Lugubrious

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate VG Crossover RP, reborn!)

Oh man, I'm tempted.

I'll try to get a concept.

@Urizen

Hey there, glad to have tempted you! Good luck getting a character together. If you manage to do so, or if you have any questions, feel free to put them in the new OOC thread: https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/193061-world-of-light-the-endless-now-the-ultimate-vg-crossover-rp/ooc. Thanks for your time!

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate Videogame Crossover)

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Name: Goldlewis Dickinson
Origin: Guilty Gear Strive
Appearance: In his original form, Goldlewis had light blond hair arranged in a quiff and a thick beard. Though he wore a pair of glasses with the left side blacked out with a lipstick mark, silver bolts and small text on it, both of his blue eyes are functional. He was a large, wide-set man, 7 feet tall and 566 lbs. Due to his fusions, he’s gotten a little shorter and lighter, now standing at 6’8” and 499 lbs. His outfit is more militarized with camo coloration, heavy combat boots, and some black high-tech armor with red lights and skull designs. His beard is longer and hair a bit whiter, though his pompadour also extends a little higher.
Personality: A reliable and formidable man whose presence is a pillar of support to the security and authority of his side, Goldlewis' sincere and good-natured traits have earned the trust of his friends, who know him to be both loyal and funny. He is also well-known for his excellent judgment and ability to lead, based on his extensive combat experience. He also seems to be punctual and exacting, expecting the same from his subordinates, and though quite fearsome when irritated, he is always professional. Although his hobby is searching for and collecting unidentified organisms, Goldlewis doesn't believe in aliens or ghosts, insisting that the coffin he carries around contains a cryptid, even as the entity's features point to it being an extraterrestrial. Due to fusions, he’s a bit more serious and critical, more prone to yelling while fighting, and flexing
Background: Little is known about his past. Born after his older brother, Goldlewis' career took on a different path. During the Crusades,[note 2] he joined the military to fight the Gear menace and met Colin Vernon, becoming close friends with him. Unlike Vernon, however, Goldlewis remained in the service after the war ended, and would become the first active-duty soldier to serve as the Secretary of Defense in U.S. history, taking the position during the presidency of Erica Bartholomew. Also becoming friends with her, he has become a "mainstay of the nation" remaining in his post after Vernon took over from Erica. Though the details are unknown, at some point he became estranged from his family due to hiding his "true feelings" from them, believing it was for the best.
In the Now: The story of Goldlewis in the World of Light began in Midgar, where he served as Secretary of Defense under Vernon Groubitz in the previous Administration. Following the next election, Vernon was replaced by the Shinra Administration, but as he returned to civilian life he took his Special Operations Unit with him. It continued to operate for a time, trying to improve things for Midgar’s citizens at the ground level, but eventually mounting frustration would convince Goldlewis to pursue other options. During his travels he encountered the Seekers of Light in Al Mamoon, in the Sandswept, where he assisted in the suppression of a terrorist group before being destoried by the Seekers. Armed with the truth about his twisted reality, he returned to Midgar to free his compatriots, then bided his time until the Seekers came to town. From that point he lent his strength to the campaign against Midgar, assisting mostly with operations involving the Psych-OSF. After participating in the battle against Midgar’s Guardian, he resolved to join the Seekers and continue hunting Guardians elsewhere.

Job: Secretary of Absolute Defense
Specialty: Unleashing overwhelming strength and firepower to lock targets down and batter them into submission
Inventory:

• High-tech glasses with a built-in night vision and laser targeting system
• Stopwatch
• Handkerchief
• Shotgun Gauntlets, which only get free ammo in Heat Mode
• Area 51 High Security Coffin (with UMA inside)
  
  • Heavy minigun 'Skyfish'
  • Spiked rotor mine 'Thunderbird'
  • Airborne Railcannon 'Mothman'
  • Unmounted Harpoon Gun 'Yowie'
  • Rubber chicken
  • Hand mirror
  • White flag
  • Origami paper

