EliteCommander

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

I do actually agree with that, and Lucius did as well, if you recall. She does put off that intimidating vibe, and we were able to scare away two of the guards, so the intimidation did work.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

That goes back to her decisions. Even in fighting, (or really, especially in fighting) the ability to think critically under pressure is an integral factor in success. In order to make frequent bad decisions and still come out on top in a fight, you would either have to be quite overpowered in raw ability, or very lucky. Indeed, bad decisions can work out sometimes, but not most of the time.

Edit: Ultimately, that berserker style you designed her for is situational, just like any other fighting style. In some situations, it will work wonderfully, but in others, it is ineffective. There is no magic bullet when it comes to fighting styles.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

I have thought extensively on Ssarak's weaknesses, how one could hurt or kill him. The Esyire aren't broken, you just have to fight in a different way. Ssarak has no ability at range, so spellfire at a distance is something he can't fight against. He can't even pretend to be agile, so if she took advantage of her agility advantage, she would have a good chance at victory.

As for the Sea Naga fight, I actually agree with you. Alaira lost way too easily.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

Thing is, it probably wasn't a good idea just to assume "I'm always the best fighter." That wouldn't exactly be fair to other characters.

As for the Esyire, they aren't absolutely superior to all other races. They have their advantages and disadvantages. Sure, Ssarak is stronger, but in a fight, strength doesn't equal victory. There are plenty of ways one could fight him successfully, but just trying to brute force overpower him isn't the best way. Just like you can hurt someone in heavy armor, but not by slashing it with a sword. A good fighter is someone who can adapt. The thing is, the way you've made Alaira, she's entirely static in terms of how she fights. She approaches all fights in the same way. Against some opponents, it would work beautifully, but against others, it puts her at a disadvantage.You can't just say that she should be able to outmatch everyone in a straight up fight, regardless of how they fight. It would be like saying a master swordsman should be able to outmatch an archer at long range in an open field. There is no fighting style that works well in all situations. If there was, no one would use anything else.

Also, the Esyire breath attack really isn't much in the way of an advantage. It just delivers the same magic in a different way.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

That isn't because anyone is singling you out, though. The reason Alaira has bad things happen to her all the time is because she makes a lot more bad decisions, much more than other characters. There isn't any malice behind it, it's just that the story reacts to the actions of the players.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

You don't have to change your character to accommodate others, but wouldn't it be just as unfair to me to make me change the way Ssarak would react to accommodate Alaira? As you said, it would be metagaming.

As for the failures Alaira has had, some actions just have certain consequences. For example, with that amorphous demon in the demon attack, you knew what would happen if Alaira did what she did. I believe I remember a conversation where you discussed it and were given some alternatives. You chose to have her overexert herself, which is perfectly fine. It was the choice Alaira would make, and it showed something about her character. That was all great, but it still came with the consequences. The same is true for the present mission. Her choices are perfectly in line with her character, and you don't have to change anything about them. But you can't just have someone make bad choices without any sort of consequence. That wouldn't make for a good story.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

I'm just saying, you can't have your cake and eat it too. Everyone is free to make their characters act in whatever manner they choose. Those choices are what makes your character yours. But in making them, you have to accept the consequences that come with them. There is simply no way I can think of that it would make sense for Ssarak to accept fighting with someone who poses such a danger to himself and their allies.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

So far, all Ssarak has seen is that she has been more of a danger to her allies than her enemies. Honestly, he is more likely to want to send her away than to continue fighting with her, though that isn't an option. As you said, he is a soldier, so he has many years of training behind him. He would see her style of fighting as more dangerous than helpful (because, well...it is). Ultimately, there is a reason that people in history were not encouraged to fight in that way, as it isn't as effective as approaching combat tactically. Good tactics are what win wars, so Ssarak would judge her approach very harshly. Your character can make the choices you want her to and act however you feel like she should, but that doesn't mean all the other characters will accept it. It would not make sense for Ssarak to accept fighting with someone so reckless. If she does not undergo any kind of change in that regard, he will do everything he can to avoid fighting with her in the future.

The Aesteria Chronicles

'Owwwwww' was the most prevalent thought going through Ignis' mind as he essentially tackled the ice spirit, eventually passing straight through it and ending up on the other side once the icy beast started to tip over. Ignis had two types of energy; one kind was excess heat that he pulled in and amplified from the environment. This was energy he could easily absorb or release with no real issue. The other kind of energy was heat that was incorporated into his very being; essentially, it was him. He could replenish it over time, but not near as quickly as he could draw in excess energy. A lot of the heat he forced into the spirit was simply excess energy he had amplified for his attack, but since the ice spirit's magic was quick to bite back through his attack, he could not avoid losing some energy from himself. It was painful sensation which was stretched across his entire "body," but he had been through worse. For now, he had to focus; the ice spirit wouldn't give up that easily.

As Ignis started to turn around, he floated himself up closer to the ceiling so he could get a quick look at the situation. The whole pub was in chaos, with bullets flying and spirits fighting, but from the moment Ignis had to watch, he saw one of the children get shot, and the other being dragged away. Eli looked to be going for the girl, and in different situations, Ignis might have helped, but he did not doubt for a moment how Helen would react. She would go straight for the boy, not really concerned with the threats around her. Of course, that was what he was for.

The ice spirit was probably the greatest danger to Helen, so his target had not changed. Just as Ignis was starting to figure out how to react, he felt a pleasant warmth radiating from the ice spirit's direction. Nahor, the steam horse, had hit the frozen beast with a nice blast of steaming water. 'Ah, that's what I needed. Got to love that boiling equine.' Ignis thought with a smile crossing his flame-covered face.

Although Ignis could not immediately heal himself from the excess heat, he could draw it in to help fuel his fire. He wanted to engulf the ice spirit in a stream of fire, but he had to remember where he was. This was a pub, and a crowded one. Helen would probably be upset if he burned it down, so he had to be a bit more precise. "Freeze this you overgrown icicle!" He shouted as he started to launch small, but intense balls of fire at the spirit. Now that Helen was not moments from being impaled, he could afford to keep his distance. He did not know how much it would take to knock the ice spirit out of the fight completely, but at the very least, it could not just ignore him.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

The unfortunate part is they are handling her very, very badly. She's sick, angry, tired, and paranoid, even moreso with the threat of Lyn's demise constantly looming over her head. The fact that because of her actions Lyn nearly died twice is causing her extreme anguish, especially since the second one would have been by her own hand. Meanwhile, the knowledge that Lyn thinks it's all her fault is hurting her greatly. Add to that the massive Psychic shock throwing her already questionable sanity into more chaos than usual. To be called out on her failings before they are out of danger will probably deepen her despair to such a level that she effectively cracks under the pressure, leaving her compliant, sure, but useless and worst of all, suicidal.

Not that she shouldn't be made to account for her shitty decisions. There just might be a better time.

@Freeshooter92

Perhaps that is the case, but you also have to consider the perspective of the others. She acted rashly and nearly got them all killed at the first bridge. Afterwards, Meirin and Darius confronted her, and she had a long conversation with Meirin about the problem and how to get past it. Then, at the second bridge, she forgot everything they had talked about and did the exact same thing again, endangering everyone's lives once more. To the others, she has proven herself untrustworthy to make good decisions. In Ssarak's eyes at least, Alaira either does not care if she endangers Lyn, or she doesn't understand how her actions could hurt her. Ssarak is a patient person, but even he won't be cordial after she has endangered them all for a second time. It just wouldn't make sense IC for him to be patient with her when patience has been proven ineffective. In Ssarak's eyes, Alaira is not going to stop putting them in danger, so he needs to act sooner rather than later.