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 Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 11:52 am
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Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 11:54 am
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... and so, Sora and Riku finished off Xemnas in the Realm of Nothingness, once again saving the universe.
Long ago, people lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light. Everyone loved the light.
That was two years ago. Things have been peaceful. The worlds were separate, there had been no trouble on the horizon. The Keybladers had finally had a chance to relax. For almost two years, Sora, Riku, and Kairi lived on their islands as if that was the only place there was in the universe. However, just one month ago, there was a meteor shower.
Then people began to fight over it. They wanted the light for themselves. And darkness was born in their hearts.
It was impossible to miss. The stars fell like rain, a torrent of blurred light. Every world trembled as the lights vanished, tremors shaking the ground with every fallen star. The shower only last a few minutes, and the quakes lasted only a bit longer. But when all was said and done... there were no more stars...
The darkness spread, swallowing the light and many people's hearts. It covered everything, and the world disappeared.
... and all the worlds had been united as one, single world, and with it, once-slain foes were reborn without reason. The world boundaries were wrought to nothing, and the second coming of enemies brought a sense of dread and suspicion throughout the world. The many regions were now united, with clashing cultures and laws. Some worlds were lucky to be mostly unaffected, while in others, chaos erupted.
But small fragments of the light survived... in the hearts of children. With these fragments of light, children rebuilt the lost world.
After a month passed, a group of strange beings arrived, confused and devastated by their own loss. They were from a world none had yet seen or heard of in the universe... a world known as Earth. Assaulted by Heartless and lost to the infinite Darkness, their world has left no trace of its existence that we can find.
It's the world we live in now. But the true light sleeps, deep within the darkness. That's why the worlds are still scattered, divided from each other.
Now, some of these Earthlings are on quests of their own. Some seek to understand what caused the worlds to combine and, hopefully, find a way home; others search for the King, who has vanished without word, likely having discovered some sinister secret; and yet others walk a darker path, taking advantage of this new world for their own desires.
There are many worlds, but they all share the same sky.
It has been five days since their arrival... five long, dangerous days. Wars have been averted. Darker enemies than ever before have been discovered. And yet still, the most sinister forces lie hidden, waiting for the moment of triumph.
With but one world, there is but one heart.
The True Heart.
Kingdom Hearts.
One sky, one destiny.
Prologue: Home No More
For most of the world, it was a regular day. For the western peoples of earth, it was nearing nightfall; groups of friends were out, others were just getting off of work. As the sun began to set beyond the horizon, its last remaining rays of light were covered by storm clouds. Around the world, clouds blotted out the lights of the sky, and even man-made lights went out, as if a massive short in the circuit had set them all off. There was a universal silence for a few minutes- entire populations left wondering in awe about what the storm could possibly mean. The people of Earth didn’t have to wonder long; from the very ground, antennae began to sprout; from the darkest shadows came beady, golden lights. Strange creatures emerged from the blackness, and within seconds, there was nowhere to run. The planet Earth was under attack… by the Heartless.
The creatures were all-too-familiar to most of the younger generation, who quickly attempted to fight back. However, these creatures were endless, just as they had been in the games of their origin. The Earthlings struggled; before long, it seemed for naught, until around the world, those who valiantly fought against the Heartless experienced the same, familiar falling as the fabled Keyblade Master- a Dive into the Heart (also known as a Deep Dive). Separated from Earth, and ‘falling’ into their Hearts, the defenders were all given their choice- take the weapons given form by their hearts, or fall into oblivion. Those that chose to fight, upon grasping their Heartbound Weapons, were suddenly brought back to their world… or what was left. The Earth had been broken into millions and millions of pieces, a giant sphere of Darkness above threatening to absorb it all. On these chunks of Earth, the fighters all found themselves face to face with a single Darkside- upon victory or defeat, they were sucked into the violent currents of the Darkness, losing consciousness.
A large group of the Earthlings awoke, strewn about the courtyard of Disney Castle. The group was ushered into rooms to rest before meeting King Mickey who tried to answer all of their questions to the best of his knowledge. It had been two years since the defeat of Xemnas. As for current events, the truth was startling: the worlds of Kingdom Hearts had all collided with one another after a meteor shower a month past; melded together by some unknown force, every single world had been united as one, and the King feared terrible consequences. True enough, when the Earthlings looked over the balcony of one of the castle towers, they could see for miles and miles: in fact, directly to the east, bordering the kingdom, was the desert of Agrabah.
King Mickey entrusted them with a heavy goal; he could not leave the castle undefended, and he had gotten no word from the other Keyblade Masters (Sora and Riku). He believed that the Earthlings were chosen for the task, however; no ordinary people were given the chance to Dive into their hearts. He gave to them Dress Spheres- magical clothing specially suited to match the owner’s heart. Along with an endless bag of these (in case they ran into others of their kind), he gave to them a magical scroll that would reveal the name of powerful magical beings who might be able to help the worlds. The Earthling’s goal was simple- protect these Wise Ones and send them back to Disney Castle, where they would combine their knowledge to uncover the secrets of these strange events.
The session with King Mickey was soon interrupted by an errant monster attack- the Athenian Hydra, somehow revived, had broken through the castle wall and begun to cause chaos. The Earthlings gathered their powers and slew the Hydra again, slowly growing accustomed to their new talents. After the battle, they were introduced to Captain Silver- an infamous space pirate from the movie Treasure Planet. In aid to the King, he had enlisted his ship and his services to aid the Earthlings’ efforts; Gummi Ships could no longer be used, as for some reason, the magic that created them had vanished. So, with Silver’s Airship, the group made their way across the desert- their first destination was Agrabah, to see the Genie. |
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Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 11:57 am
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{I} Gaia TOS. Guild Rules. Guild General RP Information. Follow each of these. The Heartfelt Adventure Moderators, who you must listen to, are fractalJester, Jeimuzu Kuro, Je Suis a Toi, AldrickZearse, and Mizu _Kage_Hikari.
{II} No God-moding, please. This includes killing another person's character without permission, taking control of another's character, or making your own character all-powerful. This also includes having your items pop out of nowhere or having a bag with infinite space (with certain exceptions). Seriously, guys. No.
{III} Please be literate, or at least semi-literate. Use proper punctuation, capitalization, and grammar in general. If we have to read a sentence more than once to understand what you're trying to say, there's a good chance you'll be denied or kicked out. However, since you've all been allowed into the guild, this shouldn't be a problem... correct?
{IV} Post all profile applications in the RP Audition Thread, where they must be approved by a majority of the HA Mods.
{V} Please stay in-character. If we notice your character is going blatantly against his/her personality mentioned in the profile, we will give you one and ONLY ONE warning.
{VI} Be nice to each other. Learn to give constructive criticism, and learn to take criticism with a grain of salt.
{VII} Please try not to over OOC too much. Also, do not post things like ((I'm gonna join ur Rp, can I be your mom, zomgsh)). If you have any out-of-character comments that don't relate to your post, then post them in the Heartfelt Adventure OoC thread.
{VIII} Nobodies must have unique weapons and elements. No two Nobodies may have the same weapon or element. Yes, that was redundant for a reason.
{IX} All Earthling applicants must fill out the stats, following the rules in the 'Stat System' post below.
{X} We may not be a fast-moving RP, but we'd like to keep things going pretty quickly. If you need to go inactive for awhile, announce it somewhere for all to see, or tell someone. You don't need to tell us you've 'got a life'; we all do, so we understand sometimes things come up. But some of us manage full-time schooling, part-time working, and our own house, as well as social gatherings, and still have plenty of time to at least communicate. Give a valid, adequate excuse, and give it before you vanish. If you don't post for two weeks without a valid, adequate excuse, you will be given one RP-Strike. Once these two weeks have passed, your characters will be GMed as the mods see fit (nothing character-altering, of course) until your return. If we see that you are active elsewhere, but not in the RP, we will add strikes every two weeks you have ignored the RP (with warnings beforehand, of course). Three of these strikes, and you will be booted from the roleplay and only allowed back in if the majority of the HA Mods approve.
{XI} If a status ailment is used, the following formula is used to discover whether or not it succeeds: (Caster Magic Strength) / (2 x Target Magic Defense). If attempting to cause a status physically (and only certain statuses may be cast in this way, see the Q&A), then replace MS with Attack Strength and MD with Guard Strength.
{XII} The rules may be updated every so often as we see fit; please make sure you are up to date with everything. Thank you! |
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Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 11:58 am
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::How do I get my weapon/summon?::
You obtain your weapon via the Deep Dive before fighting the Darkside. You always have your summon 'with' you from the moment you wake up in the KH Universe, but it is dormant until a strong magical effect occurs to wake it. Dress Spheres usually accomplish this.
::What can I wield?::
When it comes to Heartbound weapons, nearly anything at all can be a weapon! However, each weapon type comes with its own perks and disadvantages, so take them into account when choosing what will represent you, your class, and your fighting style. To make things as simple as possible, we've broken the weapons down into 3 main types, based on their potential for "basic" (non-elemental, 0-effect) attacks.
Melee: These need little introduction–most every typical "weapon" will be melee. Swords, poles, axes, daggers; basically, if it's primary purpose is physically damaging your opponent, it's a melee weapon. Their basic attacks would be simple swings, stabs, etc–again, no serious explanation is necessary–and their damage is based on Strength against Defense. If an obviously melee-oriented weapon has some sort of range functionality, such as Leon's gunblade, it can fire "basic" projectiles for free, but they would have extremely limited range (close-to-medium, likely no more than 30-40 feet) without some form of mana.
Ranged: From bows to guns to slingshots, these are also pretty self-explanatory. These weapons generally have enough range to cover an entire battlefield (within reason), and their primary purpose is to keep the wielder out of the fray. Being Heartbound, ammo is never limited–bullets, arrows, and other projectiles are generated with an negligible amount of mana (read: 0). The projectiles, typically made of magic, are always completely basic and ordinary until mana is added, but damage itself is case-by-case. While all ranged attacks will use Dexterity, which defensive stat it opposes can change between weapons: some may oppose Defense (such as Bobbi's bow) while others may oppose Resistance (such as Amy's guns); further, you can change which type your attacks oppose at a small cost of additional mana. Ranged weapons can potentially have some back-up melee component, but it must clearly by last-resort; if the weapon can be wielded in Melee just as easily as Ranged, then you've approached a blurry line and will have to make a decision one way or another on how to change it slightly enough in one direction.
Focus: Focus weapons, also known as magic weapons, are basically your unconventional tools probably more suited for your class' talents than basic combat. Some examples so far have been a feather pen, a flute, fans, a tome, and floating mirrors. Clearly, these weapons would be unwieldy (though not impossible) to use in melee, and neither do they have basic projectiles. To make up for this, however, their "basic" attacks can be slightly unique. As always, they must be non-elemental and have no special effects, and to keep from stepping on Ranged weapons' toes, they have a limited range. All the same, these attacks would use the Magic stat to determine damage, and give the magic weapon a flavor of its own. The flute player might hit a single note and set off an individual blast under her target, the fan holder may send an unseen razor gale with a swing, or the mirror-wielder might try to damage her foes through their reflections. All damage is determined by Magic against Resistance.
Though magical in intent, certain typical "magic" weapons would be considered "melee" instead–namely, the staff and scepter, both of which are easily capable of being bludgeoning weapons.
::Can I dual-wield?::
If nobody else is dual-wielding the weapon you want, sure.
::Who can I choose for a summon?::
Summons are restricted to entities officially listed as Final Fantasy Summons, or entities who are otherwise officially considered "eidolons", "espers", or summons within the Final Fantasy canon. Even then, some restrictions apply--please run all ideas past us before you get too far in the development process.
There may be no two of the same summon. There may also be no two summons who are basically identical save for game quirks (there may only be one Bahamut, for instance, even though there are many different types of Bahamut). Immediate restrictions also include Giant of Babil and Hades.
::What is a 'Deep Dive'?::
A Dive into the Heart, AKA a 'Deep Dive', is when a person delves into their own Heart, whether it be to obtain their weapon, converse with their summon, dream, rest, meditate, etc.
For a better idea of what they are, imagine the tutorial for Kingdom Hearts. Remember that dark area with the mosaic pillars? That was a 'Deep Dive'. Each person's heart is different, however, so no two people will have the same pictures on their pillars.
They're usually used for plot-purposes. If you want to have one, take it to our ATE thread.
::What is a 'Dress Sphere'?
Dress Spheres are, basically, the same magic clothing that Sora received from the Three Good Fairies at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts 2. They match your heart, so they basically look like whatever you want them too. They are self-sufficient, meaning that they repair themselves, keep the user at normal body temperature despite the weather, and they change for special circumstances (AKA world-costumes, like Atlantica or Pride Lands). Their pockets are endless, but to an extent- you can only carry two of any particular item in the pockets, but if Munny is absolutely necessary, then you can hold as much as you want. You do not receive your Dress Sphere in your original Deep Dive, but you receive it by joining one of the two main Quests.
Also of note, a Dress Sphere essentially puts a leash on your summon, making you its master and it your servant. This is why there are no summons revolting against their masters if they have a Dress Sphere.
::How many items can I carry?::
You can carry as many types of items as you can find, but can only carry 2 of each. 2 potions, 2 hi-potions, et cetera. Munny is excluded, though hardly ever used.
::What are the backgrounds behind the summons?::
Actually, for this roleplay, no summons existed before we arrived. As a matter of fact, the moment you entered this world, they were born and attached to you as formless magical entities with no name or abilities. It is only via the connection to your heart that the summons are given form and power.
The exception to this is the Ivalician scions.
::Why are the Ivalician Scions an exception?::
Due to an oversight in the beginning of the RP (which has since been adapted to), Ivalician Scions existed pre-Earthlings. Their history follows an almost-identical timeline of their Ivalice history. They were created to serve certain divine purposes, but 12 of them (led by Ultima) banded together against their creators in a war. Having lost, they were banished into the Summon realm, stripped of all their 'divine' powers and left with nothing but their elemental strengths.
