if you notice anything out of sorts or vague, please let me know. I hope your Friday has been going well, and well done on the voting, one and all.)
>>
A few questions:

>>3799760
>>>CREATION'S STRINGS (Lvl 4):
What's the ratio for Health siphoned to Health gained by Francine? Can she create a positive feedback loop with this? Siphon 20% Health from an ally, give them back 30%?

>>3799768
>>ACCUMULATED CHARGE (Lvl 4):
Does this combine with the Stormfront Waltz Dual Tech? Would he get two stacks and two separate chances to gain an extra one, or just the one extra chance?

>>3799770
>>INDIGNANT IGNOTION (Lvl 2):
Any time one is killed, or any time Rath kills one? Can this trigger from the rest of the party killing foes?

>>3799775
>>HUNTER’S HONOR (Lvl 2):
Can she spawn this ahead of time? I assume that ACTs stored would reset between fights, otherwise it would be unbelievably OP (though maybe as a capstone upgrade), but could she carry one around so that she doesn't have to spend time making it at the start of combat?

>>3799796
>>SEASONAL OPPRESSION (Depressive Weight/Frozen Fury Hybrid, Lvl 1):
I can't remember, can the field affect allies? It was so short-ranged before that it wouldn't have come up. Because if it can, that feels like the hybrid would be a bit of a risk to use.
>>
>>3799796
>FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL

>Yes

>ABBADON’S GRASP

>Yes

>SEASONAL OPPRESSION

>Abstaining from voting on this one. I am not sure i am in the right mind to vote on this I am kinda tired at 0:30 in the morning

>>3799799
After returning form my business trip it has been going rather well. I really missed writing and am happy i could commit several pages to paper

>>3799768
Question OP was Blitzkatzen a fibromancy power that focused on speed?

Also would there have been more than one Lightning cat?

>>3799775
Another Question Does Hunters Honor generate these stack while she is out of combat as well? I would think no but what is the ruling on that?
>>
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>>3799799
>FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL

>Yes

>ABBADON’S GRASP

>Yes

>SEASONAL OPPRESSION

>Yes

Also, BHOP, this was my face when reading through these upgrades.
>>
>>3799796
>>FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL
>Yes
i dunno, its not bad, i just dont feel i can call that bad, but on its own both still arent doing it for me, and together it just feels kinda clunky. but, its at least an option that gives Shu a handy backup tool, so sure i guess.


>>ABBADON’S GRASP
>no
its not bad, but honestly it feels extremely lackluster compared to either of the two on their own. i think the thing i really dont like is it doesn't feel like its giving or going to give individually enough of either of the things i like from either tree. its combining them but by doing that its getting rid of some of the things i like about both trees too much.


>>SEASONAL OPPRESSION
>Yes
feels like just a direct boost to both abilities honestly. not the most interesting but its not bad. plain, kinda uninteresting, but a good direct boost.


>>3799760
>>3799799
does Primordial School not have a Construct Cap? thought that was a stable of Hive Mistress abilities?
>>
>>3799807
>>CREATION'S STRINGS (Lvl 4):
What's the ratio for Health siphoned to Health gained by Francine? Can she create a positive feedback loop with this? Siphon 20% Health from an ally, give them back 30%?

(She can, yes.)

>>ACCUMULATED CHARGE (Lvl 4):
Does this combine with the Stormfront Waltz Dual Tech? Would he get two stacks and two separate chances to gain an extra one, or just the one extra chance?

(It absolutely combines, correct.)

>>INDIGNANT IGNOTION (Lvl 2):
Any time one is killed, or any time Rath kills one? Can this trigger from the rest of the party killing foes?

(Only Rath can trigger this attack..for now.)

>>HUNTER’S HONOR (Lvl 2):
Can she spawn this ahead of time? I assume that ACTs stored would reset between fights, otherwise it would be unbelievably OP (though maybe as a capstone upgrade), but could she carry one around so that she doesn't have to spend time making it at the start of combat?

(While she can spawn the blade ahead of time, accumulation of IAI does not begin until combat initiates. However, you're quite correct about the capstone upgrade; Cheruem ended most fights in a single stroke when they got close to endgame.)

>>SEASONAL OPPRESSION (Depressive Weight/Frozen Fury Hybrid, Lvl 1):
I can't remember, can the field affect allies? It was so short-ranged before that it wouldn't have come up. Because if it can, that feels like the hybrid would be a bit of a risk to use.

(The field does not affect allies, so they're safe.)

>>3799814
(I'm glad to hear your writing has been going well, Anon. Also, Blitzkatzen was essentially an elemental variant of Spring-Heeled Jack, in many ways. And yes, there are multiple speedster cats Amalgams on the prowl, one of which was actually going to be encountered on the plains, which was one of the available fights around when you met Magpie.)

(Finally, you'll find your question about Hunter's Honor answered above. It does not stack outside of combat at current, I'm afraid.)

>>3799823
(I'm glad you enjoyed them, as I'm rather proud of what they'll be able to do eventually.)

>>3799825
(Primordial School is...very strange, and very rare when it comes to Hive Mistress Variants. You'll find the lack of a swarmling cap is not the only bizarre thing about the tree.)
>>
>>3799799
No worries BHOP, you have perfect timing. I'm just finishing up working myself.

How many clones can Amara control now? Is there still a limit despite the level that gave them a kind of hivemind?
>>
>>3799828
why does it feel like 'very strange' has already become the theme of Francines kit? i guess some things just naturally fall into place.
>>
>>3799830
She's a natural oddity, and I for one love her for it.
>>
>>3799828

Okay that makes it less awkward for me to think about At first i thought it should have be a singular ability since it seemed like a daughter thing to use. Then teh name would have been rather confusing for my brain but if it derives its name form a family of Amalgams then i can process ti correctly without my brain screaming at me that the "n" at the end would be wrong

So the Cat Amalgam was a bit below our league when we encountered it at the shoreleine? Kinda seemed like it could have belonged to that general family of amalgam.
>>
>>3799825
(If I may ask for my own clarification as a designer, you mentioned that there were aspects of both core trees of Abaadon's Grasp that you felt like might not be represented in the Hybrid's later levels. Would you mind elaborating, if it's not too much to ask? At worst it will allow me to tweak some things if you decide to not go for it now, and at best I may be able to assuage some of your fears about where the tree is headed.)

>>3799830
(Honestly, it's so thematically fitting I've been chuckling to myself. You giving School to Francine was honestly the last thing I expected, and completely threw me for a loop. It'll work very well for her, however.)
>>
>>3799838
well, i guess the thing is, Hundred Handed has focused on utility over directly being a damage dealing method significantly, hell almost exclusively. and i love that about it. but the hybrid? it just ignores that part completely in exchange for just more methods of allowing them to deal damage. meanwhile, while it doesnt sound like bad damage, it sounds far from the overwhelming damage and crit chance we get from the Maw if we are able to get a proper bite off, which is what i also love about it.

id much rather keep them separate and keep getting more utility, pure utility, out of Hands, than stop that or muddle it down heavily just for another way of dealing damage we really dont need. same with Maw, id just rather focus on the sheer, awesome brutality of ensnaring someone with a giant tongue, and drawing them into a massive overpowered mouth, and ending that for smaller limb mouths is just... underwhelming. very underwhelming on both sides of the coin.

>>3799823
>>3799814
linking to hopefully sway you guys to not ruin two good abilities over something really not better than what either can give on their own. at least wait til they reach level 10 or 15 please.
>>
>>3799828
>(She can, yes.)
Brillig. Healer role, here we go.

>(It absolutely combines, correct.)
Cool.

>(Only Rath can trigger this attack..for now.)
That "for now" has me hopeful, I have this mental image of Rath and Dorian teaming up to have Dorian tear apart an enemy's constructs while Rath just stands near their creator to chain fire-pulses.

>(While she can spawn the blade ahead of time, accumulation of IAI does not begin until combat initiates. However, you're quite correct about the capstone upgrade; Cheruem ended most fights in a single stroke when they got close to endgame.)
Nice. Not sure we'll ever get it to that level on Amara, but still very nice.

>(The field does not affect allies, so they're safe.)
Great, definitely voting for the hybrid, then.

>>3799838
>(Honestly, it's so thematically fitting I've been chuckling to myself. You giving School to Francine was honestly the last thing I expected, and completely threw me for a loop. It'll work very well for her, however.)
She's going to summon Cthulhu, isn't she? Her name is multiple Lovecraft references, Primordial School makes ancient sea creatures, it hints at weirder things being possible to draw forth, and the Kinetic Remnant's use of it even had the fish flickering in and out of reality. We're getting a Star Spawn at the very least, I'm betting.
>>
>>3799799
Also, everybody, I have compiled all of the stat gains from each of the abilities, including the hybrids (should the votes' outcomes continue as currently predicted).

FRANCINE:
>Total: Health +540%, Bio +600%

SHU:
>Total: Health +440%, Bio +340%, Health Regen +140%, Bio Regen +60%

DORIAN:
>Total: Health +240%, Bio +160%, Health Regen +30%, Bio Regen +20%

RATH:
>Total: Health +260%, Bio +620%, Health Regen +60%, Bio Regen +100%

JULIA:
>Total: Health +250%, Bio +310%, Health Regen +20%, Bio Regen +60%

AMARA:
>Total: Health +170%, Bio +140%, Health Regen +30%, Bio Regen +10%

GINA:
>Total: Health +250%, Bio +330%, Health Regen +30%, Bio Regen +20%
>>
>>3799862
Have we ever made more use of the hands utility than we have until now?(I am not sure and i am a bit tired so i am asking if you have any examples where we uised the for more than grappling and catching people + medium range attacks) because i sure as hell cant remember anything else

To be honest i still have a problem seeing more utility in them than we already have.

We can still pull people in using either the hands or the tounge and the Grasp would allow us to just vaporize Construct swarms without having to rely on Dorian. Then the Maw could still do the critical damage.
>>
>>3799888
i disagree. we have put its utility to tremendous use before, and it has without any shadow of a doubt steadily and very usefully been growing. to cut back on that just for more but less impressive damage than methods we already have? not worth it. the hybrid gives us nothing we need at all, or cant get better from keeping them separate.
>>
>>3799862
(I greatly appreciate your write-up, thank you so much for taking the time to explain. I can say with certainty that while the opening suite of abilities may not be to your taste, the next levels in the tree touch on what you enjoy and elevate it further.)

(That being said, I completely respect your decision if you want to wait on Hybridization. Waiting only makes the core and resultant trees stronger, so it's never a bad idea to wait as both doing it now or later have their merits.)
>>
>>3799862
Yeah, that's a problem I'm having with both of Shu's potential hybrids. They're good, but good enough to abandon leveling their bases? I'd be willing to do it with Firmament just to get it out of the way (though it would certainly get much better with Fear To Tread leveled higher), but I'm not quite willing to leave Handed behind. Even if I really want to reduce the number of skills that Shu is leveling. We have so many, and I don't know if it's too much or not.

BHOP >>3799900, would it be a spoiler to ask how many skills and what average levels are typical of endgame Daughters? Like the Ascendants, they'd be a good example. Ozmas had eight that we know of, but she also had abandoned team play and ate at least one entire city worth of levels by the end. How many was Vultha or Silvis carrying around and leveling?
>>
>>3799898

I would like this Hybrid.
I want to see the next two levels or so and if it is truly not to your liking i am willing to vow that i will vote for redistributing the points and go back to leveling Hundred Handed and the Maw

I will vow to do my best thayt if the hybrid is not all that it is cracked up to be to try and roll that entire thing back using the engine. I swear it upon my own writing. Would that be okay for you?
>>
>>3799903
(Most of the Ascendants that made it to endgame were carrying around five or six skills (most of which were dual or triple hybrids), save for one in particular who was an outlier.
>>
>>3799898
>>3799903
...To be honest, you both make good points. Hundred Handed is super useful, and I want to see what else it can do before we combine it. I

I'll retract my vote to hybridize it from this post.
>>3799823
>>
>>3799900
fair enough, but id still much prefer to wait by a significant margin. both Abilities have simply been too good on their own to take for a start that i still feel is extremely underwhelming for the purposes we use each for on their own.

>>3799903
yeah, Firmament is... iffy still, but i dont think thats the hybrid being worse than either, thats just im not a fan of either by themselves anyways. but its still good enough to not just trash Drill at least i suppose.

Hands and Maw though? they by themselves just outshine the hybrid way too much in my opinion to take it, at least this early.

i can justify Julias with it literally just being an upgrade to both, literally just allowing them to work off eachother to boost themselves, and otherwise it helps clear up more space in her build.
>>
>>3799908
no, its not. as the utility of just focusing on them individually will still be much better, and even if we were going to take it, id want to wait til 10/15 no matter what to ensure we get the most out of Maw and Handed beforehand.