Lv: 9
EXP: 82/90

Abilities

• Security Level (SoAD) - the UMA in Goldlewis' coffin is able to provide him with various fully-functioning items and weapons as long as it’s given time to fabricate them, measured by its Security Level. The Security Level rises over time, the time to do so by stages until it reaches Level 3. Providing something to Goldlewis resets the Security Level to 0, and the quality of the item depends on how high the Security Level is; the longer the UMA gets to prepare, the more ammunition its guns will have, the farther its grenades will fly, and so forth
• Tension (SoAD) - reserve of magical energy that builds within Goldlewis as he fights. He gains it mostly by attacking, but he can also build it by running toward an enemy, and if he follows after an enemy he’s sent flying a long way he gains Positive Bonus that builds a bunch quickly. However, if backed into a corner for too long or forced to retreat, Negative Penalty will quickly deplete his Tension. Goldlewis can use Tension for Faultless Defense, which negates the chip damage of most attacks while pushing melee attackers back a little bit, or for a Roman Cancel, which allows him to near-instantly stop whatever he’s doing in order to do something else. He can also move slightly in any direction while canceling
• Overdrive (SoAD) - once he has at least fifty percent tension, Goldlewis can unleash one of two Overdrives. The first, Down With the System, is his only ‘invincible’ technique and is a coffin uppercut of tremendous power. If given a brief window to wind up, he can make it even stronger, at which point the UMA will add copter grenades to the mix to chase down and blow up whoever Goldlewis launched. His second Overdrive is Burn It Down, in which he uses his glasses’ laser sight to designate a target for orbital laser. The laser is thicker than a barrel and very bright, but doesn’t actually do that much damage; instead, it moves toward Goldlewis, drawing anyone caught up in it toward him as well. It cannot be used indoors
• Wall of Light (SoAD) - Goldlewis can crack open his upheld coffin to release a flood of blue light, creating a semicircular barrier of interlaid hexagons that covers a large area, because in the future everything is hexes. The shield can withstand projectiles and magic up to and including concentrated gunfire, but enemies can pass through it. Using it slowly drains his Security Level, and it can only be used at maximum Security Level
• BURST (SoAD) - While in hitstun of any kind, which is to say being hit by anything. Goldlewis can unleash a short-range blast of pure vital energy with several important properties. It instantly stops his movement, it instantly recovers him to an upright position, and while it deals no damage, it also launches any foes struck by the wave a good distance away, even in the middle of their attacks. Goldlewis can also do this in neutral, at which point it becomes a Gold Burst, and if he hits an enemy with a Gold Burst his tension meter instantly fills. In return for all this, Burst takes a while to recharge, especially if it doesn’t hit an enemy. It also leaves him extremely vulnerable if he doesn’t hit an enemy, either by whiffing it or being predicted, since a Burst can be blocked
• Heat (High Tech Annihilator) - Allows Goldlewis to use his shotgauntlets with unlimited ammunition for cartridge-enhanced punching, in particular a couple of moves that engage a special mode. In this mode, he gets increased chip damage for 10 seconds and can use a special Heat Smash move or a very fast Heat Dash cancel, both of which end Heat early. He only gets Heat once per 'round'
• Railcannon Fabrication (High Tech Annihilator) - Provided with schematics by Goldlewis’ fusion with Jack-8, his UMA is now capable of constructing a ’Mothman’ railcannon with an internal energy source and a high-power thruster at the back. If Goldlewis is at low health, it can fire out a heavy laser that explodes on impact. If he’s in Heat, it can be used in the ‘Meteor Raid’ Heat Smash, in which it’s called down to blow up on a foe Goldlewis knocked down. To use it for a Rage Art or Heat Smash a new one has to be fabricated, which takes so long that only one can be made per ‘round’ of combat. Otherwise, it can only be used to fly short distances, or fire small railgun slugs
• Shield Charger (Support Hunter) - allows his coffin to charge up a shield pulse that applies a permanent shield to an ally within 60 meters. This has a 17 second recharge, but the shield it makes is strong, protecting 50% for an ally with average health, 25% for one with high health, and 75% for one with low health
• Shield Burst (Support Hunter) - by slamming down his coffin, Goldlewis can apply a shield to all allies close to him, on a 26 second cooldown. This shield is relatively weak, protecting just 15% for an ally with average health, 7.5% for one with high health, and 30% for one with low health
• Chain of Command - Goldlewis can now spend a Security Level to cancel one Behemoth Typhoon into another as long as it has the same direction of rotation. This allows him to repeatedly chain guard-busting, high-damage coffin swings together to knock enemies around like a child’s plaything, although the limit on his maximum Security Level caps this out at three repetitions