After some time, Ultima convinced them that combining their powers would cause enough energy to open a portal back to the real world. However, Ultima tricked them by slipping through, and without all 12 focusing, the portal closed, leaving the others behind, betrayed. Shortly after, she was banished again anyway, but by that point the others had fallen dormant again.
When the Earthlings crossed over, some of the Scions managed to bind themselves to an Earthling instead of one of the formless summons.
::So are the Ivalician Scions more important than normal summons?::
Actually... it's quite the contrary. While, yes, you are given a bit more INITIAL depth with a Scion, that limits your creativity in the long run. As well, near the end of the RP, the normal summons play an important part in the plot.
::What are my options when it comes to abilities?::
You get abilities from your class, which is chosen when you get your weapon on Earth.
You get abilities from your summon, usually in the form of elemental spells. If the summon is non-elemental, you can still get spells they might offer, but they also grant a "Non-Elemental Special," which can be one of... a lot of things, really. Someone has Glide, someone has Synthesis/Mix. The only limitation is that, if your class is a Magic-Based class (Black Mage, Blue Mage, et cetera), then you cannot pick another school of magic.
::Can I have Drive Forms?::
Sora only had Drive Forms with those he was extremely close to. You will need to establish a bond equally as strong with the target of your Drive. The one who controls the Drive Body is up to a coin flip - 1 is Heads, and that means the person who did the flip gets the body; 2 is Tails, and that means the person who did the flip gets absorbed. The person who loses control will give boosts to the person who gains control- these boosts, however, must the approved by none other than the HA Mods.
Something to keep in mind- your character may only drive with another character within 1 'level' of his/her own (see the Stat System post for more on 'levels'). As such, a rookie Earthling (level 1) won't be able to Drive with, say, a Replica (level6, not that they'd ever bother trying).
::Can I Drive with my summon?::
Yes, but that's something that won't happen until you are EXTREMELY close with your summon. AKA Not until you've been with us for quite some time. A special portion of the first post in the HA QSD thread has been used to explain the rules behind Summon Drives.
::How long do Drive Forms last?::
To get how long your Drive Form will last, take your Energy level (or the Energy level of the 'Host'), multiply it by 2, and divide the result by 3. In the form of a math problem, (Energy x 2) / 3. For example, someone with an Energy level of 5 would last for 3 posts because (5 x 2) / 3 = 3.33. Someone with an Energy level of 12 would last for 8 posts because (12 x 2) / 3 = 8.
However, depending on the length of the posts that take place during Drives, we may decide to lengthen or shorten this amount. These are considered 'average' posts, which means that a post with a lot of talking or actions taken would take up more time than one with less.
::And Limit Breaks?::
There are two types of limits- Individual Limits and Group Limits. You may only use one Limit Break per battle, and they may only be used when the character (or at least 1 character in a Group Limit) is near defeat, as in the last few HP. If your character is healed before s/he can activate the limit break, then s/he loses the chance to do so until the next time he's near defeat.
Individual Limit Breaks are sort of self-explanatory- they're just powerful, last-ditch efforts. You can learn one each time you level up. You can use any Limit Break you have already learned, but these Limits can only be used once per battle.
Group Limit Breaks require a bit more explanation. With a Group Limit, you don't just attack, but you also give your partner(s) a gift to contribute to their own attacks. Basically, if you have a Group Limit, you decide what your character would contribute to a Limit combo. For example, Goofy contributed his shield-tossing technique, and Donald contributed his off-the-wall magic attacks. Riku contributed 'Dark Firaga', while Sora contributed the 'Light Swords'. Each character will contribute something to the combo.
As an example, we'll use a warrior and a black mage. They initiate the Limit: the Warrior's shares his physical strength with the mage, giving him the ability to attack head on; the Mage shares his elemental magics, imbuing both their weapons with an element of his choice. Together, the two initiate a magical-melee combo.
::What are 'Geists'?::
Geists are a new type of monster, so to speak. A Heartless is the Heart, and a Nobody is the Body and Soul, an Unversed is manifested negative emotions, and a Geist is manifested memory. How they are created, nobody quite knows- except for the villain behind it all, none other than Maria.
Basically, they're humanoid in shape. All Geists look the same. They have white skin and white hair. Their only garb is white robes that strangely never seem to get dirty. They are all the same height, six feet, and the same weight, 120 pounds. But their abilities can change their appearance, though not permanently. Their forms can shift as they wish. They can take on the appearance of an animal, or change an appendage into a weapon.
When a basic Geists touches someone else with a soul, they drain their memories into themselves, starting with short term and moving on to long term.
They may also 'phase', losing their physical form and becoming ghosts. This may allow them to dodge attacks, but doing so too often drains them of their energy.
Geists have multiple forms, but unlike Heartless or Nobodies, these different forms are 'evolutions' so to speak.
--Their first stage, the 'Tabula Rasa', has no face except for a nose and indents where eyes should be, and will take orders from pretty much anyone. They may only steal immediate memories. These memories are only temporarily stolen- they return shortly after the drain. Immediately after taking the memories, the 'Tabula Rasa's face appears just like the victim, but that fades after a few moments.
--Their intermediate stages can vary. As the Tabula Rasa begin to 'grow', they can take more memories, as well as memories from farther back. The more memories are taken, the less likely they are to return to their owner. These stages will only listen to those with a powerful will, much like a Heartless. In the intermediate stages, copied faces remain, but begin to accumulate, synthesizing into the Geist's own personal face. These mid-level Geists may also take different abilities, allowing for many types of Geists to exist.
--Their final stage, the Memoria Phantasma, is completely developed. It may hold an infinite amount of memory, and its face has reached a permanent appearance. Upon reaching this stage, the Geist takes on the 'stance' of the combined memories that s/he has absorbed over time, including personality, gender, preference, and morality - meaning good, apathetic, or evil. Geists rarely last long enough to reach this stage, because by this point of maturity, they are free to do as they please, no longer bound to taking orders, and since Geists are normally used to drain the memories of good people, then they usually turn against their evil masters.
Geists, being heartless things, do not feel emotion, and run purely on logic and rationality; they do not even comprehend how an emotion should feel. When they drain memories, they do not take the emotions attached to those memories with them. They cannot even fake emotion, having no comprehension of how an emotion should feel.
Geists have one universal weakness- cold. Being nothing but memories made manifest, they are given form by energy, which takes the form of heat energy. Cold areas, and especially ice spells, sap the energy from the Geist until finally they can no longer retain their form, and they unravel.
::What is a Drive Link?::
A Drive Link (or "D-Link", to appropriate the Birth by Sleep name) occurs when people naturally drive together. A natural Drive requires that the friends already be really, truly close to one another just to succeed. This condition is very strict: if the mods determine that the partners in the drive do not have a close enough bond, we will not allow a D-Link.
Drives are essentially the strongest bond people can have, as they are quite literally fusing their hearts for a short period of time. Incidentally, our hearts are where we keep our memories, our feelings, and--more relevantly--our abilities. Our class skills come from our weapons, which are bound to our hearts. Our elemental (or non-elemental) skills we get from our summons, which are also bound to our heart.
A D-Link is the after-effect of a natural drive. The hearts leave an imprint on each other, and in doing so, each participant gets a single skill related to the other participants. In this way, one can share both elements and class skills.
For now, Drive Links will be limited to three ally-related abilities. |
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Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 12:01 pm
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 This is a list of everyone that is or has been involved with the roleplay. Please keep up to date with this list, as it will also confirm status changes, weapons, and a few other surprises the more the roleplay moves along. If a canon you would like to play is not listed, fill out the proper application anyway and if it is adequate, I will allow it.
If you are going to be away from the roleplay for longer than a week, please let me, fractalJester, know, so that I can add you to the away list, and others know that you are not around. This will save us all from headaches later.
Don't forget - to check on original character profiles, simply look in the profile thread, found here.
Index (By Type, then Activity, then Alpha)
Active Lightbearers:
§ Amy (Dual Pistols [White Magic] / Unicorn)
§ Bobbi (Bow / Shiva)
§ Danielle (Dual Chakrams / Leviathan)
§ Dawn (Twin Tessen / Garuda)
§ James (Hexagun / Fenrir)
§ Joe (Side-sword / Atomos)
§ Joseph (Bo Staff / Sylph)
§ Kyla (Pen [Pictomancy] / Carbuncle)
§ Kyle V (Swallow-Spear / High Seraph Ultima)
§ Noelle (Spear / Titan)
§ Auron
§ Axel
§ Cloud [Incomplete]
§ Demyx
§ Leon
§ Lexaeus
§ Nanaki
§ Prote
§ Quina
§ Riku
§ Captain Silver
§ Sora
§ Terra
§ Yuffie
§ Zell
Inactive Lightbearers:
§ Anthony (Twin Chain-Gauntlets / Odin)
§ Jenny (Flute [Time Magic] / Siren)
§ John (Warhammer / Ixion)
§ Sayrike (Three Mirrors [Blue Magic] / Asura)
§ Beatrix (Withdrawn but Available)
§ Zidane
Active Darkwalkers:
§ Kefka
§ Kuja
§ Sephiroth
§ Seymour
§ Ultimecia
§ Vayne Solidor
§ Xehanort
§ Dr. Cidolfus
§ Dr. Hojo
§ Dr. Lugae
§ Louis (Rapier / Mateus) [ Erased ]
§ Nicholas (Whip Blade / Chaos)
§ Genesis
§ Ashley (Chakrams / Dark Leviathan)
§ Dusk (Steel Fans / Dark Garuda)
§ Janex (Bow / Dark Shiva)
§ Kai (Pen [Pictomancy] / Dark Carbuncle)
§ Kuro Oni (Hexagun / Dark Fenrir)
§ Luxord
§ Xaldin
Inactive Darkwalkers:
§ Alice (??? [Space Magic] / CuChulainn)
§ Lucian (Twin Chain-Gauntlets / Dark Odin)
§ Saint (War Hammer / Dark Ixion)
§ Wrathy (Scimitar [Blue Magic] / Glutturn [Dark Magic Pot])
§ Larxene
Shin-Ra's Turks:
§ Angela
§ Dai-Hattrick
§ Dominic
§ Lucil
§ Lupin
§ Markus
§ Marrie
§ Rebecca
§ Roddine
§ Rufus
§ Shen
§ Tseng
§ Venessa
§ Ail (Withdrawn but Available)
Active Unknowns:
§ Adam (None / Shinryu)
§ Azrael (Claws / Rubicante)
§ Hati (??? / Dryad)
§ Maria
§ Marluxia
§ Zexion
Active Monstrous Beings:
§ Alex
§ Artemis
§ Bal-Hur
§ Celia/Lettie {Ultima Demons}
§ Dark Nation
§ The Nameless
§ Noku
§ Yoko
Inactive Monstrous Beings:
§ Isolde
Withdrawn Characters
§ Alan (Withdrawn)
§ Cory (Withdrawn)
§ Daniel (Withdrawn)
§ Evan
§ Jacob (Withdrawn)
§ Jon (Withdrawn)
§ Kyle M (Withdrawn)
§ Maggie (Withdrawn)
§ Matthew (Withdrawn)
§ Michelle (Withdrawn)
§ Timmy (Withdrawn)
§ Zeba (Withdrawn)
§ Kagatsuchi (Withdrawn)
§ Laan (Withdrawn)
§ Qareen (Withdrawn)
§ Raine (Withdrawn)
§ Repli-Jacob (Withdrawn)
§ Repli-Jon (Withdrawn)
§ Valmar (Withdrawn) |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:08 pm
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:19 pm
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Your Actions per Post (henceforth ApP), as you might expect, is the number of times your character can do some sort of battle-related action in one post—and generally does not include the reaction (see above about blocking or dodging). If you're attacking, casting spells, or doing pretty much anything besides talking and walking, it counts as an action.
Something to note, is that we generally consider there to be two types of actions: simple actions, which don't require much focus or skill, and complex actions, which do require focus and skill. Simple actions can be considered basic attacks, a quick Fire spell, an outright tackle, etc.; complex actions would be skills such as Ars Arcanum, Firaga, or weaving a status effect.
With those definitions in mind, here are the ways to determine your ApP:
_____1.) If your character is stationary or only slightly moving, such as in a close duel, Skill determines your ApP.
_____2.) However, if your character is on the run, moving at full throttle, then they are limited by the complexity of their actions.
________ 2a.) For simple actions, Speed is used to determine your ApP.
________ 2b.) For complex actions, take your Skill ApP and divide by 2, without rounding.*
__________* - Note, Skill is used in this way because it is the stat that determines your character's level of proficiency or focus, which is required for any sort of complex maneuvers. However, you have to spend some of your focus on maneuvering the battlefield mid-conflict, so you suffer this penalty.
How do you actually decide the amount of ApP? Good question! Still working on that. For now, use the same level system as Magic, except for Skill and Speed:
_____--If the stat is 1-6, then ApP is 1.
_____--If the stat is 7-10, then ApP is 2.
_____--If the stat is 11-14, then ApP is 3.
_____--From there, every additional +4 in the stat adds an additional +1 ApP.
________--For example, 15-18 is 4 ApP. 19-22 would be 5. Etc.
Okay, everyone, time to explain combat!
Our primary combat stats are the offenses (Strength, Magic, and Skill) and the defenses (Defense, Resistance, and Reflexes).
When someone attacks, the process can be simplified down to the following:
1.) First, compare the attacking Skill and the defending Reflexes.
_____Skill > Reflexes? Attack hits directly.
_____Skill = Reflexes? Attack can* be blocked†.
_____Skill < Reflexes? Attack can* be blocked‡ or dodged‡.
________* – If the person cannot see, hear, or otherwise sense the attack coming, then they cannot react. If it is debatable, or variable, then there may be a penalty. On the other hand, if the attack is too obvious, the defender may understandably have a Reflex bonus.
________† – In the case that Skill and Reflexes are equal, then a normal block (such as bracing yourself physically or magically) is a free action, but using a skill while doing so (such as Reflect) is not and will count for as one of your post actions.