>>3799911
thank you.
>>
>>3799911
oh, you should probably link any vote changes to BHOPs posts, so he sees it clearly. apparently his colorblindess can muddle things up a bit at times.

curious what level/kind he has though. but that feels too personal a question. knew a girl in highschool who only had it in one eye, so would use her hair to always block one eye or the other to not let herself get disoriented. only excuse for that type of haircut ive ever run into.
>>
>>3799910
Hmm. Well, that does make me feel better about our ability to fill out all these skills by the end of the game, but that's still seven skills we'd have to level. And we haven't even touched our Core in...actually only four days, in-game, but still. Been a while since we've upgraded it fro our perspective, I don't want more reasons to put it off. But I think I'm going to reject hybridizing, at least for now. Maybe at level ten for both, but right now I'd at least like to get Handed to the point the hands can spawn from anywhere. If not our enemies for full Nico Robin power, then at least neutral biomass in the ground.

>>3799796
>Firmament's Spiral: Yes

>Abbadon's Grasp: No

>Seasonal Oppression: Yes.
>>
>>3799914
Okay suit yourself.

And you are getting what you want do to from other anons.

I am gettign too tired to have a proper discussion with you.. so..... I will wish all you anons a good night and go to bed before i say something stupid or emberass myself by having undercooked logic(born of a tired mind). Maybe i will see your point after i have gotten up tomorrow.
>>
>>3799928
Ah, thank you for reminding me.

>>3799799
I'll retract my vote to hybridize Abbadon's Grasp from this post:

>>3799823
>>
(Gentlemen, I am afraid that the Internet is down in my area...everywhere, apparently. As a result of not wanting to fight through my phone to try and post, I shall resume posting tomorrow morning. I hope everyone has a good evening, and I shall be around on my phone intermittently throughout the evening to check on the Vein and my connectivity.)

(This week has ended on a note that's quite in character, it seems.)
>>
>>3799796

I have escaped the event horizon of the black hole of work as of late.

>>FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL
No.

>>ABBADON’S GRASP
No.

>>SEASONAL OPPRESSION
Yes... but really no.

I know I'm a schmoe, but I really, and I mean really, want to level things before hybridizing them. I know that the new shiny looks good, especially after seeing what they are independently. However, I really want to see us fuse some at 10, 15, or even when possible 20, because THOSE will be the ones that stand out as fuck you and the Tindalos you rode in on powers I suspect.
>>
>>3800058
well that sucks. your lucks been worse the Laras attempts at fighting us was lately, huh?

can we consider voting open til then, or go ahead and count it closed, or somewhere inbetween with an extension?
>>
just got off work, please wait for me until i get back to my cpu
>>
>>3800067
(Please do, and I'll keep everyone updated as to when to expect the voting period to close, though I'd say it will be at some point early tomorrow morning.)

(Regarding my week, I've felt more like one of Lepisma's constructs when Dorian got a hold of them, than anything.)
>>
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>>3800062

Well, I found the daughter on Tindalos art. Thanks again ArtStation!
>>
>>3800081
alright. guess ill go ahead and do the non hybrids at least then on the sheets.

and hah, fair enough. honestly BHOP as much as id love to delve into alot of info and goings on in the quest, if you need to bring it to a close so you can actually enjoy your weekend properly i dont think any of us will blame you one bit.
>>
>>3800092
(Ah, I still have a few small things to finish off before I close the Vein, which will likely occur tomorrow afternoon. I'll get what rest I can over the weekend, and I'll likely open the 30th Vein after taking a week break to calibrate some of the possible avenues you'll gain access to soon.)
>>
>>3800106
ah, if so is what you feel is best. though, isnt that two weeks break? thought you were taking the week of the 15th-21st off for borderlands time with the wife?
>>
>>3800110
(Ah, true. What I'll likely do is then start the 30th Vein this upcoming Monday, since a lot of my evenings will be free. Thank you for the reminder, I legitimately forgot what week it was.)
>>
>>3800062
The resulting skill isn't dependent on the level of the components. All leveling the skills higher does is give us the benefits of higher levels on the components. Granted, that can impact the resulting hybrid if it's the "functionality of the bases plus these new things" sort like many are, but some hybrids are their own thing entirely.
>>
>>3799828
>Churem was an Alien Plant Samurai Mall Cop that guards a Museum.
>And now it's teaching Amara the ways of the katana/ninja.
I find this hilarious
>>
>>3800117
i mean, id be lying if i said id not love to continue on Monday, but if you still feel you need the time before continuing, then so be it. id be bouncing in my seat for a week but if you think you need the time to prepare everything its better than you rushing to get it all done.
>>
>>3800130
well, two weeks actually.
>>
>>3800130
>>3800135
(Honestly, I'd rather continue, myself. The 30th Vein will be a good place to wrap up by the end of next week, given what's in store.)
>>
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>>3800141
fair enough, and glad and thankful for it.
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>>3799796
I do have a question Bhop, Is it possible to choose whether or not to open an instance of Fear to Tread when Shu uses her drills? I find the idea that having Spiraling Terrain opening up everytime Shu hits something with her hand drills would get annoying and in the way of terraforming plans by other party members (like Gina).

As for my vote:
>Firmament's spiral: No. Those two base powers have more potential if we level them both up to level 10 or 15.

Abbadon's Grasp: No. For the same reason above, Hundred Handed has more potential than just a nico Robin gimmick at lvl 5, and we've actually seen what Ravenous Maw could potentially bring to the table at lvl 10. I'm going to wait and keep them separate.

>Seasonal Oppression: I'm gonna say a firm no to this one.
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>>3800141
...yay? That's pretty ominous. But still, glad you're going to run then. I share the sentiment that I'd be fine with delays (seriously, you've been far more consistent than I've come to expect from QMs, I'm still waiting on Diarca to get back), but if you feel you'll be ready to run by then I'm for it.
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>>3800152
>we've actually seen what Ravenous Maw could potentially bring to the table at lvl 10
We have? When? Something cool Holly did that I'm not remembering?
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>>3799910
Has there ever been a daughter whose kit was just two or three skills and a clusterfuck of augmentations?
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>>3800155
Ravenous Maw lvl 6 gave us that ability to get scaling perma hp for each foe we killed with the maw. Holly also displayed the Spiked tongue mace as well as the whole instant maw counter.

Johanna's gluttonous ability also showed that Ravenous Maw had the ability to suck up/consume projectile attacks and send them back al la Kirby.
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>>3800128
>Churem's core, at its highest levels, could slay an enemy with a single stroke
>Their efforts to convince Amara that they're not a ninja rapidly intensify
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>>3800152
your concern isnt one actually, it wouldn't interrupt Gina at all. BHOP said earlier with the fight agaisnt Lespisma he misworded that a bit. spirals can still be terraformed, they just cant be double spiraled.
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>>3800169
>Amara spends 100% bio on creating a katana blade the size of Sephiroth's Muramasa.
>Cue Churem Facepalming

You are now Imagining Amara practicing the use of Hunter's honor...by cutting watermelons for her family.
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>>3800167
>Ravenous Maw lvl 6 gave us that ability to get scaling perma hp for each foe we killed with the maw. Holly also displayed the Spiked tongue mace as well as the whole instant maw counter.
Oh, right, she was even faster than us on biting down, wasn't she? Yeah, that would be good. I don't see the mace tongue as that appealing, though. If we just wanted melee attacks with reach we would go for the Grasp.

>Johanna's gluttonous ability also showed that Ravenous Maw had the ability to suck up/consume projectile attacks and send them back al la Kirby.
That's probably a different skill, though. Our version is more focused on delivering criticals than defensive uses of consumption. But hey, maybe. Would be cool if we got that. Absorb and emit attacks launched at us, make engaging Shu outside of melee a risky proposition. Would really help the zoning

>>3800169
Amara brought them around in the end, if I recall. Once the idea was explained properly, I would not be surprised by Cheruem wanting to be considered a ninja. They're that sort of "acts stoic, secretly nerding out over their specific interest" character, and ninjas are definitely in their interest.
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>>3799796
I'm looking at the current tally:

>Firmament's Spiral: 3:2 in favor of "Yes" Majority

>Abbadon's Grasp: 4:1 in favor of "No", Grand Majority

>Seasonal Oppression: 2:2 deadlock with one abstaining.
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>>3800205
theres six votes

>>3800062
>>3800152
>>3799930
>>3799825
>>3799823
>>3799814
FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL
>Yes- 4 votes
>No- 2 votes

ABBADON’S GRASP
>Yes- 1 votes
>No- 5 votes

SEASONAL OPPRESSION
>Yes- 3 votes
>No- 2 votes

>>3799796
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>>3799796
>Firmament's Spiral: YES

>Abbadon's Grasp: Yes

>Seasonal Oppression: Yes

I want the new shinies, we can always undo and relevel them together later
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>>3800205
Voting
>Yes
>Yes
>Yes
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>>3800221
>>3800225
>>3800226
...eight votes. also you guys timing....

FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL
>Yes- 6 votes
>No- 2 votes

ABBADON’S GRASP
>Yes- 3 votes
>No- 5 votes

SEASONAL OPPRESSION
>Yes- 5 votes
>No- 2 votes
>abstain- 1 votes

>>3799796
for you BHOP


>>3800225
that is a terrible way to go about thinking about that, and exactly the type of thinking that we need to avoid vehemently. literally perfect example of why i dont trust anyone, damned shiny effect making people not actually think.
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>>3800162
(Ha, indeed. There are quite a few Daughters that are incredibly potent with a single max-level core and several dozen augmentations.)

>>3800153
(I appreciate it. Consistency is important to me, so it pains me to pause for any length of time.)
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>>3800225
BLOODY MAGPIE
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>>3800256
yeah ive learned my lesson. if you arent sure you would even have a chance of wanting them hybridized at the current level, refuse to even distribute points in a way to look at it. 'Levelup Only' voters cannot be trusted.

at least Abbadons Grasp is not winning yet.
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also, minus hybrids of course(and those relics if their consumable option basically becomes an augment), sheets are ready.

sadly Dorian and Amara are still a bit far from their Biomass breaking 1,000.

Rath also got one hell of a stat boost, i didnt even see so many of those augments gave large stat chunk increases. still cant beat Julia in Health though, somehow.

Gina still holds a good lead overall on stats, and even managed to pull her Health into being second place, when before Rath and Julia had an advantage on her there.

Dorian still holds a good lead on Regen stats, but i do feel its slipping a bit. might not be the worse thing though, so long as it means his other stats start to catch up, though iffy if thats the case right now.

Also Amara is still adorable and best daughter. this has nothing to do with stats i just felt like saying it.
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>>3800272
oh, and while still far, far behind overall, i do think Francine might at least be viable to take out now, without worrying about a breeze killing her. says something her Biomass isnt too far behind Dorians and Amaras too.
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>>3800263
I'm considering that we should make maxing out Trypophilic Hive our next goal on Shu. We're not consolidating our leveling plans for at least another ten levels anyway, right? Ten levels to the next hybridization point on Maw/Handed, ten levels to max out Hive. Get it to max, get all those big bonuses, then go back to work raising other skills and making hybrids. We can toss a skill point into other skills here or there (I'd go for Dominus Leash, personally, since we can get at least a few points out of Kadath for Spiral and Maw) so that Shu doesn't completely monofocus, but otherwise aim for maxing the Core.

>>3800272
>Rath also got one hell of a stat boost, i didnt even see so many of those augments gave large stat chunk increases. still cant beat Julia in Health though, somehow.
I wonder how much physical strength she has, now? At 2100% Health B'Ni could throw a severed leg faster than sound. Rath's not there yet, but she gets boosts for both Health and Bio. She might actually exceed B'Ni's strength.

>Also Amara is still adorable and best daughter. this has nothing to do with stats i just felt like saying it.
No argument there.

>>3800281
Agreed. The ichthyoids are pretty good on defense and offense, her strings give her a nasty DoT that also inhibits foes in melee, and Hand of the Queen amplifies everything she can currently bring to bear. She's ready for action, if she stays on the back line.
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>>3800323
>>3800281
All that's left is to give her some good relics for her to use...I'm still worried about Francine's true nature when she makes her choice.
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>>3800323
im unsure about focusing Hive down that heavily, but making sure we put more points into it, sure.

and yeah, wasnt saying Francines ready to fight in even the middle line, just not so stat weak or ability weak as to be helpless now for sure.

>>3800332
yeah, we'll have to see how her choice goes. i cant really think of any Relics for her though. ill hold off on that too, til we see just what our actual next step will even be. we have a pretty damn long list of options, and alot of those we need to get more info out of the research team on first before anything else.
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>>3800342
>im unsure about focusing Hive down that heavily, but making sure we put more points into it, sure.
I'm not completely sure on the idea, either. But I think getting it out of the way soon is a smart idea. We get Hive to max and we can cross off a skill from the level-up list until the time eventually comes to hybridize it with the Hive Mistress Halo. And that should be a while to go. Plus, it's just a great skill and the foundation of Shu's build, even if there are counters to it. We should get it higher.