Skills:

• Superhuman Strength (SoAD) - The physical power Goldlewis possesses is greater even than his incredible musculature might imply. He can lift, carry, and even swing very heavy objects, his punches and headbutts can contend with metal, and his might can guard crush even superhuman opponents
• Fighter's Spirit (SoAD) - As someone who fought against Gears and other supernatural foes in his magic-powered world, Goldlewis enjoys a few small but handy benefits. He can jump and maneuver in the air better than a normal person, able to not just double jump, but also airdash either forward or backward once per airtime. While blocking, he also reduces even heavy blows to mere chip damage
• Beloved Statesman (SoAD) - Though his days of warfare might be behind him, Goldlewis is ever the soldier, and seldom the politician. He's an astute, smart, and capable leader and fighter, able to rally people together and make the most of them
• Boundary Break (SoAD) - empowers Goldlewis and his UMA to perform a special Dust attack. It's an overhead normally, but if it's charged and it hits an opponent, it launches his opponent much, much higher and farther than normal. After launching an opponent with Dust or through a wall, Goldlewis can perform a single super jump to pursue his launched enemy
• Gamma Howl (High Tech Annihilator) - grants access to Jack-8’s Gamma Howl power stance, which can be transitioned to from certain techniques, as well as the techniques specific to Gamma Howl, many of which have useful properties. Gamma Howl can soak a hit, and it becomes Gamma Charge if it does, strengthening the next move used from that stance
• Divine Construct: Metastatic Field - when someone shielded by Goldlewis is attacked, the attacker receives damage equal to 280% of the shield’s pre-attack value, though this damage is not fatal
• Interstellar Construct: Hypereutectoid - when shielding an ally, the outgoing damage of that ally and Goldlewis are boosted by 20% for 10 seconds, stacking up to 5 times

Weaknesses:

• Lackluster Defense - ironically, the Secretary of Absolute Defense has it pretty bad when he's on the receiving end. His large size and the relative slowness and preciseness of his fastest attacks, together with his lack of meterless reversal or other 'get off me' technique, mean that he can be bullied, especially by nimble or long-ranged opponents. Offense is the best defense, after all
• Rock Thrower - poor predictable Goldlewis, always picking rock. In a fight, his game plan is somewhat simple: run all over the opposition and beat them down with oppressive strength. Unlike other large fighters, he lacks either armor on his attacks or potent command grabs, leaving him with just basic mixups plus item use. This means he's susceptible to being counterpicked on paper
• Mighty Glacier - putting aside his airdash and double jump, his overall mobility is pretty low. While the sight of Goldlewis running at you can be terrifying, he isn't that fast, he can't jump very high or climb, and he cannot move stealthily or subtly
• Feeling Low - makes the frame data on his lows worse overall and gives him a weaker high-low mix game in general

Spirits:

• Jack-8 - Fusion, grants the High Tech Annihilator class
• Hank - Fusion, grants the Support Hunter class
• Marduk - Spiritbound as a striker on a medium cooldown. He can wield his cannon, the Rage Serpent, to fire concussive volleys that deal pure physical attack in 2-round bursts. He can also call in a drone to bombard a wide area, detonating 12 weaker blasts in an area. Using the Rage Serpent or his drones builds Firepower, 1 per gunshot and 40 per drone call. Reaching 100 Firepower allows him to use Hissing in Rage on his next call-in, a withering barrage that deals heavy physical damage
• Kamael - Spiritbound as a striker. He can attack with his sickle, most effective with hooking a launched enemy back down to continue an otherwise finished combo. He can also use Circle of Life to fire off an orb of rippling energy, which rends life energy from targets hit to lower their ranged defense by 20% for 3 seconds while healing nearby allies. Finally, he can appear and, instead of performing an attack, use Nature’s Blessing to boost the damage and recovery of his next Circle of Life by 25%

Rapport:

• UMA
  
  • The creature in the coffin. This entity is capable of providing various items that far surpass the current technological level, and is forced to obey every order and demand from Goldlewis as it seems he has grasped some sort of weakness from it. Seemingly having an indeterminate form, it can manifest a number of arms for assisting or attacking alongside Goldlewis
• Sandalphon - Rank C, 5/10 REXP
  
  • The two fought as allies during the Seekers' time in Midgar, both officially joining the campaign against Galeem for the first time. As results-oriented workaholics their casual time together has been limited, but their forced partnership during Connected Climbing Chaos gave them a chance to talk. They share a mutual professional respect

Wanna piece of me?

Name: Ms Fortune (Nadia)
Origin: Skullgirls
Appearance:
Originally a Feral of Hispanic origin, with catlike ears and tail, Nadia has undergone some changes due to fusion, but remains relatively true to the core of who she is. Nadia stands at 5’8”, but boasts a fuller figure. Her hair is a fluffy and voluminous hair styled in curtain bangs plus short ponytail, and has a distinctive calico pattern, primarily blonde but with splotches of black, white, and brown. This includes her tail. Her skin is slightly darker, and her eyes are as electric blue as a TV screen. Her current outfit is tailor-made by Yuria of Gerudo Town. She wears a dark blue, fur-lined, leather bolero jacket with a lighter blue inside and fishbone badges over a small white shirt with buttons undone, with shorts that match her jacket and a leather belt with lots of pouches. The bell on her heavy collar, like her fishbone badges, is silver, and she wears stylized black Mantread boots. Slung over the jacket is a somewhat hefty metal case, which is the storage form of her shipgirl rigging blended with her Kagari Rokushikisouken blade case
Custom Outfit Tournament Outfit (has light brass armor plating on her chest, shoulders, and waist)
Personality: A sunny-spirited extrovert who likes making puns almost as much as making friends, Nadia is a kind-hearted but not afraid to stand up for herself or what she believes in, nor to take those who misuse their privilege or power down a peg. Though a dedicated jokester, she's also brutally creative fighter, able to come up with ideas as harebrained as they are cunning, even if she’s not the sharpest tool in the shed. Good food, sports, and small dogs headline as some of her favorite things, and she can be as generous as she is greedy, but more than anything she wants people to like her. To that end she doesn’t mind being a caricature of herself, making herself the never-say-die life of the party if it means lifting the spirits of others. Her catlike behaviors are true enough, however, and in addition to being able to fall asleep anywhere, she can be temperamental–able to change in a moment between gentle and sisterly to violently competitive
Background:

Picking Up the Pieces

When she was just a kitten Nadia was found by four Dagonian thieves wandering the alleys of Little Innsmouth in search of food. Filled with pity, they took her in, quickly becoming family. Nadia grew up in their charge, taking to the port town and its people like a fish to water, and proved herself adept in their trade. The Fishbone Gang stole from the rich to give to the poor, and making them a beloved band of outlaws, always welcome in Yu-Wan's restaurant after a hard day's work. Yet for all their noble thievery, conditions in Little Innsmouth improved little.