________‡ – In the case that Reflexes are higher than Skill, then both a normal block and a skill-based block count as free actions. This includes Reflect, Dark Shield, and other reflexive defending moves. Does not include counters.
2a.) Assuming the attack hits directly, you then take the attacker's Strength or Magic, and subtract the victim's Defense or Resistance, respectively. This is the amount of damage taken.
____--Even if the result is 0 or lower, a direct hit will always do at least 1 damage.
2b.) However, if the attack is blocked, things change. You take the attacker's Strength/Magic, then subtract the stat used to defend (Strength for a physical block or Magic for a magical block), then subtract the remainder from the victim's Defense/Resistance.
____--Only via blocking can a hit result in 0 damage, assuming the block and defense lower the attack that much.
Hopefully that at least explains the basics simply enough. Feel free to ask questions! Just remember:
All of this is just a really basic standardization! You do not have to rely on stats if you and your combat partner can agree to what happens! Stats are just a crutch to rely on when people get confused about what SHOULD happen.
Magic casting generally occurs like this: you pull up energy, form it, and let it go. However, while pulling up energy is usually instantaneous, you could opt to do so for a longer period of time in order to make the spell stronger—this is magic charging.
Magic charging essentially allows you to spend your action(s) charging a spell, giving it a higher effective Magic stat when you eventually let it fly. For every one of your actions that you spend charging the spell, rather than letting it go, the spell typically grows stronger by +2. So, for example, if you have Magic 10, and you spend 1 action charging your spell, then the spell is actually as strong as Magic 12. This is an additive bonus.
Additionally, one might decide to maintain hold on a spell, keeping their focus on it. Some spells require this, not in order to become stronger, but in order for their effects to continue at all. This is considered magic holding—continuously pooling your attention, and possible mana, into a single spell. Maybe doing so allows you to replenish a magic barrier you're putting up; maybe doing so allows you to more potently damage your foes. Either way, if you have to focus, it will take up additional actions.
However, be careful! If you are attacked or appropriately distracted in any way while charging or holding a spell (generally via damage to life force), you will be Interrupted. In the case of charging, you stop charging, the mana you built up is lost, and the spell fails. In the case of holding, the spell is set loose, with whatever consequences that might incur, such as the spell falling apart or the barrier being damaged.Note that, generally speaking, once your ties to a spell have been severed, it is difficult, if not impossible, to regain control of it.
Summoning is a unique ability, exclusive to Earthlings (and the rare canon), and there are a couple ways it can occur. The two primary ways this can be done are Evoking and Calling.
Evoking is how your standard summoning occurs in the classic games: the caster unleashes the summon's power for a single massive move. These moves are on par with Limit Breaks in terms of scale--no target limitations, and no (hard) range limitations. Even better, these evocations do not have to be offensive--you can unleash a great healing or supportive spell, if such an ability is in your summon's power.
In order to Evoke a summon, the caster must charge for at least one (1) action. It can be worth the wait to charge it further, however: the evocation is always at a higher Magic than the actual level at which you unleash it. The cost helps to offset this: Evoking costs double (2x) the mana cost of a spell the same Magic level at which you unleashed it (not the evocation's actual strength--just the power you put into it). Further, you cannot call forth your summon again for at least two (2) posts after the evocation is complete.
Calling is the form of summoning found in later games, such as Final Fantasy X and XII: rather than unleashing your summon's might in a single, awe-inspiring feat, you channel your mana into physical form, calling their spirit into reality. As a result, your summon can fight alongside you and your allies indefinitely--and they can be devastating game-changers, turning the tides of battle in an instant.
In order to properly Call a summon, the caster must once again charge for at least one (1) action; however, just like with any magic, it may be worth the wait to charge even longer. This is especially true with a Calling, because your Magic level will determine the strength of your summon's new form: every additional point in Magic generates additional points that you will distribute into your summon's stats! A Called summon will have every type of stat except for Energy, due to the fact that summoned constructs draw from the same mana pool as the summoner themselves. Some of these points may be spent on bonus passive abilities or elemental resistances, if you so choose, though a summon may never lose the primary weakness of their element. Another useful trait: Called summons are immune to all status effects.
As you can imagine, these Callings can quickly grow obscenely powerful, so their downsides must attempt to balance out. To begin with, Calling costs triple (3x) the mana cost of a spell the same Magic level at which you unleashed it. This is an important concern, because as previously mentioned, all abilities they try to use will draw from the caster's mana--use too much, and they won't be able to use the abilities that make them so powerful. Additionally, being the manifestation of magical energy, Called summons take bonus damage from anything that would counter magic--and there are even unique spells that are specifically potent against summoned constructs, including one infamous ability that immediately ends the Calling. To make matters worse, the quickest way to take out a powerful summon is to target the summoner themselves: if the caster is knocked out or otherwise removed from battle, the Called summon immediately fades away.
NOTE: When trying to determine the strength of your summoning, whether an Evoking or a Calling, check here!!! No one expects you to memorize this slew of numbers--just find your Magic at the time of summoning, determine what method of summoning your character is attempting, and find out its strength on the chart. As always, the mods are always open to questions if you're confused or uncertain.
There are twelve basic* elements, each with a corresponding opposite.
The six primal elements: Fire and Ice, Lightning and Water, and Wind and Earth.
The elements of life and death, Nature and Poison.
________Basic curative magic is (usually) of the Nature element.
________Death and decay-based magic is (usually) of the Poison element.
The elements of dimensional law, Space and Time.
The elements at the heart of all things, Light and Darkness.
When combined carelessly--or offensively--these elemental pairs will react dangerously. Rather than simply canceling each other out, as in most magic conflict, the two elements will catalyze into an even larger eruption first, then negate one another.
If one is more powerful than the other (say, a Firaga versus a Blizzara), then after the reaction, the more powerful one wins out just like normal magic, passing over the weaker one, but having been reduced in strength (i.e. Firaga becoming Fire).
* - These are not the only possible elements. If you have another element that doesn't fit with these somehow, feel free to include it.
Not all magic must be elemental! Your magic can be non-elemental, and even show itself uniquely without becoming its own 'element'.
On another note, it is not how magic appears that decides its element, but what it does. If your magic is cold flame, then you are not fire elemental--you are more likely ice, or darkness. Approaching it from the other side, if you're Light elemental, and you wanted your magic to take the form of flames, then rather than the scorching, consumptive blaze, the fires would radiate warmth and positivity; rather than burning everything, it might only burn dark-users, and may in fact help others.
Simply, magic is magic. Appearance is one thing; effect is another. |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:20 pm
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Kingdom Hearts has had many types of “form changes” throughout the years. Kingdom Hearts 2 introduced Drive Forms, mergers of Sora and his companions to create new, powerful forms based on the partner(s) absorbed. Then, Birth By Sleep introduced Dimension Links, connections between the heroes and the characters met along their travels that allowed the heroes to draw on the abilities and styles of their friends even from other worlds. And now, here in Heartfelt Adventure, we look to bring these unique possibilities, and others tied to them, to you.
First, we'll discuss what makes these possible: Form Points.
KH2 had its Drive Gauge; BbS had its D-Link Gauge. In order to accommodate both, as well as our own additions, we're simplifying it down to a single unit, called Form Points (hereafter FP). By default, everyone has five (5) FP; 1 point corresponds to 1 full post in a Drive, Trance, or other unique form-boosting status. There may be ways to increase your maximum Form Points, but for now, this is all you have.
FP can be replenished with significant rest, at minimum relaxation for at least 1 hour. Alternatively, in battle, with adrenaline pumping, they can be replaced with constant action. One (1) FP will recharge after you take the equivalent of two (2) full posts' worth of actions. So if you typically have 2 ApP, then you must act 4 times. Charging does not count toward this recovery.
Now, to discuss what FP are spent on. First, the most obvious, Drive Forms (hereafter Drives).
The only people who can initiate or host a Drive are those with magical clothes granted by the Three Good Fairies (Sora, Riku, and we Earthlings), or those who can delve deep enough in dark power to initiate the temporary absorption (such as villains).
When a Drive occurs, the host accepts one or two partners into their heart, essentially fusing them together for a brief period of time. As such, except for those using Darkness, the only potential options for partners are those with whom the host is extremely close—close enough to share their heart, their most intimate piece of themselves, where all their secrets and vulnerabilities lie.
While in the drive, the host's appearance can make various shifts to represent the temporary union. However, more importantly, their power grows significantly, according to the partner(s) absorbed. The host gains access to their element(s), their abilities, and even their weapon(s) if they so choose (alternatively, a new weapon representing the union).
Stats are altered as follows:
_____• When a Drive begins, the host's HP and MP are completely replenished; as a result, Constitution and Energy are not included in these changes.
_____• Add three (+3) to whichever stat was the partner's highest. If there is a tie, the partner chooses which takes precedence.
_____• Add two (+2) to whichever two (2) stats were the partner's second highest. Again, if there is a tie, partner chooses.
_____• Add one (+1) to the remaining four (4) stats.
_____• Repeat the above for the second partner if there is one.
Drives can only last as long as you have FP, though they can be preemptively cut off at the host's choosing. Drives consume FP for all participants, but only the host needs to have FP to initiate. This is in place to prevent unnecessary Drive chaining.
After a successful Drive, all participants will have been influenced by the connection. For each successful Drive with a particular partner, a character will gain some new capability influenced by an aspect of the partner. These unique gifts are called Drive Links (hereafter D-Links), and they are the first step completing a full Drive Trance. But let’s not jump ahead.
Each character can have up to three (3) D-Links from one ally. They can be abilities directly copied from the ally, they can be entirely new abilities based on the ally’s potential, or they can be mutations of an already-unlocked ability, altered due to the ally’s influence. A character unlocks one of these D-Links each time they Drive with that specific ally, so in order to obtain all three, they must successfully Drive three times; further, these abilities can be changed out—all it takes is Driving once again to “resynchronize” your hearts.
What happens after the third D-Link, if you start a Drive with someone for the fourth time? Well, that’s when you reach what I mentioned earlier: a Drive Trance.
As mentioned, every time you Drive with someone, your hearts become more attuned with one another, influencing each other. Eventually, the hearts of you and your ally will be so intricately linked that you will be able to draw upon the other’s power without the need for a full fusion. This is called a Drive Trance (hereafter D-Trance), and it is effectively a miniature Drive that doesn’t require a partner to complete. The boosts you receive aren’t as strong, and the changes aren’t as drastic, but it’s still an effective boost that may turn the tide of battle.
D-Trance changes are simplified from Drives themselves.
_____• You are not healed of HP, MP, or statuses.
_____• Add two (+2) to whichever three (3) stats are the ally’s highest. Constitution and Energy are still not included in these changes.
_____• You temporarily take on the ally’s element, making you dual-elemental (including weaknesses).
_____• You get three (3) additional D-Links, but only while maintaining the Trance.
_____• D-Links are free to use while in D-Trance.
_____• You may call upon one particularly powerful move from the target (their “signature move” or something similar) and enhance it to increased potency (not quite Limit Break, but close) to unleash upon the battlefield, but doing so consumes the rest of your FP.
However, D-Trances have a unique feature that Drives do not: you can spend actions charging them up for increased bonuses--but charging for too long runs the risk of interruption. There are three different possible bonuses, each with a different “cost”, as follows:
_____• [ 1 Charge ] Distribute two (2) additional points among the chosen stats already increased.
_____• [ 1 Charge ] Increase a fourth stat by +2, must be one of the ally’s highest stats. Can only be chosen once.
_____• [ 3 Charges ] Increase the D-Trance duration by one (1) post.
Further, just like Drives, D-Trances can only last as long as you have energy left in your Form Pool, though they can be preemptively cut off at the host's choosing.
Now, to repeat, Drive Trances and Drive Forms are what occur when draw power from the connection to a strong ally. But there are, of course, those who have the strongest connections to our hearts to take into account—that is to say, those who live within our hearts: our Summons.
Previously known as a Summon Drive, Summon Trances (hereafter S-Trances) are what occur when you draw upon the connection to your summon, pulling their power into reality through your own form. In this way, the S-Trance takes the acts of calling forth your summon and driving with your closest companion, combining them into one action. An S-Trance is generally more powerful than a D-Trance, but what it gains in power it lacks in versatility; rather than becoming a unique, multi-talented fighter, you are simply enhancing the strengths you already have.
An S-Trance affects you such that:
_____• Once again, Constitution and Energy are excluded, and you are not healed of HP, MP, or statuses.
_____• Add three (+3) to whichever stat best represents your summon.
_____• Add two (+2) to whichever three (3) stats next-best represent your summon.
_____• You may have increased access to some of your summon’s more characteristic abilities, or perhaps more potent versions of those abilities.
_____• As this is a sort of “personal upgrade” form, you may have some shifts in appearance, weapon, style, and ability (such as controlling your weapon with your mind).
_____• You may, if you so choose, call forth your summon’s ultimate/signature move (very much like summoning them), but at the cost of all remaining FP, ending the S-Trance early.
As well, much like D-Trances, S-Trances can be powered up by charging up before beginning them--but such charges can also be interrupted. The various bonuses and charge costs are:
_____• [ 1 Charge ] Distribute two (2) additional points among the chosen stats already increased.
_____• [ 1 Charge ] Increase a fourth stat by +2. Can only be chosen once.
_____• [ 3 Charges ] Increase the Trance duration by one (1) post. |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:21 pm
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In battle, there's more than just damage and elements. A unique way to manipulate the flow of battle is to cause status changes. The following lists all basic, commonly shared status changes, but this is not every possible status. People can invent their own versions of these statuses, though an immunity to the listed counterpart still counts. People can also invent their own statuses!
The two main ways to change statuses are positive and negative: Buffs and Hexes, respectively.
The following are positive status effects. They do not require any sort of 'chance', and always deal the same effect. The only variable is the time in which the status remains, though the default is 3 posts.
Valor – Doubles the Strength of the next strike.Devotion – Doubles the Magic of the next spell.