>and yeah, wasnt saying Francines ready to fight in even the middle line, just not so stat weak or ability weak as to be helpless now for sure.
Oh, I didn't think you were. Wasn't disputing with you. Just qualifying my assessment of "she's ready to contribute to fights now". Keep her on the back lines, play support for now, and she should be good.
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>>3800359
>>3800281
I find it odd that Francine's core combined with Lepisma's makes her a ditto fighter that requires her to tether herself to someone else to make the most use of her abilities. She's easily capable of melee combat but the nature of her core makes it awkward.

>>3800342
>yeah, we'll have to see how her choice goes.
That's what I can't help but worry about. She's got two core abilities that make encourage behaviors that go more in-line with Dr. West's Insatiable ethics-be-damned Curiosity. Sure it synergizes with Francine's core, but the mental corruption influence as we level up her abilities will make it harder for her to resist.

>i cant really think of any Relics for her though.
Stitching Stilletos and the Surgeon General's Essentials would work well for her as a Backline fighter, as much of her two abilities revolve around ID'ing the enemy and their skills and coming up with temporary augments and countermeasures while turning into a ditto fighter to counteract enemy shenanigans.
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>>3800359
I agree in regards to maxing out the Hive. We've been focusing on even point spreads and supplementary abilities for long enough - I want to see what happens when we get our Core to 20.
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>>3800359
>>3800672
Actually i kinda heavily disagree with focusing only on hive now that ive thought on it. I mean making sure it always gets at least a level maybe, but dumping everything or even a majority into it? Defeats the purpose of trying to consolidate abilities and get a more focused and defined build so we COULD focus on multiple abilities and start to see some progress, and to do the opposite of the problem we have been having to me personally just feels like trying to get rid of one problem to create another, in my opinion, and you're not gonna be changing my mind on that one.
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>>3800421
>That's what I can't help but worry about. She's got two core abilities that make encourage behaviors that go more in-line with Dr. West's Insatiable ethics-be-damned Curiosity. Sure it synergizes with Francine's core, but the mental corruption influence as we level up her abilities will make it harder for her to resist.
thats not true, or, more importantly, is both another test of her character, and entirely up to her. so far, all mental corruption we can even hint at, has always been a key part of the persons personality, but what people forget is that while maybe not the easiest thing, that CAN and IS up to you to define. Isabelles obsessive nature existed looong before the crucible, and she even showed clear signs of being able to actually overcome it, at least from a 'this may be corruption forced on me' perspective. it was she who saw clarity past her obsession, and didnt like what that meant or what she would have to give up to 'fix' herself, and doubled down.

otherwise, we really dont know enough about mental corruption to even say its an issue. keep in mind, the point of physical corruption is... well its just plain wrong and works and is intended in a way that just ignores how humans actually work. considering corruption is a Ozmas thing actually, not a Crucible standard thing, its very safe to assume any Mental corruption is just as flawed and possible just as futile in what she wanted it to do too. but regardless, the only other person we have have worries over is Rath, and her anger... but Rath and her anger is a very deliberate trait of hers in alot of ways. she even already knows how to focus it and it already only flares up over very specific things too, which is basically just people doing bad things. not saying that cant get out of hand, just that what might in any way even be being effected so far is very much based off what Rath herself chooses to have as a core of her mental state, and she really already has a good handle an understanding on it and to not let it get out of hand.

(1/2)
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>>3800778
>>3800421
Francine doesn't want or even see that curiosity as a major part of it. she fears it, she knows its there, but her dislike and disfocus on it is what makes her Francine instead of West in the first place. if anything, mental corruption, in line with what little we can assume, would do the opposite. it would double down on her diswant to be curious, or... whatever other trait she finds core to herself instead. i mean, its there mind you, i just cant really pin her personality down at the moment. redemption maybe? oof, that one would be terrible to get doubled down on, but still my point is it would be based off of her, not her ability.

though mind you, abilities especially cores kinda conform to the user anyways, but in a way that almost just furthers my point, in that it would just start to conform to who she actually is, not be stuck being 'like west'.

i guess the TL;DR of it is, its not mental corruption that will decide anything here or you should be worried about here, its who she herself actually is that will matter.

(2/2)
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>>3800761
Yeah, I don't think complete monofocus is a good idea, even if I do want to aim for maxing Hive out soon. We shouldn't dump every point we get into it. But I do want to make maxing Hive our next goal in Shu's build, give it a heightened level of priority. Always give it at least one point, give it two if we can afford it. Developing other things, but with a clear goal in mind of it reaching level twenty. We'll get a really strong ability and the possibility of an extra ACT, and by God do we need more of those.

>>3800778
Yeah, there's no evidence that the Choice causes mental corruption. It's just Ozmas presenting you two options the Crucible has for your development, and because she's twisted and bitter she'll try to phrase those options as moral decisions that inevitable result in you doing bad things. But there's nothing to make us believe that people who take the Choice are bad people. Statistically, most Daughters don't go Fool, I'm sure plenty of the positive encounters we've had with people have been those who took one of Ozmas' options. I think we may have even had confirmation in a few cases, but it's too late to go archive-trawling to check.

Anyways, point is, if the Choice becomes a problem it won't be because it actually changed anything in Francine. It will be because it caused her to realize something that was already there, that she was willing to be this ambition-driven utilitarian monster like the rest of the Wests. Which is unlikely, given what we know about her, as you say she wouldn't be in this position at all if she didn't have reservations about those character traits. I can see her going Fool the moment the Choice vision starts, to get it over with quick. Just slamming down on that button immediately without even bothering to listen to Ozmas, calmly but firmly saying "Fool" louder and louder to drown out Ozmas' attempts at tempting her. If Ozmas even bothers, she's so depressed at how we've beaten her she might not even try to convince Francine. Automatically making Francine a Fool, because "I fucking get it Defiant, I know how this goes by now. It stopped being interesting back with the kid."

>considering corruption is a Ozmas thing actually, not a Crucible standard thing
I'm not sure of that. I think it might be a Crucible-standard thing that Ozmas just misunderstands. The evidence could go either way, all we know is that Ozmas thinks it's to promote shame. That could be her having set up the system and not getting human psychology, or it could be her making assumptions based on her own experiences with corruption. We really need to crack open those notebooks and take a dive into Reyva's and/or Ozmas' memories at some point, but the fact that they're something you experience instead of something that could be infodumped means that we're probably going to put it off as long as possible because we've got other things to do.
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>>3800819
eh, the way West worded it in her notes very heavily implies corruption is Ozmas doing. and for better or worse, West has proven to be a reliable source of information. id imagine actually, thats part of her shtick and how she convinces so ,many to trust her in part, but thats another topic im honestly unsure i want to get into, given the charter in question.
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>>3800834
>eh, the way West worded it in her notes very heavily implies corruption is Ozmas doing
I'm not sure about that. We might be able to draw that conclusion from the "due more to Mother's own insecurities than any weakness she noted in our species as a whole" part implying that Ozmas crafted the mechanic for humanity, but the comment on her own insecurities makes me think that it's also implied that Ozmas had her own experience with her body image being distorted and feeling shame about it. So I think it's not quite clear. I mean, it could be a new mechanic, but in that case Ozmas would have had to have had experience with shame over her body some other way. Maybe she got hit with some really bad fleshcrafting that Reyva couldn't fix for most of the Crucible's duration? Or maybe she was just really ugly by Hexane standards, we don't know their concept of beauty. Whatever the case, it's something easily confirmed either way. We just need to get around to reading those journals.

>id imagine actually, thats part of her shtick and how she convinces so ,many to trust her in part, but thats another topic im honestly unsure i want to get into, given the charter in question.
Oh, agreed, she was actually very helpful and informative to us, early on. It didn't cost her anything to be, after all, West Gamma was always working from a position of power. We did find her creepy and off-putting and probably not to be trusted in the grand scheme of things, but because she was helpful we didn't realize she was outright evil instead of just having shaky ethics. As I recall BHOP said that that plays a part in getting people to trust her, too. She doesn't put much effort into hiding that she's unhinged, so people can tell she's creepy and probably doing shady stuff but no one really wants to risk delving deep enough to confirm it. So they brush it off as just an eccentricity rather than her being a sociopath.
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>>3800858
eh, i still disagree, and i think you're overlooking that at the very least implies she altered them, which by that point really doesn't matter what it was before, only what she turned it into.
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>>3800872
Could be she altered them. It's a single line and somewhat ambiguous. It could actually be read the other way around, that Ozmas didn't alter them to customize for human psychology. Damn it, West, leave more thorough notes on the alien monster's mentality. You made all these notes on "I'm totally justified in vivisecting people, because I misunderstood Cosmos" but not on the contact with an alien intelligence? Very disappointed in you, young lady. We wouldn't be debating this if you just cared more about the social sciences. Typical hyper-focused STEM major.
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>>3800881
except she did, and thats not how that reads at all, its very specifically defined as going on one direction as it was, in how its read. she wouldn't of mentioned Mother at all if she had nothing to do with them. this isnt up for debate, thats just fact of how its worded and the language its worded in works.
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on a more... something note, Gluttonous Brood for Shu still feels kinda odd to me. aside from the fact we basically never use it, the only reason we took it was because Regen stats seemed alot rarer back then, aswell as in the possible quantities we could get it in, aswell as just how high and quickly we might gain raw stats.

dunno, guess theres no point to getting rid of it, it just is interesting how it kinda points out how much things have changed for us over time. i mean with Dominous and just raw stats im pretty sure most people forget we even have it, especially with there being alot of times where trying to pull back our swarmlings to use it would just be counter intuitive, if even needed or the better option compared to them allowing our own to work by keeping the enemy at bay in the first place.

Shus build really does have that 'she was our first character' feel to it.
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>>3800058
I hope you had a good night OP and that your internet works again

I have a couple questions that i would ask you to answer i would like to have this information for an umpcoiming chapter and a potential enemy in that chapter

Is there an "Unnatural Predator" Halo?

If there is is there a colour ascotiated with it?

And lastly: Do all Halos start out similar and heavily customise to their user later?
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>>3800907
If anything, Gluttonous Brood has that ability where the damage they deal gives them Bio-pollen that allows them to heal/repair/upgrade themselves. It's a utility ability that's been under-utilized and underestimated, as it did have its small day in its limelight (when we fought Sasha and Penny, the pollen allowed the Knightlings to upgrade themselves in strength and feroicity). If anything, it's an additional source of Regen that we could probably funnel to our allies via Dominus if our Bio/hp regen gets locked out in the Cord from dungeon rules (recall Uzu's Journal). We haven't been using the "Attack/gather pollen/return to hive/use pollen" command loop that often, but I'm sure Gluttonous Brood will be super useful when we tackle the Cord Levels that restrict innate hp/bio regen.
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>>3801191
it really hasn't helped our swarmlings survive any longer honestly. honestly it feels like we send out flies instead of bees sometimes.

otherwise, i just wholly disagree. even our own swarm still works better via numbers, which trying to run a conveyor belt would simply weaken too far. we also usually work basically on a switch. we either dont need the health at all, or are in a position where pulling them back to try and heal us would probably result in an even worse situation than if they just focused on holding the enemy back so we dont take more damage in the first place. the only times its honestly even possibly useful is if its our own source of healing, and even then that doesn't fix the issue of our swarmlings having to survive to use it or being able to afford for them to break formation to come back to us, both situations that are precarious to attempt or rely on, especially if in a situation we need a heal. its honestly just a shitty augment, still disappointed we took it after thinking about it again. its literally just a 'better then nothing' finicky, unreliable backup to other things we have, which i guess for only a single level is alright, but there are without a doubt better and more reliable alternate healing methods out there for sure.
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>>3801201
have we ever considered sending out swarmling types other than suicidal banelings? Have we ever tried filling up our swarmling slot roster with Knightlings instead? Because almost all of the conflicts that we've been in have involved suicidal banelings as our main damage dealing source from our hive instead of beefier units like knightlings.
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>>3801201
Another thing that I've noticed sometimes is that during our battles, we have idle swarmlings that are often fresh faced and eager while the swarmlings that have acquired lots of pollen are doing the battle. And even if we don't use the command to have them return to hive and heal Shu, there's always the fact that we can have the Swarmlings use the pollen to repair and upgrade themselves to give them more mileage. Just doing a rotation of which fresh swarmlings goes into battle while other Veteran swarmlings heal/repair/upgrade themselves with the bio-pollen will net us more consistent use from our hive.
And I think your perception of "Shu sending out Flies instead of bees" is colored by the fact that we tend to send out Suicide banelings too much.
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>>3801203
we've sent out decent numbers of knightlings before. they still dont tend to last much longer, and sometimes its actually hard to tell if they actually are doing us any better. but maybe we just have shit luck, when it comes to timing and opponents though.

but, to be fair to both sides, we used to not be able to afford to even think about doing that, but also haven't been in battles honestly where trying to seemed like a good idea recently either.

otherwise, even now a full loadout of Knightlings would be a pretty hefty cost to Shu that would force us to be pretty careful with what else we do. still have wiggle room mind you, just saying its still enough of a cost to not just do it just because. a full loadout of banelings however, is actually pretty cheap, and them being disposable and less risky to use due to their unique properties, makes them a better initial opening force to test the waters with.