One day they set their sights on bigger prey: the dreaded and infamous Medici mafia. After a daring heist the Fishbone Gang escaped with a jewel of incomparable value stolen from Lorenzo Medici himself, only for his loyal enforcer to track the robbers down. Black Dahlia butchered the Dagonians one by one, until only a horrified Nadia remained standing. In a final show of defiance she swallowed the Life Gem, daring Black Dahlia to carve it from her corpse. Nadia was brutally butchered, but the gem nowhere to be found. Her pieces were strewn into the depths of the Little Innsmouth harbor, but she did not die. The Life Gem had made her immortal. After pulling herself together Nadia began her quest to avenge her family.

After a protracted campaign, however, Nadia began to realize that despite her newfound immortality, she was barely making a dent in the colossal criminal organization. She began instead to seek the Skullgirl, planning to use the Skull Heart to circumvent vengeance and bring her loved ones back to life. Galeem never gave her the chance.

In the Now:

There and Back Again

Nadia showed up on the Sandswept Sky’s northern coast in Carnival Town, the party capitol of the World of Light. Though she enjoyed the festive atmosphere for a time, she never forgot her ultimate goal, and eventually could stomach the place no longer. She hitched a ride on a traveling desert caravan that eventually brought her to the Forsaken Boneyard. There the caravan got ambushed, and Nadia narrowly escaped, making her way across the mountains to what looked like the nearest city. Instead she found herself trapped in the hellish nightmare of Redgraccoon City, where she learned of the Skullgirl’s presence, and eventually holed up in a police station alongside other survivors.

Eventually the Seekers of Light showed up and helped the survivors mount an escape, using a teleporter to reach the safety of Lumbridge in the Land of Adventure. She would return to the Dead Zone, however, and fight through the hellscape to track down the Skullgirl alongside new allies. In the end she did not wish on the Skull Heart, which fell to Linkle instead. With no other goals, she joined the others and traveled to Limsa Lominscuttle Town, where she began her journey as a Seeker of Light for real.

Nadia lent her unique set of skills to the campaign of Peach’s ‘Blue Team’ throughout the Deep Blue Seaside, both in Limsa Lominscuttle Town and beyond when the Azur Navy went to war against the Abyssal Fleet. During the intense Battle of Blackwater Bay, she and the others took a detour through the Luma Pools to reach the Bottomless Sea, where they found themselves beset by monsters. When a dangerous situation forced them to rake refuse in a massive armored submersible called the Maw, they found themselves reverted into children and forced to brave the nightmare in a depowered state. This came to an end when the Maw ran aground on the shores of Carcass Isle, a place stewed in eldritch curses. Alongside her friends Nadia fought through the island’s many horrors, culminating in an impossible battle against the Orphan of Kos in Where All Things Must Come.

After narrowly emerging victorious, she and the others returned to Limsa Lominscuttle Town via Warp Graffiti in the early hours of the morning. Once she emerged from an alcohol-induced stupor, she joined the others at Karin Kanzuki’s estate to take the rest of the day off and relax at Heaven’s Edge. The next morning the campaign resumed, starting with a return to Alcamoth, the headquarters of the Seekers of Light. By lowering the floating city itself, the Seekers were able to deploy by boat into the Eryth Sea and navigate the mountain rivers to the Sea of Serendipity, bound for Twilight Town. On the way, however, they ran into a three-way ambush orchestrated by an unknown mastermind, who revealed the existence of the secret organization Moebius, declaring that its members would hunt the Seekers to the ends of the earth before retreating. In Twilight Town, Blue Team reunited with Yellow Team and set off into the extradimensional train network of the Nyakuza Metro together, only for Consul N to appear and put a hit on them, initiating Rush Hour. In the mad scramble, the Seekers got separated into three groups, with Nadia’s arriving at the Chasm above the vast subterranean region known as the Under.