Precision – Doubles the Dexterity of the next action.
Bravery – Increases Strength and Defense by 1.5x. Negated by Mini.
Faith – Increases Magic and Resistance by 1.5x. Negated by Pig.
Finesse – Increases Dexterity by 1.5x. Negated by Blind.
_____Finega – Increases Dexterity by 2x. Negated by Blindga, weakened by Blind.
Haste – Increases Speed and ApP by 1.5x. Negated by Slow.
_____Hastega – Increases Speed, Skill, and ApP by 2x. Negated by Slowga, weakened by Slow.
Blink – Increases target's Reflexes by 1.5x.
_____Blinkga – Increases Reflexes by 2x.
Protect – Increases the target's Defense by 4. Over-written by Wall and Wallza. Negated by Deprotect. [-ra/-ga/-za possible ; +5, +6, +7]
Shell – Increases the target's Resistance by 4. Over-written by Wall and Wallza. Negated by Deshell. [-ra/-ga/-za possible ; +5, +6, +7]
Wall – Increases both Defense and Resistance by 4. [-ga possible, granting +6 to each; over-written by Protera/ga/za or Shellra/ga/za.]
Reflect – Reflects all targeted magic that might affect the target back at the caster. Includes supportive magic.
_____Reflega – Reflects only hostile targeted magic back at the caster. Can only be single-cast.
Pierce – Allows attacks and spells to pierce through protective enchantments. Ignores all levels of Protect, Shell, Wall, Reflect, and Barrier.
Vanish – Target is temporarily rendered invisible.
_____Vaniga – Target is rendered both invisible and inaudible.
Float – Raises the target off the ground by a few feet, making them immune to terrain-related effects.
Regen- Heals small amounts of the target's health over time. Negated by Poison, Sap and other damage-over-time abilities.
Refresh – Heals small amounts of the target's mana over time. Cannot self-cast. Negated by mana-damage-over-time abilities.
Nul- – Negates the next three attacks of the specified element.
En- – Converts all basic attacks to the specified element.
Reraise – If the target is knocked down to 0HP in the next three posts, they will automatically revive a few moments later with a small amount of health.
Veil – Temporarily halves the chances of status ailments succeeding against the target (Bottom Value x 2). The first status ailment to 'succeed' is negated, and Veil ends.
Vigilance – Temporarily adds the chance of a 'Stun' effect to all basic attacks.
Bubble – Temporarily doubles Current and Max HP of the target; solo only.
Aura – Allows target to use a Limit Break regardless of health conditions. Drains caster of all but a few MP.
The following are negative status effects, and they are dictated by chance. The effects are usually the same, though sometimes a personal variation may be added. The statuses are separated by difficulties- depending on the difficulty, the attacking value may or may not be changed.
When deciding if a hex succeeds:
1.) Take the Defender's relevant stat (usually Defense, Resistance, or Reflexes), including boosts or weaknesses, and multiply it by 2.
_____[Defender's Stat] x 2
2.) Then, do a Random Number Generator between 1 and that result.
_____1 ~ [Defender's Stat x 2]
3.) Compare your result with the Attacker's relevant stat (Strength, Magic, or Skill), including any bonuses or penalties they may have, to find your result.
_____Hex Failure if the Attacker's stat is lower than the result.
_____
_____Hex Success if the Attacker's stat is greater than or equal to the result.
Very Easy (+3 to the Attacker's Stat):
Poison/Bleeding – Slowly drains the health of the target. Negated by Regen.
Pain – Completely removes the ability to use physical abilities of any sort, including weapon use, temporarily.
Silence/Fog – Completely removes the ability to do magical abilities temporarily.
Medium (No change)
Deprotect – Reduces the target's Defense by 4. Negated by Protect.
Deshell – Reduces the target's Resistance by 4. Negated by Shell.
Disable – Removes the use of the target's arms and makes the target unable to use upper-body skills.
Cripple – Removes the use of the target's legs.
Blind – Halves the target's Dexterity.
Slow/Frost – Cuts the Speed and ApP of the target in half. Incurable. Can only be negated by Haste.
Oil – Increases fire damage and doubles the chance of Ignite.
Stun/Delay/Daze – For every successful stack, the victim loses one action from their following post. The target is stunned, forced to try and recompose himself while standing still. Target is unable to do anything during this time.
Sap – A more potent version of Poison, drains more HP at a higher pace, but also ends somewhat quicker, typically lasting 2 posts by default.
Difficult (-1 from the Attacker's Stat)
Ignited – The target is on fire (magically), dealing severe damage over a short period of time, typically 1 full post by default.
Addle – Temporarily causes the target to completely forget any spells and abilities he/she has, leaving them with only basic attacks.
Berserk – Enrages the target beyond thought. The target begins to mindlessly attack his/her opponents, unable to focus or use any sort of special ability or spell. Strength and Speed are increased by 1.2x.
Mini – Shrinks the target's muscles, halving Strength and Resistance. Negated by Bravery.
Pig – Heavily muddies the target's magic circuits, halving Magic and Resistance. Negated by Faith.
Blindga – Cuts the Dexterity of the target to a third. Negated by Finega, weakened by Finesse.
Slowga – Cuts the Speed and ApP of the target to a third. Can only be negated by Hastega. Weakened by Haste.
Sleep – Puts the target to sleep. Can only be cured by a physical hit.
Very Difficult (-2 from the Attacker's Stat)
Reversal – Envelopes the target in a mystic aura of reversal, switching all healing and damaging effects.
Imperil – The target's Elemental Affinity is lowered by 1 level (Absorbed->Immune->Halved->Indifferent->Weakness). Also halves resistance to other hexes (Defender's Stat no longer doubled).
Confusion – Baffles the target's mind. The target cannot think straight whatsoever and attacks at random, be it friend, foe, or himself/herself. Can only be cured by being physically struck.
Stop/Paralyze/Freeze – Freezes the target in place, guaranteeing a successful hit for the next three (3) actions against them (additional statuses still need to roll). Incurable.Gradual-Petrify – Acts as a poison which slowly begins to petrify the target over the course of 3 posts. In the first post, the target is Slowed; in the second, his arms and legs are completely petrified; on the third turn, his entire body has become unbreakable stone and remains that way until the end of the battle. Can only be cured by an Esuna-like spell before the third post. Once the third stage has passed, it can only be cured by an Esunaga-like spell.
Game-Winning (-4 from the Attacker's Stat; Cannot be cured by Esuna)
Stopga – Locks the target in place, guaranteeing the next five (5) hostile actions against them (additional statuses still need to roll). Incurable. [ Immunity to Stop also grants immunity to this. ]
Old – Makes the target feel elderly, lowering all stats by 3 (Minimum of 1).
Fear – Temporarily drains the target of all courage, causing him/her to be scared of even their own shadows. Target can't do anything offensively--only run and defend him/herself. Negated by Bravery; Overwritten by Berserk.
Charm – Temporarily tricks the target's mind into switching sides, helping his/her enemies and fighting against his/her allies. Curable by a physical attack. [Only -3 if used on someone of the appropriate sexuality]
Doom – The target is unaffected for three posts. At the end of the third post, s/he fall unconscious without warning. Incurable. Negated by Re-Raise
Game-Breaking (-6 from the Attacker's Stat; cannot multi-target sans Limit Break; must recharge after each use; cannot be cured by Esuna)
Vit 0 – Reduces target's Defense and Resistance to 1. Incurable.
Frog – Turns the target into a frog. Cannot use weapons, cannot use spells or special abilities. All stats are reverted to 1 until the status is lifted. Incurable.
Petrify – The target is turned into unbreakable stone until the end of battle or someone casts an Esunaga-like spell.
Auto-KO – The target instantly loses all HP and is knocked out; only curable by Raise-like effects.
Miscellaneous Status Information
Unless otherwise stated, any ailment may be healed by Esuna and Esunaga.
Incurable – Esuna/Esunaga and other purging moves do not work.
Negated by – The two statuses negate each other, leaving neither of them.
Overwritten by – One status is removed, but the other one remains.
Weakened by – The status is lowered to its weaker level (i.e. Hastega → Haste) |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:23 pm
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For simplicity, Geists only have three important stats: Endurance (how many hits they can take), Speed (how fast they are, in movement and attack), and Agility (how fast they react, in movement and dodge).
Stat Number Legend:
1-4: Low
5-7: Moderate
8-10: High
Think as simplistically as you can about this legend, I don’t want you to get stuck on the numbers. If the number in the Speed or Agility falls to the lower end of a category (low, moderate, high) it’s in the lower spectrum of that category (1= very slow, not agile). Same principal applies to the higher numbers (4= slow, somewhat agile). This scale only applies to ‘minion’ type Geists, not to Prototype (Prote/Memoria Phantasma) type Geists.
Endurance Category Legend:
Low: 1 to 5 strike kill
Moderate: 5 to 10 strike kill
High: 10 to 20 strike kill
Also another legend to think very simply about. The stronger the strike, the more likely you’ll kill the Geist in fewer strikes. I don’t expect you to count your strikes, I just want this as a reference so you don’t GM and kill a Grimm in two strikes. The only way the previous number category applies to this one is in determining whether the Geist is a High, Moderate, or Low endurance Geist (i.e. Grimm-- endurance lv.10--High; Apparition--endurance lv.4--Low).
The Geists are categorized based on those three levels in regards to their Endurance.
Low Level
Name: Kinetic
Type: Shapeshifting
Phase capable: No
Endurance: 3
Speed: 4
Agility: 1
Special attributes: Kinetics can throw objects around them without making contact with these objects or even create projectiles out of their own matter. As soon as a Kinetic uses up too much of its matter or energy it ceases to exist.
Name: Shadow
Type: Shapeshifting
Phase capable: No
Endurance: 4
Speed: 4
Agility: 4
Special attributes: Shadows can duplicate memories and create up to 20 “clones” of itself rapidly. Only the original Shadow is capable of creating clones, and once all 20 are created is unable of creating more. Kill the original Shadow and the others will die as well. The strength of the Shadow lies in numbers.
Name: Apparition
Type: Shapeshifting
Phase capable: No
Endurance: 4
Speed: 8
Agility: 8
Special attributes: Apparitions can disappear for short intervals of time, approximately 30 seconds. Most common shapeshift weapons are blades.
Medium Level
Name: Djinn
Type: Non-shapeshifting
Phase capable: No
Endurance: 6
Speed: 7
Agility: 5
Special attributes: Rather than shape-shifting, Djinn are proficient in elemental magic. There are 3 forms of Djinn- Fire, Water, and Thunder.
Name: Banshee
Type: Non-shapeshifting
Phase capable: Yes
Endurance: 7
Speed: 6
Agility: 4
Special attributes: Banshees attack through screeching. Sound Wave attacks, most common attacks, can cause physical blunt force damage. Howl attacks, occurring somewhat infrequently, cause status ailments-- Stun, about 50% of the time; Confusion, about 25% of the time; Fear, about 5% of the time (i.e. Stun happens half the time, Confusion a quarter of the time, and Fear very rarely). The equation system, as with the Grimms, is not necessary. However, abuse of this freedom will not be tolerated.
High Level
Name: Shades
Type: Non-shapeshifting
Phase capable: Yes
Endurance: 9
Speed: 8
Agility: 8
Special attributes: Rather than existing as a physical shape-shifter, Shades exist as a mass of black energy, capable of solidifying at will. They can be damaged by magic at all times, but can only be damaged physically when they take physical form.
Name: Grimm
Type: Non-shapeshifting
Phase capable: Yes
Endurance: 10
Speed: 9
Agility: 9
Special attributes: Grimms have given up shape-shifting powers in lieu of Death-based magic. These Geists cast all four game-winning status ailments-- (1)Old, (2)Fear, (3)Charm, and (4)Doom. They are tall Geists wrapped in black garbs wielding scythes. Beneath their robes, they are very pale, thin, and sickly creatures. Any contact with the scythe will initiate a status affect decided by random number generation. Discretion is left up to the Role Player. Be responsible, Mary Sueism will not be tolerated. |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:24 pm
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 Act I
Chapter One: Desert Demons
As they crossed the desert, however, they were assaulted by a violent sandstorm, summoned by none-other than Jafar; it seemed that all of the villains once thought dead were alive once again, causing further chaos for the Earthlings. In the battle with the powerful sorcerer, Merlin sent them aid in the form of another Earthling- Kyla, who fell through the sky and was caught by Jon. As well, many of the Earthlings discovered a gift of the Dress Spheres that none had expected- summons, from the games of Final Fantasy. It seemed that the Dress Spheres had acted as a sort of binding magic, awakening the summons. Despite the new ally and gifts, they were forced to evacuate the ship; most of the Earthlings made their way to Agrabah on foot, but one of the Earthlings, Jon, had been separated and forced to make his way back to Disney Castle.
In the streets of Agrabah, the group took a brief stroll through the Marketplace, searching for potions and other such things with what little munny they had. It was here that the group ran into Princess Jasmine, who was joined by another Earthling, Maggie; and an infamous villain of Final Fantasy- Kuja. However, he seemed more friend than foe; when the Earthlings discovered Xehanort’s Heartless attempting, in person, to steal Jasmine once again, the magic genome stood by them, convincing the Prince of Darkness to leave the Princess of Heart, though it seemed the two had a past that made the others all the more suspicious.
Joining the Princess and Maggie back to the palace, the Earthlings learned the horrible news- Aladdin’s heart had been stolen, and for reasons they couldn’t understand, his body remained, as if asleep, much like Kairi had been; it was Hercules that had managed to rescue Aladdin’s body and bring it back. In the midst of everyone’s brainstorming on the matter, a flurry of pyreflies appeared, forming none other than Seymour Guado. A forced minion of Hades, he brought a single message: hand over Diablos, or Aladdin’s heart shall be released to the Darkness like all lost hearts, and his body will vanish. This brought confusion: who was Diablos? It seemed the Earthling, Maggie, had an answer to that- drinking a vile potion, she had inherited the demonic entity, binding him to her heart much like a summon.