>>3801212
im not sure thats true, we actually are really good at making sure all our swarmlings have orders given to them, with sometimes the exception of ones like bodyguard units, but arguably thats not true either, as they have pre-set standing orders.

and i disagree, even knightlings have died pretty quickly, even when sent out in bigger numbers. the fly analogy i think has very strong merit, even if its more our luck with opponents over actual survivability, though maybe that should just be taken as what to expect from things going forward.
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>>3801074
(There is absolutely an Unnatural Predator Halo, there is no particular color associated with it, and all Halos start out subtle, and then customize.)
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>>3801219
I can see your reasoning behind the Banelings. As for the beefier units like Rooks and Knightlings, I feel like the pollen would give them more Mileage. You also have to keep in mind that all of our swarmlings have the ability to stay standing with 1 hp left if they get hit with a lethal attack. So they should be able to gather a manageable amount of pollen.

>we've sent out decent numbers of knightlings before. they still dont tend to last much longer, and sometimes its actually hard to tell if they actually are doing us any better. but maybe we just have shit luck, when it comes to timing and opponents though.

I think it's the rogues gallery of opponents that we've been facing that's dissuading us from trying to explore the utility of having veteran swarmlings.

>Lepisma's whole gimmick was assimilating and copying Shu's Core ability so we were forced to cut back on Swarmlings and have them act as utility and bodyguard units and not have them risk getting conscripted by Lepisma

>Frost Wolf was a scenario where we found out that Acid damage was super effective on the amalgam and so we spammed the shit out of banelings.

>The Isabelle fight was that we wanted to tie her up in combat, platelings served a better protective purpose, and that the rooks and knightlings were basically idle bystanders used to search for Isabelle when she took a tactical retreat to remove brain cancer.

>The battle against the Hexane Statues had us fighting the statues of Vultha, Silvis, and Churem. Vultha had multi-hit attacks which shredded our swarmlings, Churuem was focused on 1v1'ing Shu which ate up most of Shu's action economy... And Silvis was having a brawl with Rath.

>Spiraling fear had us use Platelings and knightlings as defense and utility platforms, with them not serving as offensive tools

>the fight against Isabelle (dreamscape), we were at somewhat of a disadvantage since we didn't know our limit in the dreamscape and couldn't properly find the time to test our theoretical limits with our hive.

The list can go on and on, but my point is that our core ability's prominence and versatility is starting to work in the background since our other abilities and our coordination with our allies are taking center stage.

There's also the fact that Bhop keeps on resetting our swarmling hive count back to 0/30 instead of letting us retain our veteran swarmling units and letting us repair and upgrade them with the health pollen that they've gathered throughout the battle.

>>3800141
Bhop, next time can you let us keep our surviving veteran swarmlings? We're leaving a breadcrumb trail of dormant swarmlings all over the place. And why do you keep on resetting Shu's swarmling count and turning all active swarmlings in a battle dormant once combat ceases?
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>>3801244
I do have a question Bhop, throughout all the fights ever since we've acquired Gluttonous brood, what was the average rate in which our swarmlings have acquired bio-pollen? and how many of those swarmlings with bio-pollen have survived those conflicts?
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>>3801251
(They rarely survive, but when they do die they're carrying a decent amount of biomass. Also, the dormancy was more for bookkeeping purposes, but if you'd like to keep a constant 'baseline' of swarmlings to enter combat with, you're welcome to.)
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>>3801273
So how many swarmlings that survived combat with biopollen in their tanks do we have lying dormant?
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>>3801304
(I'll have to check my notes when I'm back home from work, but there are a handful.)

(Also, writing now, Gentlemen.)
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>>3800169
Would Amara be the type of girl to scream "SNEAK ATTACK" at the top of her lungs when she strikes with her Calcite sword when attacking someone from a flanking angle?
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>>3801428
Nah, Amara knows how to keep quiet when sneak-attacking, she's been pretty good about that. But she wants to. She definitely wants to shout that.
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>>3799796

>>FIRMAMENT’S SPIRAL, SEASONAL OPPRESSION: Unlocked

>>ABBADON’S GRASP: Declined

Leaning back in your exquisitely comfortable seat on the circular couch, you survey your thoroughly exhausted companions as they lounge about the space in post-consumption sleepiness. Francine’s the only person not fully at ease, scribbling in a notebook as she jots down talking points for the round-table discussion that’s sure to take place after your family fully digests the feast that was greedily devoured. A pair of delicate spectacles are perched on the end of her nose, threatening to fall off as she immerses herself in her writings.

“Hey, do you feel anything, yet?” You ask her, and when she looks up she has to catch her glasses before they tumble off her face. “Your choice. Do you feel like it’s close?”

“Oh, no. Not yet.” She replies, folding her glasses and tucking them in her lab coat’s breast pocket. “It took some time for my progenitor to be confronted with it after reaching the threshold, so I do believe we have some time to discuss matters of pressing importance.”

“The ants!” Amara screeches, bounding up from the couch before Julia pulls her back down, ruffling her hair affectionately.

“Actually, before we get into that, didn’t you say you had something to bring up regarding the Relics?” Gina mentions, directing the question to the good Doctor.

“Indeed. While we were eating, I took the liberty of perusing the items you retrieved. You have some interesting additions to your arsenal, I must say.”

>>PACEKEEPER’S BOX: A curios box that continually thrums with a frantic pulse, this Relic passively increases the speed of the user, while also offering them the ability to move ahead of an enemy Daughter that triggers an intiative-based power. (Head Slot: HEALTH +100%. November may spend 200% HEALTH to move herself to the top of the initiative order, taking absolute priority. If she is already at the top of the initiative order, spending this cost grants her an additional 2 ACTs instead, and this power may only be used once per combat.)

>>REGENERATION MITES (Consumable, Uses Left: 3): A curious bottle filled to the brim with infinitesimally small mites, the massive swarm compressed into a surprisingly small space. When loosened, the mites proceed to swarm over the user, automatically doubling their HEALTH REGEN for three rounds and instantly regenerating any severed limbs the user may lose during this period.

>>DARWINIAN DROPS (Consumable, Single Use): A vial filled to the brim with a clear, viscous fluid, these droplets contain a unique effect, usable only once before they cease to be effective. On use, the user may choose a single Augment out of the suite they currently possess, bolstering its efficacy and increasing its power dramatically.

(Continued)
>>
>>3801527

“Speaking of, I’ve taken the liberty of looking at your Void Orrery, and I think with a tune-up I could return it to full power.” Francine continues.

“M-my what now? I didn’t consent to that.” You stammer, Gina bursting into laughter as Francine adjusts her glasses with one slender finger.

“Your…the jamming sphere?” The Doctor sighs, raising her voice to be heard over Gina’s fading cackles. “The thing that Rachel said you retrieved from the bombed town before you met Heather Neeson? It projects a potent field that stops the users from being detected, and I think with Rachel’s help I’d be able to repair it.”

“Oh.” You say lamely, feeling a blush creep into your face as you feel Gina continue to chuckle at your side. “Okay, excellent. That’s good to know.”

“Whew, alright, so that was a thing.” Gina giggles, taking a deep breath before she continues on. “Anyway, I think while we’re all here, it’d be a good time to review what we’ve gathered to compare notes.”

“I t-think that’d b-be nice.” Julia replies, glancing over Amara’ head to catch Dorian’s eye. “I’d love t-to hear w-what everyone’s found.”

“Then…ants?” Amara offers sweetly, glancing around the room as she practically vibrates with anticipation.

“…Yes.” You nod, suppressing a smile. “Business first…then ants.”

You have a lot to review, from the foreign Daughters, to the Hexane locale, to the offer that Madame Yurei extended…the only question is where to start off.

>>Explain what happened on your hunt, and then talk with Gina and everyone more about what they’ve discovered, leaving the Proxy Lab until the end.

>>Talk more to Francine about her plan and how the Proxy Lab plays into it. The details you’ve gathered are still a bit vague, after all.

>>Talk to everyone more about the foreign Daughters they’ve learned about, to see what threats…or allies…you may be able to make.

>>Discuss Yurei’s offer, then hear everyone’s take on it.

>>Go ahead and have Francine make the Choice, and offer to join her if she wants someone by her side.

>>Write-In

YOU ARE IN CONTROL
>>
(Gentlemen, voting shall remain open for th next two hours, with the Vein to wrap shortly thereafter. No worries though, as you'll be able to go more in-depth with the debrief at the start of the 30th Vein, which will be opening early Monday.)
>>
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>>3801557
(My face when I correct an error in a post only to find another one the instant I repost it.)
>>
>>3801527
Interesting consumables. I'm going to hold off on using them quite yet, though. There's a REPLICATE feature on the Forge that we don't have a strong enough Forge Core to use yet, and I think it probably lets you make copies of Relics you've found. If we can get that and make more Darwinian Drops, that would be great. We may be able to get a higher-Tier Forge soon, too, one of the locations the info party found was an old facility Silvis used and as a powerplant engineer I imagine that Forge Cores would be within their bailiwick.

>>3801530
Wait, the jammer is an orrery? I remembered it having spheres within spheres, but didn't realize it was arranged this way. An orrery is a type of clock, it uses gears to approximate the movements of planetary orbits. That makes me think that the Void Orrery is meant to be more than just a jammer, and has other features. Can we tell from looking at it what objects it's tracking? Are they our solar system or something else?
>>
>>3801585
(You cannot tell at the moment, though it will become clear once Francine and Rath have a chance to inspect it thoroughly.)
>>
>>3801590
Well, something to look forward to, then. The fact that it's a "Void" Orrery has me thinking it's probably not our system, though. Probably not any planets at all.
>>
>>3801530
>>Explain what happened on your hunt, and then talk with Gina and everyone more about what they’ve discovered, leaving the Proxy Lab until the end.
Start with basic recap. Nothing is of immediate priority, so let's just get all the relevant information out, including the actual details of Francine's plans. Then we'll focus on individual matters.
>>
>>3801530
>Explain what happened on your hunt, and then talk with Gina and everyone more about what they’ve discovered, leaving the Proxy Lab until the end.

Two questions.

First: new Lagannling description when? (for are new hybrid ability)

Second: if we spent the session's Knowable Kadath on let's say Uzu, would it upgrade Fear to Tread, Firmament's Spiral, or both?
>>
>>3801530
>>Talk to everyone more about the foreign Daughters they’ve learned about, to see what threats…or allies…you may be able to make.
>>then talk with Gina and everyone more about what they’ve discovered.
>>Discuss Yurei’s offer, then hear everyone’s take on it.
>>leaving the Proxy Lab until the end, get to it last.
>>Afterwards, Explain what happened on your hunt.
>>
>>3801530

Seconding this:
>>3801632

With a write in of definitely allowing for the likely brief slowtime of Gina/Rath/Amara snuggles. Gina and Amara as an offer. Rath as a mock "order". It's been a stressful day. We're family and touch NO not like that. Sheesh. is super important in a world where most everything wants to eat you.

I doubt she'd take us up on the offer, but I'd even offer it to Francine. If any of the family decline, they will still get a maxed out Knight level FuzzBuzz offered for cuddling.
>>
>>3801655
eh, im against teasing Rath with an order. especially infront of everyone like that. she may have a kink but for one, if we're not trying to be kinky, dont poke at her kink. second, even with that theres a time and place to do that, and now infront of everyone sounds like a dick time to do that.
>>
>>3801657

Ahhhh... alright. I was going for a light teasing, but I see how that could be taken poorly. I relent on the order, but not the offer.
>>
>>3801657
Yeah, just because we're cannibalistic monsters doesn't mean we can't have a sense of propriety. Leave it for private. In fact, don't even offer to cuddle with Gina and Amara, just let it happen naturally. Gina's right by our side anyway, and there's not really any chance that Amara isn't going to leap on us when we start telling the story of how the Ant Queen adopted a FuzzBuzz. She's going to be so excited about that.
>>
>>3801631
(Ah, I'll post that either tomorrow or Monday. Thank you for the reminder.)

(Also, you could upgrade either one.)
>>
>>3801655
No teasing. No aggressive flirting like that. that's bad shipping practices, please don't.

>>3801530
>Explain what happened on your hunt, and then talk with Gina and everyone more about what they’ve discovered, leaving the Proxy Lab until the end.

>November pulls out the Margrave Sword, Rath as usual gushes over the fact that her Aunt found a bitching GREATSWORD during her hunt

>Storytime for Amara "We got to see a colony of Ants It Ant mound 3 stories tall and very wide. The Ants were Fiery and ready to Tear up everything in their sight for their queen, but they have a soft heart you know? and the Queen! Oh she was Huge! But also very motherly, it even adopted two Fuzzbuzzes!" Show Amara the mental image of the Ant Workers and Queen cuddling and pampering the FuzzBuzzes "The queen gave us a quest to hunt a Cat amalgam. A superfast stealthy cat that's been making mincemeat of her subjects, and as a reward, she gave us some loot! And we got an invitation from the Queen to meet her face to face sometime in the future!"
>>
Also, doesn't change much since last night, but the Hybrids have been added. all it really changes is Shus Biomass is now no longer somehow outpaced by Rath, so she doesn't have to feel shame on that anymore. Rath however, is still losing the health battle to Julia by an even bigger margin now. i suppose its hard to outpace someone that can literally 'Badge Out' into a rage beast though. but still Rath, you can go human atom bomb, pick up the pace!