The newly-minted ‘Purple Team’ set out to explore the Under, hastened on their way by Consul F’s attempt on their life. After reaching the Temple of the Black Egg and learning of the nine mask fragments needed to open it, the team got split again, with Nadia a part of the contingent that delved into the Basement and eventually the Womb until they reached the Home of Tears. Once reunited with the others, everyone joined forces with Iguana Gallo Valetto to take down Consul P, the despotic ruler of the Home of Tears. After succeeding, and proving that the Consuls could be beaten, their journey through the Under continued, amassing mask fragments from different bosses throughout the caverns. This reached a head with a dream battle against Robin Goodfellow in Mercy Dreams, foreshadowing the Seekers’ fight against the Radiance the next morning. With the defeat of the Radiance, the Under was freed from the scourge against the Infection, and the Seekers could move on for a much-needed break. They headed back through the Metro, first to Gerudo Town, and then to Carnival Town itself, leaving Nadia right back where her story began.

Job: Bloody Hellion
Specialty: Nadia is a highly sustainable, agile dexterity fighter with a focus on single-target rushdown, able to split into pieces and launch high-speed attacks to overwhelm her opponents, then destroy them with combos–be those combos long chains of attacks, or elemental reactions

Inventory

• Lockpicks, 8200 zenny, six-pouch utility belt, magic wallet
• Havel’s Ring (?) - A ring for warriors keen on heavy accouterments. Increases maximum equip load. This ring was named after Havel the Rock, the battlefield compatriot of Gwyn, the First Lord–or so it should be. This ring is but an imitation, only providing a measly 15% extra equip load instead of the original 50%
• Blue Dancer Charm - A cloth doll depicting a dancer garbed in blue. Increases physical damage as equip load lowers, with a maximum of 14% extra damage dealt at the lightest threshold, but unfortunately since the ratio is not percentage-based, Havel's Ring doesn't really gel with it
• Bait Launcher - A gun that fires steaks. When a steak hits the ground, it leaves a small pool of red liquid and a tiger will appear, run to the nearest enemy, and maul it. The damage dealt by the steaks themselves is negligible. The tigers don’t attack allies. The Bait Launcher has 28 shots left, a 1 shot magazine, and 1 second reload time. The steaks are perfectly edible and pretty tasty, but the quality varies
• Kagari Rokushikisouken - A pair of grips, designed to be triggered when held in a reverse grip, and a case (fused with her rigging) with fourteen disposable segmented blades with a single razor edge. The blades can be inserted into the grips easily and quickly, and detached with a squeeze of the triggers. These ‘box cutters’ are dexterity weapons that can slash, stab, and sever with speed and finesse, leave their blades inside stabbed targets, or send them flying with a well-timed trigger pull
• Athame x2 - daggers that increases attack and speed somewhat in combat against a wounded enemy. Weakens enemies' physical and magical defense on hit for 15 seconds. Grants ‘Vantage’: while blocking an opponent’s offensive pressure, Nadia can counterattack with this weapon, essentially functioning as an alpha counter. This attack cannot lead into a combo
• Ripened Heart - When pressed against her chest, it provides a quick burst of fast healing (about 20%) provided by a prolonged stretch of slower healing, about 40% over 5 seconds. Only three uses between rests
• Second Stomach - A gastrointestinal mutation that doubles the health received from health-restoring items

Lv: 15
EXP: 59/150

Abilities

• Life Gem (Bloody Hellion) - the Life Gem lets Nadia separate herself into pieces without dying, each of which can be puppetted remotely, and it steadily replenishes her blood, which allows her to regenerate at a constant rate. Overuse hinders blood resupply
• Claws for Alarm (Bloody Hellion) - like all ferals, Nadia can harden -and therefore weaponize- parts of her body, usually her nails but also her tails, ears, and even hair
• Full Mrow-tation (Bloody Hellion) - Nadia can rotate parts of her body at the separation points, turning them into impromptu weapons with high speed and attack power once fully revved up
• Blood Purr-essure (Bloody Hellion) - allows Nadia to pressurize her blood within parts of her body for explosive release, allowing her to launch herself (in part of in whole) for mobility and offense
• Undivided A-tension (Bloody Hellion) - Nadia can begin building up Dramatic Tension by dealing and taking damage. If she accumulates enough she can perform Blockbusters, powerful super moves that take different forms depending on Tension expenditure
  