Shortly after this revelation, an assault of Heartless appeared within the Palace grounds, forcing the Earthlings to fight once again. Seymour helped them out, proving that he was only alongside Hades so that he would be granted freedom, and wanted no harm to be done. After the Heartless were dealt with, the Guado Maester vanished, hoping to buy time with Hades while the Earthlings planned to siege the God of the Underworld and take Aladdin’s Heart back. During this brief interlude, a trio of things happened: Diablos possessed Maggie, only to have Kyla save her via their bond of recently developed friendship; one of the Earthlings, Noelle, was seduced by Oogie Boogie and Hades, who twisted her into thinking the others didn’t care for her- she followed them into the Underworld; and finally, another Earthling appeared, named Kyle, who had another interesting ally: Zexion, once Number VI of the Organization. The Nobody had helped Kyle survive in Agrabah, finding his story to be interesting and apparently valuing the stability of the worlds over finding his heart.
Night soon fell on Agrabah. Some took advantage of the hot baths, while others strolled around the palace grounds. However, a mysterious enemy had sabotaged the group: Kallista, a Fae Witch, had enveloped the heroes in an illusion and transported them all at once. They believed they were still on the palace grounds, when in fact, they were in the halls of the Underworld. Zexion, the Nobody of Illusion, was immediately able to detect the farce and warned a small group of the Earthlings, hoping to gather the rest together. The group is split up, and Hades used this to his advantage, having not planned for them to arrive until much later. He sent a rogue Earthling, Cory, after Maggie, ordering her to be kidnapped. With the help of the undead warlock, Dhoulmagus, Cory trapped Maggie and himself in a cage of thorned vines, where he mercilessly defeated her while Kyla and Kyle could only watch.
The illusion now dispelled, the group of heroes realized too late that Noelle is not with them. Thinking she, too, had been abducted, they make their way deeper into the dungeon, searching for both Aladdin’s Heart, Maggie, and Noelle. Upon reaching a giant pit, they find Hades and Noelle, awaiting them. The God of the Underworld ordered Noelle to attack her friends; however, seeing the group’s immense worry, she hesitated, refusing to work for Hades. In rage, he abducted her, and instead summoned a demonic ally to fight the group: Chernabog. After a fierce battle, Kyle’s summon awakened and helped slay the beast once and for all.
As the group once again descended into the depths of Hell, Hades left the 'traitorous' Noelle with Dhoulmagus, who was attempting to separate Diablos from Maggie. The two Earthling women managed to overpower the mage with the help of Auron, but at a price: Noelle was dealt a powerful blow, and appeared to be dead. As Maggie carried the ‘dead’ Earthling through the exit, she combined with the rest of the group just as they entered Hades’ Lair. It was here that his plan was revealed: he had known that Maggie would find Diablos, and had used her to bring him back to the God of the Dead; with Dhoulmagus’ successful ritual, Diablos had been freed, and Hades had no more use for them, allowing the group to leave… but not without Noelle, who had signed a contract.
Refusing to leave their friend, the group fled through a Corridor of Darkness summoned by Zexion, while the more experienced heroes stayed behind to fight the God of the Underworld. The combined might of Kuja, Hercules, Auron, and Zexion was enough to keep Hades down and away, allowing for the group as a whole to flee back to the Palace in the middle of the night. The group, exhausted from battle and mourning the loss of Noelle, fell into a state of depression… only to have Noelle slowly awaken, Dhoulmagus’ poison having worn off with his defeat. With a celebratory royal breakfast, the heroes make to leave Agrabah. However, without their airship, they were at a loss as to how to get to their next destinations.
It seemed, however, that luck was on their side. Because Jon had been separated when the Airship was destroyed, the Queen (the King had been ‘unavailable’) was able to send another magical vessel of transportation: an enchanted train that could fly and accommodate all of their needs. With the train came a flurry of new allies: Sora and Riku, the Keyblade Masters themselves; James, Michelle and John, three additional Earthlings; and Zell, the train’s conductor and resident fist brawler. With this new, larger group, the heroes made for the next location: Narnia, to help Aslan.
Chapter Two: The Narnian War of Lost Memory
During the travel to Narnia, it was discovered that a certain pirate lord, Captain Jack Sparrow, had stowed away on the ‘strange vessel’; why he was in Agrabah to begin with, he refused to comment on. Upon their arrival in Narnia, the group is swiftly attacked by Cory, still under the employ of Hades. Due to his deal with the devil, the Rogue Earthling had attained obscene amounts of power, making him powerful enough to take them on… until the more powerful heroes step in, forcing Cory to flee. He does so, but not before kidnapping Rae, taking her into the heart of Narnia. Joseph, intent on getting his friend back, took Jack’s Compass of Desire and led a small group after Cory, riding Chocobos provided by the train. However, the group discovered that Rae was in no danger; Cory had done nothing to her, and the two had seemed to bond somewhat, with the White Mage Rae offering for the Rogue to come along (which he declines).
On their travel back, Hades appeared, placing a curse on Noelle for going back on her deal. Her mind was wrapped in a torturous illusion, with everyone she knew (including her friends) appearing dead before her, their speech haunting her further. Zexion claims that Aslan should be able to help the girl; the Great Lion, however, insisted that Zexion do the deed. The Nobody does so, bringing Noelle back to the group, now closer than ever. It is during this time that Cory reappeared, taking Rae’s offer of friendship and breaking Hades’ deal. As well, a young girl by the name of Alice appeared; looking to be younger than ten years old, she was still a fierce battler with the ability to animate normally inanimate objects. She quickly grew close to some of the other members. As the portion of the group that went after Rae rested, the other half are sent by Aslan to see an old sage for guidance. Before they are given the chance, Jenny and James are placed under a love spell by the Fae Witch, Kallista, whose magic can affect people from afar, but cannot do any actual harm.
The strange feelings between the two enraged some of James’ close friends from home and hurt Michelle, his fiancé, who had survived alongside him. Despite this, the group made their way to the old sage, where they were asked to help collect certain transforming toads. Having to work together to do so, the hermit gives them the ‘gifts’ that Aslan had promised- Trinity Charms, bracelets capable of long-distance communication, to symbolize their strength as a team. While this is going on, Maggie was kidnapped by her once-possessor, Diablos, who was attempting to repossess her, as he needed a host-body to exist in reality. However, she resisted, and in his rage, he forced her underground before vanishing. Within moments, a group of Earthlings arrive to unbury her, having followed the girl into the dark forest.
Once the entire group gathered again, they made their way to Castle Anvard, where it was discovered that Prince Cor previously made a voyage to the isle of Terebithia and never returned. The King asks that the heroes make the voyage to search for his son. The trip turns out more dangerous than expected: Luxord, along with a double of himself and a small army of Gamber Nobodies attack the group, though they seem interested in anything but doing damage, leaving after having taken strands of the heroes’ hair. After making their way to the island, James and Michelle (the latter having fallen to the Darkness) are briefly attacked by Luxord again, hoping to force James into falling into the Darkness by showing him the truth of how badly he had hurt Michelle. The truth only enraged James, breaking the spell and giving him a burst of power strong enough to deter Luxord. Zexion soon appeared, healing James and returning him to the group, and just in time; a new breed of enemy ambushes the group, with the end result leaving them confused and lost. The new enemies were known as Geists: bodiless, heartless beings who had nothing left but their souls. However, in their creation, they are made blank slates; their abilities lie in shapeshifting, phasing, and most potent of all, memory stealing. One of the heroes, Bobbi, was left without any short-term memories, including the Fall of Earth; two others, Maggie and Joseph, had gone missing, though the heroes heard Joe’s voice on the wind, following it to a strange palace made of coral.
An initial squad of Kyla, Cory, Rae, and Sora infiltrated the castle, only to find a horrid surprise: Joe had been completely drained of memory, brainwashed into believing he was the servant of a surprise villain. Ursula had been revived, had taken her human form, and somehow obtained an army of Geists, intending to lay siege to the Kingdom of Anvard and, from there, all of Narnia. The small group manage to escape the sudden appearance of Geists, fleeing to warn the others. Immediately, Zexion takes Prince Cor back to the King in order to warn them of the coming assault; the Geists would arrive far before the other heroes could ride their ship across the sea. Before they can even make it to the ship, however, Joseph and Ursula’s Geist Commander, Damien, ambushed the group with a small platoon of low-level Geists. With the help of Cory and another high-level Geist, Prote, they managed to not only defeat the other Geists, but return Joe’s memory, which had been taken by Damien. Maggie was still unable to be found, though Zexion’s senses told him she was no longer even on the island.
In the midst of the battle, there had been three mysterious interferences: Kallista had cast an Empathy spell on Kyle, forcing him to feel everyone else’s emotions, his own suppressed by the curse; the demented Kefka, secretly watching from his lair, caused a massive explosion in the midst of the group for no other reason than to cause chaos; and a shapeshifter named Maria had separated Noelle from the group, revealing that she had been Luxord’s double on the ship. Trapping Noelle in her own spell, the shapeshifter takes the girl’s form and weapon and joined the fray, quickly betraying James by stabbing him in the side and fleeing, leading the group to believe it had been Noelle. Her name is soon cleared as they discover her still trapped in her own spell, and the group makes their way back to Anvard, hoping that Zexion was able to warn the King on time. Upon their arrival, they were treated to the site of a grizzly battle; bodies laid strewn across the ground, but most important of them was the body of Ursula, slain by a rain of arrows. Anvard had won the battle, and prevented a terrible war. With Aslan’s thanks and blessings, as well as Cory’s departure, the heroes turned their eyes on the next destination: Beast’s Castle, where they would find the mysterious entity known only as ‘The Enchantress’.
Chapter Three: The Life and Death of Beasts
During the journey, Michelle decided she was merely getting in the way, and would do better at Disney Castle, wishing the group the best before making her exit.The train soon touched down in a forest clearing, a path to Beast’s Castle and, in the other direction, Halloween Town. Upon exiting the train, the heroes received a surprise: their Dress Spheres automatically accommodated them with costumes befitting Halloween Town. This led to a startling revelation; Beast’s Castle was now under the effects of Halloween Town’s Horror Curse, turning all those within back into their ‘costumed’ forms (sans Belle, whose pure heart protected her). The Prince was now, once again, a Beast. As they traveled to the castle, Cory returned, bringing yet another Earthling into their group, named Zeba. As they reached Beast’s Castle, hoping to find the Enchantress (the same magical woman who placed the original curse on the Prince), they were instead ambushed by the Nobodies Saix and Demyx, allied with Captain Hook. They were out to kill a traitor – Cory, who had been allied to them before taking Rae’s offer. A tumultuous battle took place in the Courtyard, with worse results than the heroes had hoped: Saix was slain, and the other two had fled, but at the cost of Cory’s life.
As the Earthling’s reeled from the loss of their on-again, off-again friend, the Beast-Prince appeared, shouting to understand what was going on; his fury was only subdued when Sora revealed himself, calming the Beast and explaining what was going on. It turned out the Prince had gone searching for the Enchantress, thinking this strange curse was her doing, and bringing her back to the castle to fix everything. Before she could speak a word, Ms. Potts (now, once again, a tea pot) came bouncing out of the castle, frantically worried: Belle had been kidnapped by strange, ghostly-creatures. The Earthlings immediately knew what had taken her: Geists. It seemed these creatures were more widespread than they’d hoped; it was revealed they’d run back in the direction of Halloween Town, and that is where the heroes headed off too.
In the midst of all the previous engagements, Maggie had somehow made her way into Halloween Town, discovering an underground get-away of sorts for the darker individuals of Halloween Town. The Poltergeist’s Pub was swarming with darker individuals, but one person stood out: a strange man named Louis, who claimed to be a traveler from Ivalice. The two spoke for some time before separating. It was at this point that Maggie ran into her friends once again, all of whom were overjoyed at finding her. Almost simultaneously, a young boy by the name of Alan appeared, wishing to help out but deathly afraid of Maggie. Accepting all the help they could receive, the heroes entered Halloween Town- only to be assaulted by an endless wave of Heartless. As the battle went on, a lone Geist appeared just beside the entrance of a crypt; Kyle, driven by the fluctuations of the emotions around him, followed the ghostly being into the crypt, forcing the others to follow his stead lest he be killed by himself.
In the dark depths of the underground burial site, the group came across the main room, filled with coffins just lying on the floor. Spooked out, they didn’t have a chance to react to a flurry of Geists, who swiftly phased through all of the Earthling’s bodies, invoking a flood of all of their darkest memories, before disappearing; before they could chase after the Memory Thieves (confused as to why they all still remembered everything), a group of Heartless ambushed them, including a trio of strange Ice Soldiers, powerful enough to give even Sora a run for his money. In the midst of the chaos, a Heartless Spider landed on Kyle’s shoulder, invoking his terrible arachnophobia: he immediately went into a horrified berserk state, blasting anything that moved, allies and enemies alike. Eventually, one of his attacks struck a support pillar, weakening it to the point that the crypt began to cave in. Zexion, with the help of Sora, swiftly evacuated the group, with an emotionally-torn Kyle just barely making it out.
Running into Jack Skellington, as well as the famous Nanaki (AKA Red XIII, of Final Fantasy VII), the group decided that it would be best to rest at this point, taking a quick breather at Sally’s House before making their way to Finklestein’s Laboratory – it seemed that he had been kicked out by the Nobody, Vexen, and that the Geists had all run back there. As they moved to assault the laboratory, a cold chill filled the air, as well as the haunting voice that seemed all too familiar to Kyle’s summon, Ultima: it was Mateus the Corrupt, looking to settle an unknown score. Separating Kyle from the rest of the group by encasing both the Earthling and the Esper’s armored host in an ice rose, Mateus sent a small group of powerful Dark Ice Soldiers at the other Earthlings to distract them, further separating them using walls of ice. The battle lasted quite some time; the Earthlings had defeated three of the two Ice Soldiers when Kyle managed to deal the finishing blow to Mateus’ host body, at the cost of Ultima being drained of all of her magic.