>>3801248
>>3801273
i just assumed any we left dormant we just cut the connection to, so they just melted down, or the fleshscape took care of getting rid of them one way or another. and am more than fine with that, as trying to force BHOP to keep a ledger of all our potential old swarmlings unless its a spot we specifically want to keep an eye on just sounds way, way too unfair and tedious.
>>
>>3801620
>>3801631
>>3801667
guys, i think BHOP meant by this choice, especially with what was said IC, was we would explain the important things, like 'A' and Yurei's offer, moreso than less important things like the Ants, as IC everyone agreed to leave the ants til last, which i agree with as its very much the least important thing. its important, but compared to the rest not so much.
>>
>>3801674
That I realize, but the whole storytime thing I'm writing is for Amara to listen and enjoy.

>>3801530
>More story time elaboration for Amara.

>Lepisma is redressed as "A Fishy spooky Necromancer with unblinking eyes and a haunting stare. She makes puppets out of constructs and dead Amalgams, we saw her kill a GIANT WORM and fashioned its innards to make a SPIDER PUPPET, with plans to raise the Giant worm as her personal ride."

>Kinetic Remnant is redressed as "A Frost Doggo and a school of strange fish that guards a Frozen Beachside Resort, stalking the place and freezing intruders that trespass the resort grounds. It sucks out the warmth out of people and uses it to grow bigger and more menacing."
>>
>>3801530
>Reach out with your hundred handed ability to scoop up Amara and put her on your lap.
>>
>>3801661
Wait, Kadath lets us upgrade skills that have been put into hybrids? That's pretty big, it removes the main flaw of hybridization. Well, in the long-run. Thinking about it, my enthusiasm is deflating, because in the time we'll have in the Crucible it will probably be more efficient to use the boosts on the finished hybrid product. It's still really cool, though.

>>3801668
Fortunately for Rath, both Ignition and Unrelenting Cold give good Health boosts. We keep on making Rath a big heat pump and she'll probably catch up. Alabaster Endoskeleton, too, that will help keep her as our best tank. And whatever we eventually give her through the Tormentis will probably be a defense-enhancing skill

>>3801674
Right, which is why I want Shu to talk about how the hunt went, so she can explain A and Yurei. Then the info party can explain what they found, and then once we've all had a basic recap we can decide what's most important for us to focus on. This vote is for how the debriefing begins, not the entire focus of it.
>>
>>3801690
perhaps. Julias got two health adding Hybrids and a strong secondary Core feeding her too though. we'll see. speaking of that, really not sure we need more Relics(besides maybe one thing for Francine, and even then only if we decide to take her out and her choice goes the right direction.), but i suppose upgrading out upgradeables wouldn't be the worse thing. that would mean we have to finally stick the Tormentis on Rath permanently though. honestly i think id leave that one up to her. a note at the end of a vote somewhere saying 'if Rath is ok with this and wants to do it, why would we ever stop her? if not, then hey, its fine where it is.'

speaking of abilities, i think we finally have everyone's kits in good enough order. Shu and Gina are still at six, which is a little iffy, but for both of them i see no short term plans to cut down on that slot anyways. not even long term with Gina honestly. maybe Persistence and Gladiatorial might work well together? only two that i can even begin to see fitting together at all, and then then, no idea, will have to see much more of how Persistence works honestly, its already kinda iffy on how much i understand or see its uses now. i mean... level one sounds... not useless, but really just bumps effects up a turn. something Gina doesn't use. Shus new Spiritus is the only construct ability that getting another instantly might even be useful for too, and even then we have no idea how shoving a daughter inside one of those effects stuff like that.

its level two also is just... super finky. im not even sure what it means almost. i mean i do, but i cannot think of a single thing we have done that would ever makes sense to try again the next turn(especially for DOUBLE the cost), or couldn't just do again anyways without the extra cost. i guess it might allow for two Halo uses or two Consumable relic uses, but even then, its only the past turn and for both of those, it feels like it wouldn't ever actually come up. dunno, im not seeing how Kosi even survived her first few encounters with core like this, much less became a death city.

>>3801683
>>3801687
you are way too stressed about making things detail perfect instead of just letting them flow naturally.
>>
>>3801728
>really not sure we need more Relics
I'd like some protective gear for Amara. I suppose we can always give her the Deliverance of Ego when it's not being used by someone else, but I still think something dedicated for her use wouldn't be a terrible move.

>that would mean we have to finally stick the Tormentis on Rath permanently though. honestly i think id leave that one up to her. a note at the end of a vote somewhere saying 'if Rath is ok with this and wants to do it, why would we ever stop her? if not, then hey, its fine where it is.'
Yeah, the permanence has me feeling iffy about it, too, but if she wants it then I see no reason to stop her at any point.

>Shu and Gina are still at six
I assume you're not counting Halos?

>maybe Persistence and Gladiatorial might work well together?
Gladiatorial is already a triple-hybrid, it's unlikely to get anything out of further hybridization. And I'd rather leave Persistence alone, it's got the potential to be a really good meta-skill.

>i mean... level one sounds... not useless, but really just bumps effects up a turn
It also doubles the effects of any skill she uses. That's not bad. Bigger acid waves, more ravenous worm-armor, stronger fear fields, higher DCs to resist her Neuromancy. It's pretty good, I like it.

>level two also is just... super finky. im not even sure what it means almost.
I'll grant you that this one is less useful to Gina. Only major thing it affects currently is Amethyst Jack level eight. She could do free terraforming against an opponent twice, this way, that's nice but not huge.

>dunno, im not seeing how Kosi even survived her first few encounters with core like this, much less became a death city.
It is odd, yeah. How do you win any fights when the only power you have is a meta-power, and you're also so riddled with cancer that you can barely move or see? All I can think is that Kosi stumbled upon a dead Daughter or Amalgam that hadn't been eaten by anyone else yet (like it died from some DoT effect after escaping a fight) and got other skills that way.
>>
>>3801728
>>3801775
Regarding the permanence of the tormentis we could make her the Crux Draconis that i proposed some time ago. Then she will just have a cross with a Dragonscale embeded in her body instead of always being in her armor
>>
>>3801775
>I'd like some protective gear for Amara.
i guess maybe.

>I assume you're not counting Halos?
not really. over all extremely passive. too good to ever get rid of, but also easily on some people just left slowly leveled or saved as hybrid material. just feels odd counting it among the others with how it works.

>Gladiatorial is already a triple-hybrid, it's unlikely to get anything out of further hybridization.
ah, i forgot about that, shame.

>And I'd rather leave Persistence alone, it's got the potential to be a really good meta-skill.
as of now, i very highly disagree. maybe it will get good, maybe it wont, but i very highly disagree its off to anywhere near a good start, at least for Gina.

>It also doubles the effects of any skill she uses. That's not bad. Bigger acid waves, more ravenous worm-armor, stronger fear fields, higher DCs to resist her Neuromancy. It's pretty good, I like it.
im positive thats not what it does. it means effects like stacks or actual debuffs, not anything on any ability. effects has consistently meant that, not anything at all, and if BHOP meant differently... well ok he may of misworded things there, fair, but again, effects has always so far meant a very limited and specific type of thing, not anything at all.

>All I can think is that Kosi stumbled upon a dead Daughter or Amalgam that hadn't been eaten by anyone else yet
actually, didn't she and Gina meet super early? still wouldn't explain it too much unless she played it safe til then, or they really were super close to eachother distance wise.

>>3801782
eh. again, up to Rath. honestly if shes gonna go for it, shes gonna go all out, it wouldn't fit Rath to use a relic like that one.
>>
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>>3801530

You begin to explain the hunt, starting with your encounter with 'A' and moving to Ivey and the Hyenas. Ignoring Gina's request to show everyone Ivey's ridiculous outfit via an inclusive empathic channel, you continue on to describe your unnerving encounter with Lepisma and are about to start on how you met the Pyreants when Amara bolts upright in her seat, eyes fixed on a point near the bar. You're about to follow her gaze, confused that she'd be distracted at this point in particular when you feel a pulse of intense heat at your hip.

"Ringo!" She shouts, struggling to get out of her seat and race over to where your focus snaps. The hound is a blur as it darts towards your young ward, and before you can intercede the two are all over each other, Amara giggling with sheer, unabashed joy as the fleshbound tindalos' face splits, its long tongue happily licking the girl's face. You and Gina share a look, the Contender practically burning as you rise and focus on a point in space near the bar that continues to ripple and contort. Ringo looses a bark-like screech that echoes through your home, and the distortion grows larger, granting an all-too familiar figure entrance into your most sacred of spaces.

Charon, in the flesh.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Rath bellows, erupting from her seat before igniting into a humanoid star while Dorian bolts in front of Julia, throwing one arm out in front of Amara and Ringo as the other curves into a wicked scythe. To your surprise November and Francine leap in front of you, the two oldest members of your family blocking you from a direct assault.

"Charon." You breathe in disbelief, the Contender almost too hot to hold in your tightening grip.

"Master Shu, I'm so sorry, I...the Tindalos' distortion scrambled my ability to sense my former..." Karma struggles, her voice shifting from panic to confusion. "I...something's different. Charon, they've...they've changed."

[Indeed I have, old friend...though I believe a true introduction is in order, Most Honored Shu] The Hexane warrior intones, bowing low as your allies bristle with alarm. You hold Charon's eyeless gaze with your own, boring into the pair of unnerving voids as your empathic field flares, looking for the first sign that they're moving in to strike, the first sign of aggression...but you find none of that. None at all.

[My name...my true name...is Reyva, one of the Twelve Hexane Ascendants] They say, a blend of regret and hope blooming across the empathic channel as Charon utters something you never thought you'd hear.

[This Hound and I have been freed from Ozma's control. We mean you no harm, and now that I may speak freely...]

The joy that bursts in Reyva's chest at her declaration is almost too much for you to bear.

[...I have so much to tell you]

>>Twenty-Ninth Vein: Closed
>>
(Gentlemen, thank you all so, so much for your patience, participation, and enthusiasm over the past two weeks. I appreciate it more than I can express, truly. The 30th Vein is set to open on September 9th, at around 11:00AM Eastern time and run until some time that following Friday. I shall be around intermittently this weekend as I start on the next post and chip away at some balancing and updates, so as always I'll be happy to address any concerns, questions, or criticisms, and I welcome them all. Thank you all once again, and I hope you have a restful weekend.)
>>
>>3801850
Well, we don't have to use the Superhalo relic to free her then, though we were short one to use it. Ah, perhaps we should use the Engine to transfer a Neurotic Halo to Francine.

>>3801854
Thanks for running.

So can we use the Knowable Kadath points this session, or wait until the next one?
>>
>>3801850
>My name...my true name...is Reyva, one of the Twelve Hexane Ascendants
Yeah, we know, we ate your friends. We were trying to be polite by not using your old name, you said you didn't think you were worthy of it. What happened? Forget you being unbound, Ozmas was so close to death that I'm not too surprised by this, what restored your faith to live? That's the story I want to hear.

Also
>Amara giggling with sheer, unabashed joy as the fleshbound tindalos' face splits, its long tongue happily licking the girl's face
Aww.

>>3801854
Well, this was not a twist I expected, at least this soon. It's a neat one, though. Thanks for running, BHOP. See you Monday.
>>
>>3801850
whhhhhhoooaaaaa
what the fuck. that is unexpected as all fuck. holy hell i almost want to think Ozmas is forcing them to act friendly to lure us into a trap or something just out of sheer unexpected shock, but i cant think of a reason why when the Hound wouldn't eve be allowed to be here if that wasn't true, and honestly Charon could probably kick our asses without anything fancy. i also dont think she could force what emotions they feel, so that would probably betray the plan too, so its almost certainly true, its just, you know, hard to grasp.

fuck ok forget literally everything else on our list, ive got some damned questions, and it sounds like alot of answers and info to listen to.

>>3801854
well, good job on a most unexpected and interesting of Vein Endings BHOP. its been a fun Vein for sure, bit of some bumpy patches but you did good nonetheless. goddamned as if i wasn't hyped enough for everything we had to learn before, now im certainly hyped for monday haha. got a feeling alot of what Charon has to say might change our plans alot.
>>
>>3801865
(You'll be able to use it during the next Vein, since it will be a relatively shorter and more lore-heavy one, by the looks of it.)