  • Fur-serker Purr-age - a grounded level 1 Blockbuster that sends her forward in flurry of claw slashes that are difficult to escape from, ending with a strong finisher
  • Feral Edge - an air-only level 1 Blockbuster that’s a high-speed plunging attack with blades extended, which can be extended with Feline Allergies if her head is on
  • Fifth of Dismember - an aerial level 3 Blockbuster that sends all of Nadia’s parts flying on bloody rockets, hurtling through the air to reunite in a bloody explosion
  • Blue Monday (Unchained Luchadora Interplay) - a level 1 counter Blockbuster. She lifts her knee, and if hit with a melee attack, she grabs her attacker, slams them down, then does an powerful elbow drop
  • Rapid Fire (Deadeye Huntress Interplay) - a level 3 Blockbuster that allows her to unleash her ranged weapons at lightspeed without resource consumption, lasting 3 seconds
• Ship Shape (Battleship) - gives Nadia a set of shipgirl rigging that can be deployed when her feet are in contact with water, allowing her to hydroplane across the water’s surface. When deployed, the rigging arms both act as stabilizers and can be used as weapons
  
  • Viscerain (Bloody Hellion Interplay) - Only usable when the cannon batteries on Nadia's rigging are deployed. Nadia can form missiles of condensed blood inside the cannons and shoot them out, though each shot costs 1% health
• Elec-tricks (Lightning Beast) - grants Nadia access to the lightning-type moves Smack (a normal hit), Charge (a dash attack in the form of lightning), and Battery (a 2-hit attack that crits if used after Charge)
• Fluffy Soft (Super Anthromorph) - allows the host to partially transform into a white tiger for 5 seconds max. Tiger attacks inflict a Mark for 6 seconds that decreases defense by 5%, which can stack up to 4 times. When in use, Fluffy Soft also decreases damage taken by 30% and increases max run speed by 20% (legs only) for the transformed portion
• Unchain (Unchained Luchadora) - offers her a customizable three-hit Unchain series composed of an Unchain Starter, an Unchain Circle, and an Unchain Finisher, many of which are new normals (two of the Unchain Finishers are also command grabs)
• Roll and Gun (Deadeye Huntress) - allows her to instantly equip, fire, and reload a ranged weapon during a combat roll, then unequip it again
• Rapid Fire (Deadeye Huntress) - a chain skill that serves as a level 3 Blockbuster. Dual handguns must be equipped to use it. Nadia becomes a shadowy blur, leaving afterimages as she whips and whirls around at hyperspeed, unloading her handguns at 410% base damage for 3 seconds. This Blockbuster does not consume ammunition
• Instinct (Amazon Huntress) - grants the host a secondary resource that builds as damage is inflicted and taken. When activated, Instinct will instantly return the host’s melee weapons to her hands no matter where they are, then until it runs out, her weapons will continue to bounce back to her