The Corrupt Scion, enraged, refused to give in, calling forth the power of Darkness to suck the heroes into an alternate dimension, filled with Darkness, where Mateus grew to astounding heights. Using massive chains and more Dark-oriented magic, he tore at his enemies, wishing nothing more than to destroy them all; however, Zeba and her summon, Valefor, were able to deal a critical blow to the summon, defeating him and freeing them from Prison Hearts. As they returned to Halloween Town, they found the host body of Mateus, armored and fatigued, barely sitting up on the stairs leading to the lab. However, unlike the Esper, he didn’t seem to want to fight- merely admired them for a few brief moments… until the laboratory behind him exploded with a fierce, ominous flood of Darkness.
The Earthlings, attempting to recover, tried to search the debris for Belle, only to discover a much more sinister truth: Vexen had been using the Geists to create Replicas of the Earthlings. These twisted beings were entirely evil by nature, and tore through the group with vicious power; it wasn’t long before the entire group as a whole was looking to do nothing but retreat, having discovered the unconscious Princess of Heart unharmed in the ruins. They lucked out: a strange warrior, garbed from head to toe in un-revealing cloth, fought the Replicas, managing to go blow-for-blow with one of them long enough to amuse the others. It seemed some of the Replicas didn’t care much for defeating their originals: they were already confident that they were superior, even taking different names entirely to prove that they were separate from their ‘obsolete’ counterparts. One such Replica, Ajora, called for the Replicas to unite and cause chaos as a whole, knowing their forces combined would be unstoppable; all but Janex, Bobbi’s Replica, decided to (temporarily) ally themselves, though each knew well enough that if someone got bored, they’d likely turn traitor.
As they vanished into the Darkness, taunting the heroes, the Earthlings took Belle back to the train, where the Beast and Rae took care of her overnight, allowing the heroes a brief respite. Both Alan and Alice had vanished without a word. So much had happened in one day- would every day be as horrendous as this?
Interlude: The Missing King
Despite the Earthling’s interplanetary struggles, word of their quest had yet to reach the grand city of Radiant Garden, which had almost completely been rebuilt in the three years since it had been reborn. Leon had turned the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee into the Radiant Garden Defense Force, beginning to train many of the up-and-coming youth to defend themselves against the threats of Heartless, Nobodies, and darker threats. With the merging of the worlds, Leon and his allies had grown more on edge- they couldn’t simply leave the Garden without a defense, but they needed to know what was going on. The decision had yet to be made, but the answer was soon made for them.
Axel, the Flurry of Dancing Flames and ex-Organization member, had also been revived in the strange meteor shower a month prior. Instead of wishing to cause any more chaos, however, he settled down and put up a glass-making shop, putting his fire magic to good use. However, shortly after the arrival of the Earthlings, a malicious being, more Heartless than human, attacked his shop, repeating the same things over and over- Where is she, give her to me. Its voice was twisted and demented, and it cared nothing for life as it carelessly destroyed anything that stood in its way. Axel, having no clue what the beast wanted, merely tried to fight it off, attempting to flee in the process. However, the nameless creature was on his tail; before long, he lucked out, running into Cloud and Leon, who helped to fight the creature off, forcing it to flee.
The trio immediately went to Cid to see if Ansem’s database had any information on the creature, or if he’d discovered any clues as to what was going on in the world. With the pilot having no leads, the magician Merlin suggested the trio make for Disney Castle; he knew that Leon was itching to see what was going on in the universe to begin with, and with Cloud and Axel as allies, he wouldn’t need to take along any of the Garden’s other defenders. As he agreed, Cid gave him the go ahead to fly a new prototype for his airship- the Shera. The group made their way to Disney Castle… only to have Leon crash the ship nearby.
Making their way in to see the King, they made a somewhat-predictable discovery- the King had, in fact, decided to leave, making his own journey to discover what was going on. Queen Minnie quickly filled the trio in, however, giving them all the knowledge she’d been left with- including the discovery of the Earthlings… and that the King had not been heard from. There was no letter of reason, and even Pluto seemed worried about his missing master. The Queen begged the trio to find Mickey- she feared that something horrible had happened to him on his path of research. To allow them transport, she allowed the group to use the Red Rose airship- owned by none other than General Beatrix of the Disney Defenders, this stoic woman was more than willing to bring along the trio in search of King Mickey. As they made their way to see Yen Sid (the first place Minnie believed Mickey would go), it was soon discovered that Yuffie had stowed away on the Shera, and snuck on-board the Red Rose to accompany the others.
At Yen Sid’s Tower, they discovered that the tower had been over-run with Heartless; fearing the worst, the fighters made their way up the many levels, fighting the hoards with relative ease, before finally reaching Yen Sid’s chamber. Explaining that the Heartless followed him wherever he went, he apologized for not keeping his tower ‘cleaner’ before giving them the information they needed to know- the King had gone to the Land of Dragons, hoping to gain an alliance with the Emperor so that the forces of Light could unite in the face of a coming threat. With this knowledge, the group once again departed, only to come once again into contact with the Nameless creature, this time assaulting Demyx. Quickly piling into the Red Rose, with Demyx on board, they made their way to the Land of Dragons, where they would soon find more than just a snake in the grass…
Chapter Four: The Separation
In the King’s Service: The Dusk at Dawn
The next morning, the group awakened to find that Belle was conscious and feeling better than ever. Overjoyed, the group ate a quick breakfast before leaving the train to bring the Prince and Princess back to their castle in hopes of fixing the curse. However, upon exiting the train, they were met with quite a surprise: Merlin had come to visit, and with him came the famous gunblader, Leon, as well as a host of new Earthlings to strengthen their group; along with them, Louis the Ivalician had appeared, introducing himself and lending aid to the group. After a brief introduction, and a farewell to Leon and Merlin, the now-bolstered group made their way back to the Castle to see the Enchantress, accidentally leaving Rae asleep on the train. Upon reaching the courtyard, the Enchantress urged them to shut the gate and bring the Princess over- only with her pure heart could she break the enchantment, and ‘a great darkness’ was making its way toward the castle. If she was caught off guard, the spell would be interrupted, and Belle could be harmed.
It wasn’t long before the ‘great darkness’ revealed itself- the allied Replicas stormed the castle with a gathered army of Heartless and darkness-possessed villagers from Belle’s hometown. Raining chaos down upon the heroes, they seemed uninterested in ritual and more interested with simply having a good time (at the cost of lives, preferably). It was then that three others joined them- Rae, who had managed to catch up; Seymour, who had managed to free himself from Hades’ grasp; and the most unexpected of the two, Cory, who was somehow back from the dead and helping them fight the Replicas. When the ritual was finished, and the Costume Curse lifted from the Castle and surrounding region, the Enchantress was weakened. Oogie Boogie took advantage of her frailty and kidnapped her through a Corridor of Darkness; the Replicas had only been a distraction in order to aid Oogie, who wanted to use the Enchantress to cover the world in Darkness (and the Costume Curse).
In the midst of the battle, another threat appeared: Xaldin, as well as Luxord, Larxene, and an old witch-looking woman, used the confusion of the battle to separate Zexion into an alternate card dimension, where they had their fun with him before leaving. As the Replicas departed, now thoroughly amused with themselves, the heroes were left in a state of confusion, aided by Cory’s now-revealed intentions. His only goal was to keep the worlds as they were; if the Earthlings succeeded in separating the worlds again, then he figured Earth would likely be reborn, forcing him to go back to that mundane world. On the opposite side, the villains and Replicas wanted to destroy this world, which meant he couldn’t exist here, either. His only goal was to keep the worlds as they were- no matter who he had to fight.
Baiting an Earthling by the name of Timmy into joining his group to gain power, Cory made his leave, and the heroes made their way down the forest pathway once again to Halloween Town. However, upon nearing the train, they once again found Merlin and Leon, awaiting the group. It seemed that the Emperor of the Land of Dragons refused to meet with him concerning King Mickey unless he had one of the Keybearers at his side. Sora and Riku were torn- they had both promised to watch over the Earthlings, to keep them safe. They couldn’t very well break that promise; so, they came to a compromise: they would split up the Earthlings, and each take half the group. Riku volunteered to go to the Land of Dragons with Leon, worried about his royal mouse friend, and Sora decided to stay the current course. With that decision made, the many friends parted ways and continued down their selected course.
In the King’s Service: The Darkest Hallow’s Eve
Before they could leave, however, Rae revealed to Joseph a terrible secret: her white magic had vanished, making her utterly useless to the group; she stayed behind as the original group quickly made their way to Halloween Town, knowing she would only make things riskier. They scouted out the region; mysteriously, while they did so, the Empathy spell upon Kyle was broken (unknown to the group, Kallista had ceased to exist), giving him reason to celebrate. With the help of Jack Skellington, the heroes located Oogie’s new lair- he had made his nest in the sewers. Descending down into the canyon near his old layer, they entered the sewers, only to have a thick metal door close behind them, and the room they were in fill up with sewage. As the fluid began to reach the ceiling, three doors on the walls opened up, allowing the water to drain and the group to be sucked down, separated into three groups. It was at this point that they had entered Oogie’s Labyrinth of Nightmares, with many opening paths; each path was only large enough for one person to enter, and the moment they passed the entrance, a door closed behind them, forcing each person to make it on their own. A number of people ran into slot machines, which transported them to different spaces in the labyrinth, and causing general confusion for everyone before Jack Skellington finally found the slot machine that would force the labyrinth walls to drop.
Once that happened, it was revealed that they were in a giant arena, and Oogie was on the other side; attempting to make their way across, it was found that every time someone moved any faster than a slow walk, a wall would rise up and stop them dead in their tracks. The infested Sack of Bugs then summoned Heartless foes to take down his opponents; however, combined, the group was more than enough to overcome the Heartless and the walls, nearing Oogie with ferocity. It was then that he pulled his trump card: as a number of card-walls rose from the ground, higher and higher, until they reached the ceiling, the fell down like heavy trees, ready to crush the Earthlings. But that wasn’t the coup de grace; Oogie now stood on a middle basin in a set of balance scales, keeping the other two on his side from dropping into massive cauldrons of acid. On one scale was the caged Enchantress, her magic still drained from her; on the other, Rae, their beloved friend. They had to choose.
They chose both. Coming up with a quick plan, Sora cast Stop on Oogie, forcing him to remain still while Jenny cast Float on the cauldrons, making them easier to move. Bobbi and James froze the contraption with ice-elemental projectiles, in case the Stop spell wore off. The rest of the group then gathered and pushed the cauldrons out of the way, followed by Zeba, who was up in the air on Valefor, slicing the massive contraption with her energetic magic and cutting the scale basins down. With the Enchantress and Rae (who clung to Joe, muttering something over and over about the Replicas) now free, Oogie came back into Time, falling to the ground, with Sora immediately pointing his Keyblade at the villain’s face. Before anything could be done, however, a Corridor of Darkness appeared behind Oogie, and a quick arm reached out and grabbed him, pulling him into the Corridor. Slowly recomposing themselves as a group (and giving the Enchantress an ether to replenish herself), they were shocked to find that Oogie was still with them; on a high platform at the end of the pit, he activated a giant slot machine, his last ditch effort- only to have his own game turn on him, giving him the worst possible outcome. The cavern began to collapse, and it was only due to the Enchantress’ magic that they were able to teleport to safety.
Back at the train, the Enchantress went inside to rest, only to have Cory appear, wanting something of his back from Zeba, who refused to give it back. Their reunion was interrupted by the appearance of Rae- a second Rae, the one who had stayed behind at the train. The second Rae suddenly became aggressive, assaulting the first with fury before Cory intervened, forcing the second Rae into the air before coming crashing down, having taken the blow. As black wings sprouted from her back, the truth was revealed- the Rae that had been with them since the Replica Riot was, in fact, a Replica. Instead of fighting, she released a massive burst of malevolent energy, sending most of the group off of their feet before vanishing without a trace. Thinking the danger gone, though, was a mistake: the real Rae was quickly sucked into the earth, only to reappear a few meters away, held hostage by the Replica of Noelle, Elleon. Without mercy or granting them any choice in the matter, she took the white mage’s heart from her body, kicking the remaining corpse at the group before vanishing, taunting them--and Noelle followed after her, disappearing in the Replica's dark corridor.
As the group once more had to mourn the loss of a friend, Cory made his hatred of the group known, giving warning that their next meeting would likely be far from friendly. Merlin soon appeared, called by Kyle, to take Rae’s remaining body to Disney Castle to be placed in stasis; they knew that Rae’s body would disappear the moment the Replicas released her heart to the Darkness, and they didn’t know when that could be, so they hoped to keep her body intact. Merlin did so, as well as taking the Enchantress with him, leaving the group to mourn in their own ways. The magic list had yet to reveal the next Wise One, so they were left to rest after yet another turbulent day.
In the Queen’s Service: Ending the Serpent’s Cycle
Meanwhile, the other group had made its way to the Forbidden City to speak to the Emperor of China regarding King Mickey’s recent visit. Upon entering the throne room with the large group, the Emperor’s newest advisor gave him a word of warning before revealing himself from behind the throne. Jafar had made his way to the Land of Dragons, and had been manipulating the Emperor the whole time. Sending his puppet to safety, he ordered the guards to attack the group, including Mulan and Shang; upon their defeat, Jafar called forth the Darkness to take their hearts, summoning them into his serpentine scepter and turning one of the hearts into the feared monstrosity, Kurt Zisa. The following battle was a close one, testing their teamwork capabilities as magic was, at first, disabled, followed by physical attacks. The Heartless was felled, however, by their combined might, the finishing blow having been a combined Limit Break by Kyla and Amy, one of the new Earthlings.