>>3801865
>>3801866
>>3801870
(Thank you all for your kind words, everyone. I've been looking forward to Charon's return for a while, ever since you all set the dominoes in motion for what's happening. There will be a ludicrous amount of information coming your way, so I hope everyone enjoys figuring out where to go from here.)
>>
>>3801850
Yessss, I can't believe mother offed herself of her own accord. I was really thinking we would have to hunt down the amalgams she made to get rid of her that way. Hopefully Reyva is able to tell us what happened, because I am immensely curious.

Also it's interesting that Reyva was able to hear Karma when it seems like they were on a personal channel with Shu.
>>
>>3801885
>mfw next Vein shall open with a ten post info dump, followed by another 5 for all the other leads we have.
>>
>>3801894
i mean, its possible and even somewhat likely, but dont count our chickens before they hatch. its technically still possible Ozmas is alive, and honestly our luck hasn't usually gone in the direction id jump to the conclusion shes gone either.
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>>3801894
It might be Ozmas being dead already. That would be nice. But I don't want to count on it. It's entirely possible that someone else freed Reyva after taking advantage of the situation we created. It could be Ozmas' control weakening to the point Reyva was able to free themselves. It could be the Tindalos Hounds rising up in rebellion and freeing Reyva along the way, and that's why Ringo is working with them. Whatever the reason, I'm excited to learn more. Come, Reyva, take a seat and tell us your story.
>>
>>3801912
yeah. another idea of the possibilities is Ringo and the Tindalos were under contract. its entirely possible Ozmas broke her/the crucibles side without offing herself, maybe even fully within he limits of her points. maybe Ozmas big plan was some sorta emergency protocol to let loose the cords collection, but technically that expunges the Tindalos and breaks the contract. not saying its likely just putting more ideas on the table.

for Charon though who knows. technically theirs wasnt a deal but forced servitude with the exception of freedom if Ozmas is dead or breaks too many rules(i do think it was said she didn't have to die for Charon either, just more difficult for her to fuck up and not also be deleted), but we shall have to see there. its also possible, highly unlikely but possible, Ozmas just canceled all the contracts willingly for some reason. im gonna laugh if Ozmas comes crawling to us like 'ok, yeah i cant win this, so can i please join you guys so im not killed when this is over?' i mean i super highly doubt this one too, but it would be hilarious to see. kinda sad too though.
>>
Fuck Shu and everybody that likes Shu.
>>
Back from work and....wait. what in the everlasting fuck just happened?

Why would Ozmas let Charon Reyva and Ringo go from their geas contracts?

I'm not one to look at the gift horse in the mouth, but I'm looking at the gift horse in the mouth. Something happened with Ozmas that caused her to relinquish admin rights and control over Ozmas and Ringo. Why would she do such a thing? I get it, Shu foiled Ozma's gamble to walk the earth by hijacking Isabelle and Isabelle foiled Ozmas as well, but that sort of defeat wouldn't get to Ozmas that badly...Something must've changed in Ozmas that led her to made the decision to let Charon and Ringo go. But what? Was it a change in perspective or was Ozmas that big of an emotional wreck?

I'm so confused. And I don't like it when I'm confused. To see Ozmas relinquish that sort of control over Ringo and Reyva, I can't help but get the tragic feeling that something's up with Ozmas. And I don't know what and it's unnerving me because Ozmas is sliding into that gray area where I'm starting to see her as a tragic villain. Goddammit I'm so confused.

>>3801850
Anyways. I'll go take the time to Preserve this vein. You just HAD to throw us a BAMBOOZLE on us didn't you BHOP? What happened? was dice involved? I know dice is involved. Goddammit You're tearing me up with this curveball.
>>
>>3802379
We don't know she let them go. They may have been forcibly freed. We'll see Monday, Reyva said they have a lot to tell us and I'm sure "so, this is why I'm not enslaved to Ozmas' will anymore" is going to be the first of them.
>>
>>3802387
>>3801912
I dunno anons, Ozmas offing herself through more admin abuse seems so anti-climatic. It just doesn't sit right with me when I hear that in my head. Ozmas intentionally canceling the contracts would be...more "interesting" to say the least.
>>
>>3802399
Yeah, but I'm not assuming that Ozmas is dead. I'm merely acknowledging that there are many possible explanations for how Reyva and Ringo (and possibly other Tindaloi?) were freed from their geasa. We don't have enough information to make confident guesses. Fortunately, we only have to wait thirty-eight hours to find out.
>>
Perhaps holding their contracts is a significant token cost and by releasing them Oozmas is reclaiming tokens to alleviate the gimped position we've put her in?
>>
>>3802492
...That surprisingly makes sense. It would explain how Ozmas can have enforcers of her will without actually breaking the rules.
>>
>>3802492
>>3802507
Could be. I'm not sure how that would apply to Ringo, though, the Tindalos made their deal with the Crucible itself instead of any particular Mother. Though maybe it would be that case because Ozmas set Ringo to a particular task. What are the rest of the Tindalos Hounds doing in the Crucible, anyway? We know of at least two others that were just out in the world, if only by virtue of knowing of two Daughters that have killed and consumed them. Were those also guarding particular points, or are the Tindalos just allowed out of the Cord as part of their deal.
>>
>>3802645
it could just be an odd sorta thing, with Mother acting as the Cords Representative/part of it while shes active, so shes still fully able to free them or well, fuck up and cause their freedom.
>>
>>3802645
I'm pretty sure most of the Tindalos hang out in the Cord to fight intruders, but it seems like Oozmas can give them commands at a cost. Hence why we haven't been buried under a mountain of interdimensional doggos.
>>
right well, honestly probably not too good a Relic, but i got to thinking about a suit of armor for Amara, then got to thinking about something that kinda fit her theme, then thought of something we could give to both her and FuzzBuzz to help them work together and... this was the result.

eh, i dont hate it at all but id understand people having major reservations over it. still, no harm in trying or putting it forward for sure.

>EKATA KAVACA; a costly suit of armor, reminiscent of latin segmentata armor at its core, this hardy suit of near steel like calcite does much more than simply protect the wearer, though it does give such at a rate of an equivalent to 350% biomass. When worn, the wearer may link their armor to another wearing a suit of Ekata Kavaca for one ACT from each of them via physical contact, that lasts the remainder of combat or until spent, each daughter having a segment of their armor shift in color and decoration to represent those they have made a connection to. Thus, so long as the connection remains active, each person may draw upon the raw stats of another, be it strength, speed, awareness, ACTs, or another outside of the basic two of Health and Biomass, in order to gain what was borrowed upon themselves at a rate of 1.5 times the borrowed amount. Furthermore, one may even borrow an entire Ability from another, but for the cost of burning out the connection at the end of the turn this is done. Though this connection can only flow in one direction each turn between two individuals, and causes a temporary loss of the borrowed stats or abilities from their owner, as the saying goes, sharing is caring, and caring is a power never to be underestimated.
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>>3802492
Awww yeah! That would make a surprising amount of sense! Which means that Ozmas would gain tokens anew and put herself atop Evil Dr. West Prime in the threat rating.
I think a detailed neuromantic scan of Reyva is still in order, though. Let´s check that she is not an unwilling manchurian, Francine & Gina expertise should be invaluable for that purpose.

More importatntly...You know that means we POTENTIALLY could recruit RINGO & CHARON as Team-members, right?
Interdimensional SPETZNATZ COMMANDO STRIKE outta the fucking nowhere via interdimensional space warping, HERE WE COME! WAHHAHHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHA!
>>
>>3803248
i could see Ringo sticking around but id imagine, especially with how things are heating up, Charon will most likely pull a Mara and go do something more their weight class to buy us time. a good example is, its implied theres some foreign daughters out there we might simply not yet be prepared for, and i highly doubt all of them will be as friendly as 'A' was. hell, id not be surprised if Mara could use some assistance, or could need some soon. the look on Maras face though if Charon shows up to help, haha, we should build Charon a camera first before they head out if that is where they go.

Ringo id not be surprised if they go and help too, i mean i doubt its a coincidence both found eachother, but Ringo also actually seemed, not weak but not Mara/Charon level, so i can see from a balance perspective them being able to stick around. plus, from a character perspective, they might not be against helping us, but their personal reasons for doing so are alot less solid besides minor friendship with us and them taking a liking to Amara. id still not be surprised if even if they are on our side and wish to help, they want to go and round up any of their brothers and sisters that were in a similar situation as them and help in other ways as their own pack too.

all i can say is, its not a good sign of what were about to face if BHOP lets either, especially both, of them join our team, even temporarily for one mission.
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>>3801854

>"Shu’s catch of the week: 1 Silver Fish, 1 Stealth Panther, and 1 Frost Wolf. FuzzBuzz gets adopted by Ants, and unexpected visitors arrive."

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/3780059/

>[[29th Vein....Archived]]

͙̥͍̪͉̰̯>̦͎̯̠[[͚͙Y͞ou̮͉͖͇ͅn̝͔͇̬̥g̖ ͇̥̖͍M͟a͖̼s̬͎̭̤̘t̺̕é̼̠̩̯̬̼r͎̤̫,̧̬͈͍ ̹w̱͈̫͠h̬ạ͞t̴̻̩̪͔̰͍ ̥̗̬̦a̳̤̻͖r̳̠̮͓͙e͈̞͖̥̭ͅ ̖̭̯͕͕͓͘ͅý̜͖̣̰̳̝͙o̻̘͝u̹̮̹̩̦͇̩ ̪͔̘̝͙̭͍̀d̦o̸͇̭̫̦̻i̧̟̟͎̦͔̳̩n̟̫͈͈͉͝ͅg͉ ̨̯͈̪̰̫̗ḥ̬̯̝e̱̜̟͉rͅe͈̖̝ ̫̩͖̥u̥̤͎͚̱̬ͅp̡̩͕̬ ͎͖͢s̶o̮̩̤ ͇̟̩̳̼̪̝̀l̹̦͕̼͝a̗te̘͎̯͇̣̟͈?̤̤̣͍̯͉̣ ̢̦̹̫̞͇̫̭I͇̤̖͔̠̹͉͠t͉͉̺̜̭͠'s͖͉ ̠͝t̙̘̤̖̻ͅi̥̠̜̤͝me̴̠͇ ͇̦͈̭f̼͚̳̣̤͝o̰͈̻͔̯̫͟r͇̮ ţh̤̰̼̝͘e̜̞ ̭̼̦͍͜t̛̬͈̞ò͙͎r̷̗̞̗̘͖̘̳p̶̩o̬̝͈̥ͅr̰̙̫̖̥͍]͔]͕͕͙̹̘̜͜ͅ
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̰
̛̰>̴[͇͚̬[͇̹C̯͔̖͕͉ͅe̯̺̗͚̰̭r͔t̠ͅa̳̞̯in̡̜l̨͎͔̦̱y̥̰,̮̱̣͔͕̯͚ ̘̗̝̞b̜̠̪͓̖̗͞u̙̰̳̻̪͔̯̕t ̡͚͕̙̳̗͎M̧̹̳͇o̞͕̟̫̬͓͔͞t̤h̸͍̜̖̟͓͚̯e̠̞̕r̷̠̥͍̻̺͕̪ ̸̫n̻̥̻̻e̷̮͍e͍͍͓͉͙͜ͅd̷s̵̬̜̝͉̹ ̼͔̘̻̕r̖͍e͕̝͚͡s̞̜͓͖̝͓t̮͔̳.̻̣͎ ̷̠̣̯͓̞A͍̰̱̜̻̕n͓̠̼̹d̪̺̘̠͔̞ ̤s͍͍͍͖̩̹̹͟o ̛͎̜̙̘̹ͅd̨̩̱̟͈̩̳o̮̫͖͔̭͇̘͟ ̸̦̰̬̟̩yo̡ú]̯͖͇]̫
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̧̘͉>̗̕[͕͎̹̠͜[͎A͠n̼̣̭͍̳o̠̼̳̙̟̞͟ͅt̳͢ḩ̪̗e̗̥r͓͠ ̯̥̭̩̦͡t̰̪͔͕̪͈i̡̦̞m̫͇̫͜ͅͅḛ̺̜̜̼͕̟,̸͎̥ ̙͢M̙̙̭͚̝͜o̪̦̩̺̝͚t̷̺̭̟̜͚͉̰h̹͍̣̝̼ͅe̥̟̳͖͚̪͎̕r̠̘̬ w̥̪i͚l̢̹͓̣̟l͕͓͎̘̱ ͈̗̳̬͕̭̹le̖̺͇̩t ͙̜͖̞͙̝̻y͙̜ͅo̵̯͖͔̰ͅu ̛̫̤͓̟̻ķ̼͙͈̞n͖͡ͅo̴̟͕w͎͡ ̡͕͙͖͎͙̣͎w͠ḫ̥̪͓̭̕e̸̳̙̘̖̣ͅn ̺s̹̰h̬̪͚̖̠̬e̗͎̮̝'͕̰̜̫̞͡s ̖͖r̩̺̱͟e̠͓͍̱͈à͎̳̳̪̮ͅd͟y̡̗͔ f̫o̹̫̞r̦̯̬ a̫̖̬̰̣̦n̴͍̝̙̞o̖̺̞t̳̦̦h̳̳̝̣͚͕̣ẹ̻ͅͅr͈ ̡̮̪͖͓͓V͉̞̮̞̀e̵̦͈̘̟̮̝i̮͝n̘̱͈͕̹̜̬]͟]̴͔̳̮̻͖
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>>3803248
>I think a detailed neuromantic scan of Reyva is still in order, though. Let´s check that she is not an unwilling manchurian, Francine & Gina expertise should be invaluable for that purpose.
There's no reason not to check, but I doubt they are a sleeper agent. There's not much utility to such a plan, Reyva is still far above us in power. Subterfuge doesn't offer any advantage, just sending them to kill us would be a better use of Ozmas' time. Unless she's so intimidated by us now that she just can't risk the chance that we'd unbind Reyva, which in retrospect is possible. We do keep doing the impossible, her ability to assess the threat we pose is all sorts of screwed up now. But still, I'm pretty sure this is genuine.