As Jafar congratulated them, he brainwashed Cloud and almost assaulted the group with the full extent of his magical power; a quick Flare spell from the back of the room, however, destroyed his scepter, revealing that it was Jafar’s only tie to the living. As his body slowly dissolved into pyreflies, Seymour once again had come to the Earthlings’ aid, and planned to stay with this group to ‘babysit’ them, as Kuja was doing the same for the other group. With Jafar dead and gone, the brainwashing effects were also gone, and the Emperor returned to his normal self; as well, they were joined by another Earthling, named Alan, whom Jon had known from the real world. Before he could ask any sort of questions, however, a powerful dark entity showed itself. It appeared much as the Host of Mateus had appeared in Halloween Town, as Kyla and Maggie would have recalled, and gave them a choice- join him and fight with the Darkness, or remain on the side of ‘the traitor’ and be slain.
The heroes declined, and after a brief fight, Seymour chased after the dark entity, hoping to finish him off once and for all. With peace finally restored, the Emperor and the Earthlings were finally able to speak. The King had indeed visited before Jafar’s brainwashing, and after establishing an alliance, mentioned going to an island named Hawaii. Now with a new destination, the group decides to take a small break to relax and better get to know one another in the Forbidden City. After all, the King was a strong individual, and a Keybearer as well- surely, he could take care of himself for a few more hours?
However, Cloud seemed to want a different sort of break- from the nobody, Axel. After a brief confrontation, the Buster Sword wielder revealed his distaste not for the Nobody himself, but for the memories he stirs in Cloud's mind of an old friend now lost. The two almost fight before Leon's intervention; Axel volunteered to leave, and not a moment to soon. As the other Earthlings sought them out, a dark presence made itself known- Sephiroth.
Taunting Cloud, the One-Winged Angel was disgusted by the Earthlings' many attempts to loan Cloud their Light. A fight began, and the Earthlings managed to bring the battle out of town (using Kyla's pictomancy abilities) before Sephiroth vanished, warning Cloud of the only way to defeat him. Afterward, the group made its way onto the Red Rose and began to rest in preparation for the day ahead.
Chapter Five: Lifting the Veil
As the Earthlings slept, they all entered a dream scape of memory, haunted by visions of the past. Each and every one of the Earthlings could see their home, Earth, and all of its activities, all of its life, as well as all of its corruption. And through it all, a single voice could be heard, even through the downfall of humanity... a voice pleading for help. As a bright light from the center of a destroyed Earth blinded the viewers, they were forced to waken and begin a new day.
In the King’s Service: Maelstroms of Chaos
As everyone awoke, conversing about the dream, the list gave them the Travelers their next targets: Calypso, the heathen sea-goddess of Port Royal; King Triton, patriarch of the undersea kingdom of Atlantica; and King Kashekim Nedahk, the ancient and wise ruler of the lost empire of Atlantis. After getting caught up on events from Captain Sparrow, they departed with the knowledge that Cutler Becket had already taken over Port Royal and, by all likelihood, had control over Davy Jones. They were moving into the territory of the third movie in that series; they would need to be careful.
Landing brought with it a sense of curiosity and concern; and yet, before they could do any scouting, Noelle returned, dropping from the sky in a dark corridor she'd managed to summon herself. Riddled with guilt, she explained her inability to get Rae's heart back. On the contrary, she'd been kept captive for days in a time-compressed jungle before the sorceress, Ultimecia, attempted--and failed--to possess her body. As she explained, however, the group was set upon by some of Becket's lackeys, who had followed the sound of Noelle's scream and the rumors of another Earthling on the island. That Earthling turned out to be Sayrike, the Blue Mage; the reason they hunted her, and Earthlings, was a mystery, but they did have another in captivity: Jacob.
Disposing of the lackeys, the group had little time to put together a rescue plan, as the execution would be within the hour. A small group rushed off to rescue the young Earthling, and another hero, Quistis, and in their success they were forced to flee the island by train, heading for Tortuga. To their horror, however, the small city was decimated by a windstorm--from none other than the Ivalician esper, Chaos. After an intense struggle, the heroes managed to force the Scion's host to flee; though, as Chaos left, Louis--their ally from Ivalice--jumped into the corridor after him. He managed to return shortly afterward, though, and the group departed on a ship that hadn't been destroyed--only to be suddenly joined by another Earthling, Anthony.
After a short trip, the crew arrived in Tia Dalma's swamp, reuniting with Jack's acquaintances, Will, Elizabeth, and the revived Barbossa. Together, with the recovered Black Pearl, the large group set sail for the only safe place left in the seas: Shipwreck Cove. They were intercepted: Xaldin, Larxene, and Luxord assaulted the group, and one of their own allies helped: Zexion. The battle was short, and before all was said and done, the Flying Dutchman was upon them, and they were boarded by the man controlling the captain: Ajora. Having using his Earth-gained knowledge of events, he had snatched Davy Jones' Heart for himself and was now manipulating the entire scenario. Imprisoning the group in the Dutchman's brig, he forced them to hand over Jack's Compass of Desire--that which directed the holder to what he desired most. He then brainwashed James, at the behest of Kuro Oni, and left the crew to rot in the brig.
They were saved, however, by one of Ajora's own minions, Celia. Betraying her master, she revealed his plans--to cause simultaneous war on the pirates and Atlantica, which lay near Shipwreck Cove-- before opening a portal and allowing them to escape back to the Pearl, getting a head start for the Shipwreck Cove. On the way, two events took place. First, Dawn's brand began to sear her, torturing her with thoughts projected by Ajora, and she was only saved by the Ivalician Louis, who dove into her heart to purge the seal from within. Second, the Replica, Kai, enveloped the group in a dome of thick shadow, luring a murderous, Nameless monstrosity into assaulting them. It took a great deal of effort, but their combined forces were enough to push back the Nameless, though many came away with scars. The Travelers managed, finally, to arrive at Shipwreck Cove around nightfall, and with a little scouting under the sea, discovered the truth of her words. Barely a mile from the underwater kingdom, Ajora was amassing a giant army of Heartless and other creatures. They had until morning to prepare both the pirates and the merpeople... and to make matters worse, the Trident had already been stolen, first by Elleon, and then given to Ajora himself.
It was going to be a long night.
In the Queen’s Service: Island Paradise Lost
Meanwhile, those searching for the King also awoke from the dream with concern. That concern, however, was pushed aside swiftly--the Red Rose was assaulted by strange flying craft as they approached Hawaii, forcing them to crash land on the far side of the volcanic mountain. To their surprise, however, this side of the island was much more populated; the world of Angel Grove, a large city similar to those from Earth, had merged with Hawaii, including its resident heroes, the Power Rangers. The city was under siege by Heartless, lead by none other than Ivan Ooze, and was being hounded by the unknown foes in the advanced airships. It was here that they met a new Earthling, Danielle, and here that the Rogue Cory once more made a scene--this time, kidnapping Kyla back to Hook's Flying Ship.
The pictomancer managed to bide her time, talking to Cory long enough that she was able to cast a flare for all to see--leading a group of others to rush to her aid. However, Cory insisted that the woman owed him a debt, and with the threat of his constant antagonization on her head, Alan and Kyle accepted his deal: fight him. If they won, the debt would be nullified, and Cory would aid the group for 24 hours; if he won, they would be forced to serve him for 24 hours in her stead. The two were still fairly new fighters compared to Cory's constant battling, but together they managed to wear him down enough that he got tired and threw the match.
In their departure, the others had been teleported into the Ranger's Command Center, where they met Zordon and discussed events. Mickey had not contacted him, though they had picked up a signal of a ship like the Red Rose on the other said of the island; Ooze had made his base in the side of the volcanic mountain, using Rita's old moonbase which had fallen during the Convergence, and taken all of the adults in Angel Grove; and the airship marauders were actually space pirates, using more sky-faring technology while allied with Ooze. Shortly after the conversation, however, the city was assaulted--by Replicas and a unique Heartless, no less. So the Travelers and Rangers leapt into action.
The battle was long and tumultuous--Elleon, the terramancer, tore down numerous city blocks in her own assault--but eventually the foes were pushed back, fleeing the scene. Victory came at a steep cost; near the end of the fight, Ooze had managed to infiltrate the Command Center, critically damaging the technology, brainwashing Yuffie and Beatrix, and fatally wounding Zordon himself. With Zordon wounded, the original Rangers lost their powers and were left with one option: visiting a distant world to gain new, unique Ranger powers to defeat Ooze once and for all. Consequently, the Travelers were left to defend not only Angel Grove, but the entire island. Axel volunteered to scout Ooze's lair, leaving the rest to look after any remaining young refugees in the city.
Hours passed in wait, with the only news being from Alpha 5 about what had transpired in the Command Center. After some small attacks from minor Heartless and Tengu Warriors, the Travelers became aware that the kids were in no danger--the enemies, after all, were only after the heroes. Finally, there was a warning from Alpha, though terribly muffled by static: Ooze had moved to a second base of operations on the opposite side of the mountain and was attacking that side's small beach village. Before they could do anything, however, they were attacked once again. This time, in place of Replicas or Heartless, they were forced to fight their own friends: Beatrix and Yuffie, accompanied by a brainwashed Axel, and a newcomer--a woman many recognized as the half-Esper, Terra.
In victory, the Travelers forced Terra to flee and managed to capture their friends, hoping to cleanse them of their controlled state. They didn't have much of a chance, however, before the magic restraining them ended, allowing them to flee. With nothing holding the Travelers on this side, they heeded Alpha's advice and began to make their way across the volcanic mountain. When they finally arrived, they found the village to be at peace; they had managed to defend themselves rather well, with the help of the Alien Police force, though they were still grateful for the presence of the "new Rangers". In short manner, however, the group was ambushed: the majority were met with a small group of strange monsters (which they soon learned were called Unversed), which were led by the strange entities Nithhogr and Fafnir, servants of a man somehow tied--and in opposition--to Cory; Cloud and Leon, however, met with a strange, powerful man named Genesis, whose mysterious ties to Sephiroth made him an enemy immediately.
The rest of the afternoon was fairly peaceful. A trip to the beach allowed the heroes to relax--though, to their chagrin, the replicas Ajora and Azrael also decided to make the beach their place of leisure for the time being. As the sun set, however, the calm was ruined; Ajora, in typical fashion, ruined the pleasantries with some strange errand, using Geists to copy everyone's darkest memories, doppelgangers to clip their hair, and shadows to steal away their own Ivalician, Nicholas. When the mischief was over, they were met with the Alien Police--who insisted that they come see the Grand Councilwoman in person. Once in her presence, they soon discovered the core of the problems plaguing the entire island: in the World Convergence, the world of Treasure Planet had been fused with the island, compressed into the depths of the volcano, where it was noticeable as an unfathomably large energy source. The Space Pirates, as well as Ooze, were allied with the Archadian Empire, who sought the energy for themselves--and had no qualms destroying the island and all its inhabitants in the process. A fleet of advanced flying battleships was en route, and would arrive by sundown.
The Travelers would need all the help they could get.
Heroes United : Veiled No More
The call went out across the seven seas: the people of Hawaii needed help. Not just any help; help from the other Earthlings, currently biding their time in Shipwreck Cove, content with the knowledge that Ajora would not unleash the undersea army until morning. With the help of Merlin, the other seafaring Travelers were instantly transported to the island--and a short distance from the fray, watching as a full-scale aerial battle broke out amongst the invading Archadians and the outnumbered Alien Police ships. On the ground, the brainwashed allies Beatrix, Yuffie, and Axel were once more fighting alongside Terra--this time in an advanced magitech contraption. Splitting their forces, many of the original heroes and some Earthlings (those whose summons had yet to awaken) rushed into the battle with their friends, while those with awakened summons called them forth in unique Zords, gargantuan animal-like machines based on their eidolons, to combat the invading army. They were soon joined by a new ally: Matthew, the Blue Mage. And yet, to everyone's frustration, Ivan Ooze himself joined the mecha-melee, possessing the aptly-named Giant of Babil, having come from the world of Final Fantasy IV.
The battle was arduous on all fronts, and to make matters worse, they were under a time constraint: the primary vessel of the Archadian fleet was using a piercing laser cannon to drill into the volcano, threatening to destroy the island within minutes. The only measurable successes were large Archadian airships, downed by the combined efforts of some Earthlings. The battle with the brainwashed allies was drawing a stalemate, and Ooze's Giant was proving indestructible, no matter what was thrown at it. The outcome appeared hopeless; and yet, only then did unexpected reinforcements arrive. Louis somehow obtained a massive amount of dark power, taking on the brainwashed foes alone. A large fleet of airships, composed of the Al-Bhed Fahrenheit, the fleet of the Ivalician Resistance, and a fleet from Lindblum of Final Fantasy IX, announced their presence and intent--aid from Disney, having been called by Mickey mere days beforehand. Simultaneously, the strengthened Power Rangers joined the fight in their new Ninjetti MegaZord. With the sudden surge of power on the heroes' side, the tides quickly turned. The Archadian fleet was forced to retreat, taking heavy losses; Ooze was destroyed, forced by the many Zords into the now-active volcano (forcing it back into inactivity); finally, with his demise, their friends were freed, as well as two others who quickly joined their ranks: Lexaeus, the Silent Hero in search of Zexion, and Zidane, genome hero and incessant flirt. Terra, controlled by something else entirely, fled the scene once again.
Victory finally in their grasp, the heroes celebrated, though only shortly. They were needed back in Shipwreck Cove, and after explaining the circumstances--and with no lead on Mickey--the group decided to stick together, improving the odds when the were forced to split in the morning. Receiving word that the residents of the island would be evacuated soon, the Travelers boarded the Red Rose and departed, arriving back at the Cove around midnight. Preparations began immediately, and while many decided to sleep for the night, others instead busied themselves with the war effort. When morning came, and the pirates set sail, the group split in two, each looking to prevent any more damage to the worlds under siege by the replica, Ajora.
In the battle of the Pirates against Davy Jones and the East India Trading Company, the heroes did what they could to make sure things went as they should--and they ran into issues before the battle even began. Strange Heartless suddenly assaulted the Pearl as the pirates attempted to free Calypso from her human form, hoping to interrupt the ceremony, and it was only through an immensely power trap of Light-based magic that they were held at bay. Most were destroyed, but one managed to escape, and shortly thereafter, a single allied ship in the distance erupted in flame for no known reason. Then, with Calypso freed, the battle began in earnest, the Pearl and the Dutchman locking into fierce cross-deck battle over a swirling whirlpool. The pirates fought the fish-men, and the heroes fought off the Replicas--who, to their surprise, were joined by more Replicas, born of the newer members. Working together, however, the heroes managed to stave off any interference, allowing the battle to go as planned. Finally, though Ajora originally had the Heart of Davy Jones, his lackey Celia once more betrayed him, freeing Captain Sparrow and giving the heart over to him, enabling the story to complete as necessary. Even James was mysteriously freed from Ajora's control mid-battle. It was only after that one of the new replicas, Lucian--the dark clone of Anthony--went on a full power assault, only barely being stopped by his original and allies.
In the battle of the Merpeople against the Dark Army, the heroes found their assailants more unique than previously thought: the myriad underwater Heartless had been joined by unique types of Geists, as well as more, weaker Unversed and a number of Replicas looking to cause as much pain as they could. The heroes managed to hold off the army, decimating large portions of the minion-monsters.
Still, on both fronts, Ajora had remained unseen, making some of the fighters nervous. Finally, however, they were given a sign: a massive column of stone erupted from behind the heroes under the sea, in the city of Atlantica, and to their knowledge, the city of Atlantis lay below. The entire war, it seemed, had been a distraction. Ajora was making his move, Trident in hand, on the Atlantean Empire, and until they finished, no one could stop him.
Kyle, in a moment of hatred, tapped into the darkness, aided by a deal for power he'd made with Seymour before the battle in an attempt to guarantee victory in defending Atlantica. Combining his power with Bobbi, the dragoon mage threatened to unleash a flash-freeze on the entire battlefield--allies included--all to end things quickly and defend Atlantis. Fortunately, Noelle, Joe, and Kyla were able to snap him out of it. In his fury, he accepted a second deal with an invisible dark specter, only to have Noelle and Joe offer a drive, bringing him back to his senses. Combining their powers, and the powers of many others down below, the trio were able to finish off the army and, in the process, forcefully eject the dark specter--who they identified as being the Host of Mateus, their long-time antagonist.
While they took care of the battle, however, Kyla had descended--alone--to scout out Ajora and his plans. She would discover that the discovery expedition, with mercenaries and Milo, had actually been funded by ShinRa, who had sent along two Turks to supervise: Tseng, the Turk leader, and Daniel, an Earthling and Turk-in-training. To her detriment--and the Replica's anger--Ajora caught her, and though she tried to hide in the castle, he found her, using the Trident to torture her while he lectured her about coming alone. In that moment, another dark specter made its home in her heart, protecting her and talking to Ajora in her place until the others managed to arrive. They came as quickly as they could; shortly after realizing Kyla's desertion mid-battle, a group composed of Joe, Noelle, Kyle, Bobbi, and Matthew fought their way down the spire and through the city. After throwing Kyla and Daniel out of the throne room, Ajora sealed himself in, apparently hoping to use the Trident to take control of the Heart of Atlantis.
This left the group to fight off Ajora's allies: the host of Chaos; Alice; and a jester-like archer. In Kyle's haste to defend Kyla, he was immediately taken out by Chaos, and in the process fell into a trap set by Ajora, which enveloped him in an unbreakable cocoon of darkness; in Kyla's determination to get him out, she left herself vulnerable to numerous attacks, and as a result, the specter was forced to pull her out of the battle in an explosive display of magic. Meanwhile, the host of Chaos placed a searing brand on Noelle, with foreboding consequences. The group managed to force Alice and the archer into fleeing, calling in additional back-up from Riku, Axel, Dawn, Jon, Kyle, and Dani, and forced Chaos into a more powerful form. It was then that Kyle broke free of the cocoon, changed--and still an ally, helping the group take out the host with enhanced summon-granted powers. This left the group with one last chore: breaking through the seal and defeating Ajora once and for all.
As they did so, Kyla was returned, healed (for the most part), and just in time. In taking out the seal, however, they found the replica nearly consumed by darkness, crazed and immobile; unable to fight back, he was blast with every manner of assault, disappearing in a burst of black. His return was swift, but ominous. Possessing his body, his dark summon, Ultima, began to preach of unfathomable darkness, revealing that Atlantis was being slowly consumed by its power, and the Heartless were invading from all sides. Hailing the coming of a new Keyblade War, Ultima allowed a terrible abomination to take over Ajora's body.
The abomination first sought to devour--or destroy--the Heart of Atlantis, in Kida's body, as it tried to hold off the darkness covering Atlantis. However, in its vengeful fury, it changed targets to Kyla, ripping the dark specter from her heart and nearly shattering her in the process. However, with the aid of the Turks and other allies, the heroes managed to hold the abomination at bay... until it drew them into a hellish abyss, revealing a monstrous form for them to fight. The fight raged on, and the evil manifestation taunted the Earthlings, dropping terrible hints that it was responsible for the loss of their world. Additionally, Bobbi, it was revealed, had also accepted the aid of a dark specter, who aided in the final push, as the heroes all began to unleash various attacks imbued by Light. Finally, in its final throes, the malefic entity threatened to consume them all in a dark void--only for the combined residual light magic to free Ajora's consciousness, allowing him to turn the magic back on his possessor and free the heroes.
Once outside, they found Ajora's body slowly breaking down, and he revealed his own version of the truth: his endeavors had been meant to drive and unite the group against the darkness he'd unknowingly awakened, proving their strength and worthiness as a whole. His "betraying" allies had aided them by his orders, and James had been freed by his will in order to combat his own replica. In his last moments, he also told them that the traitor Zexion had, in fact, been brainwashed; that Rachel's heart could still be saved; and that there were great entities called "Fiends of Heart"--only then, before he could say too much more, did Seymour and Kuja appear, stealing the replica away and unveiling their own roles as villains.
In their retreat, the heroes were left in victory. The Heart of Atlantis had managed to stem the tide of the Darkness; Milo had united the Atlanteans against the coming hordes of Heartless; and the heroes had held off the abomination that sought to end all things--even the King, who was normally fated to die, had been kept alive by Ajora. The pirates had attained victory over Beckett and Davy Jones, and the Merpeople were had cleansed their ocean. King Triton was granted his Trident back, and the heroes left--the Turks on their own path--for some place they didn't expect: Disney Castle. |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:25 pm
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Act I {Continued}
Chapter Six :
After a short trip, the heroes arrived in Disney's hangar, where they met with a new ally: the Earthling, Joe. Waiting to be retrieved, they began to fill the young man on everything they knew: an overall summary of their journey and key knowledge; their collected information on the Geists; the history of the Ivalician Scions; what little they knew of Cory's rogues; the Nameless monstrosity; the dark specters, originating from the Host of Mateus, who they now knew was none other than Louis; and what they knew of the replicas. In the middle of this discussion, there was debate over Louis, though mostly due to misunderstanding: many, tired of betrayal, voiced their cold judgment that if he did not stand down, they would do what was necessary; others, more turned to compassion, came to his defense, feeling the need to voice the need to try to save him, though none had previously opposed the idea. The schism was left mostly unresolved, but to their surprise, Merlin appeared--and even more to their surprise, he flung the hangar doors open, revealing a massive parade. With the Genie calling them down the street, they passed peoples from all over, refugees from worlds they'd saved and more; this, as well as the Cornerstone's mysteriously powerful aura, eased their concerned and lightened their hearts. At the podium, they soon discovered the greatest surprise of all: Mickey had mysteriously returned, finally bringing an end to their search. Yen Sid gave a rousing speech in honor of their deeds, and the cause of Light on the whole, before granting all the heroes an enchanted charm of crystallized Light, each with a personalized boon. Then, calling the ceremony to a close, Yen Sid ushered in the beginning of a city-wide festival for the foreseeable future. However, before letting them off the hook, the wise sage called for the Keyblade wielders and survivors of Earth to come with him to the Hall of the Cornerstone. There, the group uncovered various truths: first, that Kairi had been captured alongside King Mickey, which had been kept a secret; that the Cornerstone's mysterious increase in power was due to the gathering of the Princesses of Heart; and that, even with the collection of Wise Ones they'd saved, they had no collected information on Earth. As a result, Yen Sid gave them the offer: they no longer needed to fight, as they could not promise results. However, everyone present insisted on staying with the resistance--and in their affirmations, the Cornerstone grew ever brighter before erupting with beams of light that connected to every Earthling present. A foreboding vision was seen by all in the Hall, and after it ended, Genie rushed in, wondering what happened--because the Cornerstone aura had erupted even more, spreading rapidly to cover ground far, far beyond the walls of Disney. With Genie's departure, the group began to approach and consider the vision, quizzical as ever. Yen Sid, understanding the vision more than most, revealed what was known: Xehanort sought the true Kingdom Hearts, the "Heart of the Cosmos"; in order to obtain it, he required the χ-Blade, an omnipotent weapon that allowed the wielder to control Kingdom Hearts; in order to obtain that, there would have to be a clashing of Seven Lights and Thirteen Darkness; that the Keyblades were forged in the χ-Blade's image, as weapons to control--and later, protect--the light; that Xehanort had tried, and failed, over a decade prior, prevented by the efforts of the fallen Ventus, possessed Terra, and missing Aqua; that the Seven Lights from legend were the Princesses of Light, though Keyblade Masters would fight on their behalf, and the Thirteen Darknesses would be entities with hearts of pure darkness, in this era being Xehanort and his "Fiends of Heart"; and perhaps most surprising of all, that Yen Sid and Mickey knew the Earthlings thought the worlds around them were from some video game. With everyone being caught up to speed, they were free to go, and many joined the festival. Others, however, stayed in order to talk, having private issues. Noelle sought Yen Sid's knowledge on seals, and what to do concerning the Host of Chaos' brand, and she and Kyla both sought his wisdom on training their darkness so that none may control them. Yen Sid then explained the importance of training in the light, and gaining acceptance of balance, than training in the darkness. Finally, Kyle came to the wizard, seeking help for the seal of Seymour he had foolishly accepted earlier in the morning; it had already progressed entirely up his arm, to his shoulders. There was only one immediate option: Kyle would dive into his heart and defend it, while a few trusted allies would drop down and assault the core of the brand. So, while others relaxed, either with the festivities or resting in the Castle, Kyle called forth a group of his most trusted allies: Joe, Noelle, James, Kyla, Dawn and Sora. As they dove down the black corridors to the seal's core, Kyle was forced to face a manifestation of Seymour. The group felled more than a few monsters, taking the form of the fiends from Seymour's homeworld, before finally coming across the human form of Anima--Seymour's mother, bound to his heart as the dark summon. Though she earned their sympathy, she was quickly sucked into the dark core and forced into her true, monstrous form, which the group fought. However, due to further dissent, their own darkness allowed the summon to be possessed by the dark abomination. In its finals throes, the monstrosity attempted to possess Sora as well, and yet his strength of heart proved more than it could handle, allowing the group to finally close the core and remove the seal. Meanwhile, as Kyle fought Seymour, the battle was back and forth. First, Kyle had the advantage, tapping into the full power of his heart; then, Seymour drew on Xehanort's power, turning the tides with a dark keyblade; however, finally, Kyle called on the many bonds that strengthened him, and their own bonds, and earned a decisive victory. However, Seymour remained, revealed to be a piece of his heart, which could not be destroyed--until a figment of Ajora appeared, a spell left behind from the cocoon attempting to purge Kyle's heart of foreign darkness using his own buried light. However, not enough power had been stored in the spell, so instead, Kyle's heart was brought close to total destruction, until he willfully finished the spell. Consequently, he detonated his heart--and activated the Cornerstone, which once more blasted his body with a beam of light. The effect managed to destroy all the foreign darkness, including Seymour, that had ever scarred him, while slowly piecing his heart back together. During his recovery time, Yen Sid drew the participants to his tower, away from the Cornerstone, and demanded their story. Reprimanding them for their clashing and lack of teamwork, he left the topic for them to consider while granting Sora the title of Keyblade Master--one Riku had already earned at some point in the past two years. Ending on a pleasant note, the party returned, and all dispersed. |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:27 pm
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ʊᵖᵈᵅᵗᵉˢ
There are now six total cars on the Disney Train: the Engine Car, the Lounge Car, the Dining Car, the Sleeping Car, the Stable Car, and our newest addition, the Training Car. You are to act as if the Training Car has been there the whole time.
---The Stable Car is enchanted so that it has much more room on the inside than it appears; enough for a chocobo for everyone in the group, and then some.
---The Training Car is similarly enchanted, but with a twist. There is a Time Compression effect so that a two hours spent in the car equates to only a few minutes in reality. However, anyone may only spend four hours (Dojo Time; roughly equivalent to an hour real time) in the car per day. The interior of the car appears to be a large dojo, filled with substitute weaponry and targets (both stationary and, if need be, moving).
-----There is a similar Training Room in the Red Rose. The same rules apply.
The setting for the Earth's destruction has been changed to January 2010. The setting for the Kingdom Hearts Universe, however, remains the same- two years after Kingdom Hearts 2.
Added a Stat System Post just above this. Stats are now required for all Earthlings.
Rules updated. All of the current rules are applied retroactively.
Stat System edited; Ammo Strength is now considered Magic Strength since all ammo is regenerated magically.
Updated the HA: QSD thread's first post to include information on Drives (both with humans and summons).
[March 28] Changed the rules for Stat System level up; also added 'How do status effects work?' to the Q&A post.
[May 10] Added 'Magic Sensing: How does it work?' and 'How long can Drive Forms last?' to the Q&A post.
[July 22] Included the final Status Ailment Equation in the Q & A and edited the rules to include the addition.
[July 29] Added a Status Effects post to better explain the possible effects.
[August 9] Added information on Magic Levels to the end of the Q & A list.
[April 5, 2011] Added the possibility of Elemental Sharing; added related question to the Q & A. |
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:28 pm
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Reply