>More importatntly...You know that means we POTENTIALLY could recruit RINGO & CHARON as Team-members, right?
Oh, I wish, but Reyva probably has better things to do than babysit us. Like >>3803265 says, it's most likely going to be a Mara situation where they go off and complete goals that indirectly benefit us. I do like the idea of them assisting Mara in taking out Daughters reaching the Cord, that would be both thematically interesting and very helpful. Especially if they send some of that Daughter meat our way, hint hint. Come on, Reyva, you've got a teleporting doggo with you, you can come drop off some of your kills easily. Same for any big nasty threats you take out on other missions you take.

As for Ringo, not sure they'll stick around either. They've got a family, even if they're not going to be Reyva's new sidekick they probably want to spend time with the pack and keep them safe in this time of transition. If they do help us, I imagine it would be in the form of speaking as advocate for us to the other Tindalos Hounds. Maybe come the time to ascend the Cord, we'll have some sort of pact with them so that they won't attack us on our ascent. That would be great, if their contract allows them to hold back like that. Or hell, just a map of the Cord would be really useful.
>>
>>3801885
question BHOP,

While a but if a moot point now, at least in the point of making them, what was the results of Raths anti-Charon/November enhancement forging we assigned her to while we were away?
>>
>>3803508
(I'm glad you asked. Rath and Francine were able to come up with a Chest Slot Armor that, to any ormal Daughter, considerably boosts their HEALTH and grants a chance to make Flesh Artisan abilities have feedback, much like Generators and Neuromancers. In November's hands, her HEALTH skyrockets and she is rendered all but immune to Flesh Artisan abilities. While you hopefully won't have to use it against Charon, it remains a potent counter to one of the more dangerous ability types out there.)
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>>3803508
I totally forgot we assigned her that task. We were out hunting for so long, some of the pre-trip details have faded.

>>3804112
So does that mean there are Flesh Artisan abilities that don't require touch to apply? November's skin is metal, she should be immune to touch-based Flesh Artisan abilities already. I'm now imagining something like the Melding Plague from Revelation Space, a creeping foglike tide of micro-organisms that penetrate into any space not hermetically sealed and start deforming anything it finds inside. The Crucible would fit disturbingly well into the Revelation Space setting, actually.
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>>3804153
In a world of flesh and bone, bio-metal would make sense. also, Bio-metal is metal af. imagine Dragon amalgams that are made of bio-metal.
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>>3804224
Oh, I don't doubt that her armor is partially alive, it explains how she's capable of healing damage. It just feels odd to me to have the living components accessible from the outside layer. It would be like having living cells in your hairs themselves instead of the follicles.
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>>3804112
well, that sounds really useful just in general yeah.

>>3803030
also any thoughts on this BHOP (or anyone else)? most of it i felt seemed balanced but even with the connection burnout i wasn't sure the ability part really felt balanced enough, considering it can be remade.

>>3804153
we already have seen that a bit. Dorians Red Death has its own FEAR mechanic thats done without touching, and while admittedly that might be coming more from the Humoral side of things, its hybrid nature would make it count as Flesh Artisan now too, and be affected as such. might not be exactly what you were talking about or what BHOP meant, but still, we do have a non touch flesh artisan ability on us now, even if its only such through other means.
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>>3804639
>also any thoughts on this BHOP (or anyone else)? most of it i felt seemed balanced but even with the connection burnout i wasn't sure the ability part really felt balanced enough, considering it can be remade.
I'm in a weird position of thinking it's both OP and kind of a waste. Like, it's insanely powerful if you have an entire team wearing it. But putting it just on Amara and FuzzBuzz makes it not that great, it would really be more effective paired with another Daughter than with a construct. FuzzBuzz is meant more as a meatshield than an actual fighter, so both empowering him and drawing power from him isn't going to be that effective. Maybe if leveling Joyous Many let the clones copy more than just Amara's Tier 2 Relics, so Amara could pull from her clones, but otherwise I don't see us making great use of it.
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>>3801865
While I'm fairly trusting of Francine's loyalty to us...

I'm not so sure that Dr. West doesn't have some sort of hidden trick regarding constructs and accordingly am unsure it would be wise to give Francine our halo.
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>>3804762
Francines technically not a construct though. shes a mind wiped daughter thats been implanted with a copy of Wests mental image.

>>3804667
fair, though i do think you underestimate how much she may be able to draw from a quad-knighted-nomling with relic boosted defensive stats, or vise versa, but still, fair.

plus giving FuzzBuzz armor would hardly be a bad thing.
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>>3804775
Sure, you've called me on a technical point of contention, but the point remains that a lady smart enough to create mind wiped daughters implanted with their mental image and network them all together is bound to have tricks up their sleeve for such units.
>>
Theory:
>The Crucible is all just the final demented dream of Sam as she's being clubbed to death with a lava lamp by Isabelle
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>>3804810
maybe, but with Francine being wholly separated from the network anything she has like that wouldn't specifically work on Francine any better than anyone else by this point. it wouldn't be any reason to specifically fear Francine but just West in general no matter who she uses something like that on.
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>>3804810
We've got the creator of the Neurotic Halo right here in front of us. Maybe we should ask Reyva to take a look at Francine's linkage before they go off to whatever business they're going to do? It doesn't have to be out of fear of Francine, it's also good logic given that we're planning on crashing the network. We can have Reyva look it over, get their insights on how to deal with the modifications that West has made.
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>>3804827
That doesn't really work because Sam isn't really even a part of it for the most part
>>
(Gentlemen, the 30th Vein shall open at around 11:00AM tomorrow morning. I look forward to seeing you there.)

>>3803030
(This Relic is fantastic, and the interaction effects between party members would be incredible, if you could produce enough of them. Excellent share, as always.)
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>>3803030
You know, it would work better if it was a piece of armor instead of an entire suit. Whereas transferring entire suits of that relic would be cumbersome, what if you divided that suit into separate pieces? Maybe the more pieces of armor a family member transfers onto the recipient, the more complete the suit assembles itself.
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>>3805096
i... have no idea what you're even saying honestly. at all.

>>3805070
looking forward to it BHOP, you have get some rest!
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>>3805070
See you in the morning, BHOP. I too look forward to hearing Reyva and Ringo's Excellent Adventure.

>>3805100
I think they mean that each person aligned to the Relic would have a separate armor piece, and they'd transfer the armor along with the donated abilities. So the person receiving abilities would get an increasingly complete armor set. Could work, but could also look dumb if you were transferring between multiple people in the network.
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>>3805106
if thats what he means, honestly that would make the relic much much worse and really not worth using at all, and im not a fan of it. the thematic look of the Segmentata both in allowing its bands to change and in the history of the armor fits the abilities of the armor extremely well.
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>>3805111
ah...I may have missed that part/misinterpreted/misread the description of the Relic. My bad.

Neat idea, but we've already got Armor sets that have been custom tailored to each party member, it would mechanically be a hassle and weigh the party down if everyone was wearing the Ekata Kavaca on-top of their personal armor sets. Come to think of it. We keep on making armor set ideas to an excessive point where it feels clunky. Can we try different relic ideas?
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>>3805117
well, the Armor was really just for Amara and FuzzBuzz like i said. im unsure what you misread though.

and the issue with other relic types is... we really dont need them/they're alot harder to justify. Armor is easy. even if a Daughter has natural defenses, a good suit of armor really doesn't get in the way and can only really be a benefit, both in more protection and some utility. worse case? you dont use the utility but she still gets more protection without having anything she can do stopped.

weapons however, require arms being used and finding a spot for them in an offensive lineup, and can easily get in the way or feel too clunky to use in a situation. its just not easy and rarely worth it to have a relic weapon even if it is otherwise a good one, and because Relics are both static compared to Abilities, and physical objects, they simply wont come into play as much, and can even be lost or even stolen. its just alot harder to ever justify Relic weapons over relic armor.

and then anything else? Utility Relics? always going to be very limited in scope to the point unless its really really good, no point in ever making it. we also, lets be honest, cannot ignore they simply are not as fun or interesting as combat relics, both to use or think up. its also very much a combat oriented game and world we have here, so non-combat options simply dont come up enough to really we worth the cost most of the time.

and then there 'other relics' which can sometimes be amusing but are usually simply full on worthless on actual use and simply arent something to really waste the cost on if we cant justify it for a really good thematic reason or something, which isnt very often.
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>>3805117
We make a lot of armor sets because armor is useful for all the party. Weapons aren't, really, everyone's got damage dealing abilities of their own that work quite well. Weapons would just bog them down with more options. But armor is mostly passive and therefore always useful.

We could do more utility Relics, though. Most tools and talismans we've acquired have been looted, not made. It's just the Crimson Jester's Masque, the Hydra's Heart and the Remembrance Whistle. We have plenty of ideas in the document, we should consider making some next time we're forging.
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>>3805129
not gonna lie id say theres a good reason what we haven't made in the doc hasn't been made, and what has has. cant think of anything in it id agree to make at the moment.
>>
>>3805129
>>3805117
honestly besides maybe upgrading existing Relics id think we have enough, about time i think we hold off til we get a higher tier forge core.
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>>3805128
Well, there's always enhancement Relics like the Matron's Stoicism or Vocem Virtutis. But it almost feels like cheating to make those, you know? I think that's why we haven't come up with many ideas for that, making these external augmentations to our abilities feels somehow taboo when level-ups require so much effort put into them. Just going and making enhancements at the Forge instead of having to earn them in a fight? It's practically inconceivable. Maybe we should try it, though.

>>3805133
Eh, probably, a lot of it isn't very useful to us. I'd have to look through it to see if there's anything applicable. Though I do think enhancement Relics are the way to go, so we'd need to come up with new ones for that. I'm going to try it, an idea just came to me. Give me a minute to write it down and come up with a clever name.
>>
>>3805129
>>3805133
It also does stand out that consumables are another thing that we haven't used. Well...we did use the Sauce...and the Koku Serum...

>>3805136
Also true. But getting a higher Tier Forge Core is gonna be hard. We've got a Tier 1 and a Tier 3, and we can't reliably recharge them unless we have a third core to cycle them in the forge for the recharging process. I'm fairly certain that the Tier 3 Forge has 3/4 fuel left in the Tank to keep November running.

>>3805128
I'll be sure to come up with some esoteric accessory/trinkets relics then. Or some weapon relic that doesn't rely on needing human hands to operate. It could always be shoulder mounted or some mutated limbs.

>>3805138
What about Ability enhancing relics? like Relics specifically tailored to boost specific aspects of an ability? A poor girl's augmentation per se.
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>>3805143
>What about Ability enhancing relics? like Relics specifically tailored to boost specific aspects of an ability? A poor girl's augmentation per se.
Yeah, that's what I mean. Stuff that makes powers more useful. We don't really have anything for that that we haven't looted. Here's an attempt at a basic idea for one, might be useful for our party with all the field effects we have.

>ANIDOLIC ARMAMENT: A slender fresnel lens of crystallized proteins, this Relic focuses not light but auras. The user of the ARMAMENT may alter the angle of effect for any fields they produce, changing them from radial emanations to cones of varying width. By doing so they may enhance the field inversely proportionate to the angle of the cone, choosing to either give the cone increased range or increased power. This allows for the use of fields either as makeshift ranged weapons to affect foes outside of their normal range, or to magnify the effect upon a smaller group.
>>
>>3805138
>>3805143
>Well, there's always enhancement Relics like the Matron's Stoicism or Vocem Virtutis.
yeah, thats also kinda my issue. i dont like the idea of... well MAKING those type of relics. it doesn't sit well with me and id not vote for it. im having trouble putting it to words but... only way i can think to say it is, i dont like breaking systems or trying to become overpowered. i hate that actually, its unfun and ruins the experience for me. theres... alot more too it and that like, not even a tenth of what i feel i dont like about trying to make those kind of relics, but i just have no idea how to word what im think/feeling about that.

id just very very much like us to stay away from stuff like that.


>>3805143
>Consumables
we used the koku serum? when? what? i only ask as the syringe is supposed to auto-refill, so if we have it, it should be on our relics list and we have totally overlooked that.

>recharging
actually, its only an issue if we drain both, as November can run with no Forge Core... not very well, and id imagine not forever, but long enough to charge them at least.


>Accessory Relics
might fall into what ive said above more or less.

>Alt Weapon Relics
not sure mutated limbs that come with the relic is really something id like honestly, though we haven't completely ignored the idea of shoulder mounted relics, its just what can be useful shoulder mounted is very limited compared to handheld weapons.
>>
>>3805151
eh, feels like it defeats the point of Auras in the first place to me.
>>
>>3805152

So then what's your stance on consumables?

>we used the koku serum? when? what?
Koku serum was used when we were going to explore Carroll's Forest. Applied to FuzzBuzz and a Knightling before entering said forest.
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>>3805162
ive got nothing against the idea of consumable,s they just have to be something we know we will use and be worth the cost still. my issue with the koku was always we usually dont know what we're walking into so we wouldn't know to use it before going into battle, and really thats my only issue with most consumables.

at least with something like the Sauce, its easy to justify, especially with an otherwise compete build.
>>
>>3805152
No, I get what you're saying, I think. I'm not too comfortable with the idea, either, I'm not really sure why I brought it up. Maybe I just wanted to defend the idea of crafting, because it is thematically cool but mechanically and narratively kind of boring. It feels like unearned power, that we're cheating the system, doing something that sidesteps interesting encounters as a way of improving our characters. It's the classic Bethesda game exploit problem. You could go out and engage with the world the developers have created in order to get stronger and unlock more options, but it's easier to just sit in town crafting a million iron daggers. It's effective, but is it really enjoyable? You're draining all the fun out of the game in favor of

I think it actually speaks to a problem with this game's crafting system: It's way too cheap. All it takes to craft is biomass of the appropriate flavors. Sure, there can be hefty prices, but we've got a big party now. We can afford to spend a lot of BIO. So we don't have to pay any real cost to make new tools. And since it's so cheap, paying those prices is more or less removed from the rest of the gameplay loop of exploration and dangerous battles. Crafting doesn't involve doing anything fun on our part, we just get the tools. We have to adventure to acquire improved Forge Cores, and that's neat, but once we've gotten that upgrade it's completely static and we just enjoy it from then on.

I think the system would benefit a lot from us needing to find ingredients. Change it so we can't just make things out of generic biomass, but need to hunt for specific things in the fleshscape. You want this new armor? Well, any old Calcite Armorer biomass isn't going to do, you need to kill this bone-armored spider Amalgam, only it has the right mix of flexibility and strength for this plating. Making a new gun? Can't just toss in Generator BIO, instead harvest bio-magma from the caldera of Fever Mountain, use it to make the power cell.

Alternatively, we could require fuel for the Forge. It's not a perpetual energy source, we've got to recharge it with some resource we find. Maybe dead enemies drop not just levels to consume but also some processed biomass fuel, and we feed that to the Forge. Then every crafting ticks down the fuel supply a bit, so we have to ration our crafting more and it feels more meaningful. And then our adventures to hunt for levels pull a dual purpose, and we get to know that we haven't just earned new abilities but new equipment. It would be like earning money to buy equipment from shops, in a more traditional RPG.

>>3805161
It's a first draft, I'm not going to pretend it's good.
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>>3805181
>Basically restricting crafting requirements and forcing us to hunt actual amalgams/Daughters in order to make a fabulous hat of +2 Neuromancy al la Monster hunter.
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>>3805181
>>3805165

I understand where the concern lies when it comes to crafting and how we deal with it. And I have to agree that we've been holding back on the crafting specifically because we have the ability to break the game by exploiting the forge and having the proper resources to forge such items.

But keep in mind that such a system change would force other daughters into more difficult positions because of that. The system we abide by is also the same system that the other daughter npcs in the world also have to abide by. Changing the Forge crafting requirements would break other cogs in the quest's background, and Bhop would have to give us a huge notice to compensate.
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>>3805191
You're not wrong. I'm not really proposing that BHOP change it, you're right that such a change would have huge repercussions for the setting at this point. I'm just stating my thoughts on how we could be encouraged to give more value to crafting.
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>>3805197
>You're not wrong. I'm not really proposing that BHOP change it, you're right that such a change would have huge repercussions for the setting at this point.

Honestly I wonder how hard Shu rocked the boat that's basically the Crucible world in the 3-4 weeks since she woke up. At first it was:
>Gained the attention of Mara the Marrow Dragon
Then it escalated
>Stopped the Spartan/Blew up a corrupted Engine, gained ire of Mother Ozmas
>gained the attention of Dr. West/declared war against Dr. West/Blew up West Gamma's lab.
>Gained attention of the Midnight Crew
>Gained attention of Magpie
>Gained attention of the Disassociated Ones
Then the escalation accelerated
>Stopped Spiraling Fear by leading the raid against Spiraling Fear with Mara and the Midnight Crew
>Stopped Ozmas's ressurection and severely gimped her in the process
>Killed Ozma's favored daughter
>Became catalyst for worldwide revolution of renewed defiance.
>Instantly became Global Celebrity Status
Then it got bizarre
>Befriended the Queen of a Colony of Literal Rage Ants.
>Freed(?) a Tindalos Hound of its contract from Mother(?)
>Inspired Mother's Former Right Hand to defect(?)

Seriously, the shit Shu has caused has gotten so out of hand it's almost surreal.

The next time we meet the Midnight Crew for the next Speakeasy party, I'm gonna be worried on how they will react in general.
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>>3805181
>>3805191
>>3805185
my issue with requiring specific amalgams or things like that is, we simply couldn't guarantee we would find exactly THAT type of Amalgam or daughter or whatever, just like with abilities, and otherwise, it would kinda heavily shift the focus on the game and exploration to implement that. im not against how open the forge crafting system is overall, i actually like that, but it does need something to help regulate power creep or exploitation yeah, besides just our own misgivings at doing that. i just dont think a monster hunter or something style system is at all the way to go.
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>>3805218
>but it does need something to help regulate power creep or exploitation yeah, besides just our own misgivings at doing that

Again, I agree with you on that. It's honestly a touch decision to handle from both Bhop's perspective as the QM, Our perspective as the players, and the IC perspective of Shu and the denizens of Body Horror's Crucible.

On one hand reining in the requirements to prevent the meta-exploitation would make the quest more fair, but on the other hand the IC implications would make the setting much harder/worse as such thinking of fairness doesn't really exist in a cuthroat place like the Crucible despite Shu and her family as well as a few other settlements of humanity being oddballs (Shu and her family being the ones that consistently rock the boat as of late in the Crucible's lifespan).
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>>3805231
eh, im not sure about that second part, but either way, i think you're ignoring too much the fact this IS a game, with a mechanics system, that needs to be fun and balanced, and sometimes it IS the story or lore side of things that have to take the hit in order for the game/quest as a whole to be a better experience overall.
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>>3805216
Yeah, Shu's been busy, alright. No wonder Ozmas is sulking, everything went so wrong so fast.

>>3805218
>my issue with requiring specific amalgams or things like that is, we simply couldn't guarantee we would find exactly THAT type of Amalgam or daughter or whatever, just like with abilities, and otherwise, it would kinda heavily shift the focus on the game and exploration to implement that.
Yeah, it would require us having much greater knowledge of what was around to find. That would require that we either be more tied to an organization that we can get information from or that we spend more time exploring just to see what's out there. It could change the dynamic significantly, you're not wrong. Alternatively, we could just craft with whatever we find. Have our crafting be less freeform and have it be based on the materials we've gathered along the way. That might give us less room for expression, but I personally find that restrictions enhance my creativity by giving my imagination structure, so it might actually be preferable. A matter of differing preferences for game design, I don't think there's a one right way to handle crafting mechanics.

>im not against how open the forge crafting system is overall, i actually like that, but it does need something to help regulate power creep or exploitation yeah, besides just our own misgivings at doing that. i just dont think a monster hunter or something style system is at all the way to go.
Well, that's why I had two proposals for balancing methods. I think the Forge fuel idea could work better if you don't like the idea of needing ingredients. Have what we can craft be limited not by our personal Bio supplies but the amount of fuel we've gathered off of defeated enemies. Make it so that fighting and adventuring is still the primary role in our crafting, but in a more generalized manner. We'd still be able to draw a connection between our engagement in the core gameplay loop and empowering ourselves through crafting. We'd look forward to fights not just for more levels but because we had a really cool piece of equipment we wanted to make and needed to gather the fuel for it. Only problem I can see is that November does kind of depend on Forge Cores being limitless energy sources, conceptually, so we'd need to add some sort of technobabble to explain how she doesn't consume Forge fuel herself. Maybe something about how the remaining Daughter parts in her cybernetics can produce the biofuel that it runs on, and that's why it costs her Health to use her abilities? It doesn't have to be an in-depth thing, just a lampshade.
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>>3805252
eh, the second on im still iffy on, especially as you said it here. all that sounds like is eating into our levels for crafting materials, which sounds like a poor trade off. plus, its a bit too much a center-point of forge cores, and hell even daughters, to change that. i mean, when you think about it, Daughters are unlimited supplies of energy too. even without regen stats a daughter can still heal and basically have unlimited biomass to spend outside of combat. it does take time to rebuild but they still dont need to do anything to really refuel. id imagine the forge cores are so 'unlimited' based off the same principles, though we do know forge cores can get overtaxed still.

i think just putting a much stronger limit on the powerlevel possible for a relic and/or significantly increasing their cost would work better. maybe even make significantly powerful relics outright cost permanent stat hits. so long as its not too major or at least feels equal to the power of the relic it would probably still feel worth it.
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>>3805265
>all that sounds like is eating into our levels for crafting materials, which sounds like a poor trade off.
I was thinking they'd give both, levels and bio-fuel. It wouldn't be trading one for the other.

>i mean, when you think about it, Daughters are unlimited supplies of energy too. even without regen stats a daughter can still heal and basically have unlimited biomass to spend outside of combat.
Don't we absorb ambient biomass, and just have a huge storage supply? I'm pretty sure we're not generating matter and energy ex nihilo, just processing the Crucible's resources. But yeah, the idea that Daughters are an energy source was kind of my thinking, that it would take whatever energy supply they'd processed and had in them at time of death and make use of that.

>id imagine the forge cores are so 'unlimited' based off the same principles, though we do know forge cores can get overtaxed still
Maybe. We don't know how they generate energy, these things are weird. But even if they are unlimited energy sources, I still think there's room to portray them as needing some limited resource. Maybe you could just shift it to crafting putting a significant strain on them that can't be repaired like overtaxing their energy generation can, and they need whatever resource we harvest from our kills to repair that strain. I don't know, something to workshop, but I don't think the idea is inherently incompatible with the lore. Plenty of ways to spin it, the mechanics working is the more important thing.

>i think just putting a much stronger limit on the powerlevel possible for a relic and/or significantly increasing their cost would work better. maybe even make significantly powerful relics outright cost permanent stat hits. so long as its not too major or at least feels equal to the power of the relic it would probably still feel worth it
That could work. I'm still inclined to have it closely tied to the core gameplay loop, but having it be a permanent sacrifice would have an effect on the rest of gameplay so we're getting some of that. More clear limits on what Relics of a certain Tier can do would help as well, though still give us some issues when it comes to enhancement Relics. Weak enhancement Relics could still add up to have a big impact.
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>>3805293
>I was thinking they'd give both, levels and bio-fuel. It wouldn't be trading one for the other.
fair but wouldn't make sense, considering Forge Cores are new to the system and were only made to be compatible/ function within it, but not originating from it.

>Don't we absorb ambient biomass, and just have a huge storage supply?
well yes, but my point was for all we know the forge cores are too, and both only work due to the Crucible and what it allows/has made possible.

>Maybe you could just shift it to crafting putting a significant strain on them that can't be repaired like overtaxing their energy generation can, and they need whatever resource we harvest from our kills to repair that strain.
crafting relics overtaxing them literally defeats the purpose of forge cores and why they were made. November only overtaxes them because she isnt using them for their intended purpose.

>More clear limits on what Relics of a certain Tier can do would help as well, though still give us some issues when it comes to enhancement Relics. Weak enhancement Relics could still add up to have a big impact.
well, its not perfect but we already have seen powerful relics only allow one of them to be equipped. id say just make that more common and perhaps expand it to 'class of relic', say, only 1 Skintalker class relic can be equipped. otherwise, maybe with few exceptions make everyone like November, in that they have limited relic slots, with of course one of her advantages being she gets twice as much due to the internal storage.
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File: hm intensifies.gif (1.18 MB, 480x270)
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I don't suppose BHOP could post a link to Ivey's original picture? I need to see it because reasons.
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>>3805563
(Here's the source for Ivey's picture, Anon.)

https://mobile.twitter.com/10den_j/status/984345814242705408
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(The 30th Vein is open, Gentlemen.)

>>3805827



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