Skills

• Cathletic - As a Feral in good shape, Nadia has enough lean muscle to be acrobatic and agile, with plenty of stamina. Her sight and hearing are enhanced as well
• Pawsibilities - Nadia is highly creative when it comes to using her power, and generally everything she has at her disposal. For instance, she will use jets of her blood to change her direction in midair, use her detached head as a projectile or distraction, extract her own muscle fibers to use as binding, extend her blows using tendons like ropes, spin her hand or limbs like a drill, wield her detached tail as a weapon, and more
• Purr-ty Thing - owing to both her (cheery, forthcoming, and slightly dorky) personality and looks (scars aside), Nadia has no shortage of charms, and she’s aware enough that she can play them up if need be
• Tag Team - Camaraderie in the face of adversity has allowed Nadia to work much more effectively as part of a group. She can better help her friends out and follow up their attacks, potentially even continuing their combos
• Feast - Eating anything will restore health in addition to its actual effects. Also, receive a fast-diminishing attack boost after eating
• Su-purr-conductor (Lightning Beast) - Cat-5’s typing cause a few useful reactions. Ice attacks grant her Multitarget for thirty seconds, and so do Air, Metal, and Water attacks. Multitarget causes her attacks to burst on successful hit, dealing splash damage in a 5 ft radius of an appropriate type (her normals ‘burst’ with blood)
• Big Mamie (Battleship) - for each ally fighting alongside Nadia, her ranged damage, damage against airborne enemies, and evasiveness increase by 8%, stacking up to 24% at 3 stacks
• Quick Draw (Deadeye Huntress) - upon reloading, her outgoing damage is boosted by 20% for 3 seconds
• 12 Monkeys and Angry Men - when dealing follow-up damage to an enemy, increase follow-up attack damage by 4% for a maximum of 24 stacks until the combo ends
• Clockwork Apple - after launching a follow-up attack, her speed is boosted by 16% for 10 seconds. Repeated attacks refresh the duration
• Wounds of Plenty - Launching a follow-up attack charges Maddening Voice by 5%, making Nadia increasingly giddy. When it reaches 100%, Maddening Voice activates, causing a burst of multitudinous laughter that cancels her current action and deals ten hits of Aftertaste damage to her current target, locking it in hitstun. Afterward, her Aftertaste damage is doubled for the rest of the fight

Weaknesses

• Cat-strophe - Nadia relies completely on the magic power of the Life Gem, which is suffused throughout her body. Anything capable of extracting or reforming it would kill her instantly. If subjected to an anti-magic effect, like Silence, for any longer than a second or two she would also die. Additionally, blood manipulation is an incredibly hard counter for her
• Close Clawrters - Nadia has few projectiles at her disposal, all of which have conditions, making her weak at long range, and to fast aerial enemies. She needs to be able to physically reach her foes in order to deal damage
• Phagophobia - the fear of being eaten alive. This can apply with things like leeches, maggots, and piranhas, or even mouth-shaped things like cave entrances, but especially with large monsters. If being eaten is on the table, and with it the chance of an eternal, undying existence of torment within the wet, crushing, acidic guts of monsters, Nadia can’t keep her head on straight. She’s also highly averse to being bitten in general even if it wouldn’t really harm her
• 2,700 Pounds of Justice (Battleship) - increases her effective weight by 2.7 times via density, to over 350 pounds. This lowers her air mobility, makes her easier to combo, and makes her harder to be carried, lifted, or thrown. Unfortunately it doesn’t boost the damage of drop attacks, either
• Overt Reactions (Lightning Beast) - If hit by Earth, Plant, Glass, or Plastic-type attacks, the host will be Grounded. If she has Multi-target, that buff will be removed, and if she doesn't, her accuracy will be reduced for 30 seconds
• Darkbane (Super Anthromorph) - increases the damage taken by Dark-type attacks by 30%
• No Meterless Reversal (Unchained Luchadora) - removes all armor from her DP, Fiber Upper
• Fire Bane (Deadeye Huntress) - boosts damage suffered from fire attacks by 30%
• Disarmed (Amazon Huntress) - weakens her pressure and mixups if she’s not wielding a weapon

Spirits:

• Massachusetts - Fusion, gave the Battleship job
• Cat-5 - Fusion, gave the Lightning Beast job
• Kanna - Fusion, gave the Super Anthromorph job
• Ángel - Fusion, gave the Unchained Luchadora job
• Rosetta - Fusion, gave the Deadeye Huntress job
• Maya - Fusion, gave the Amazon Huntress job
• Rhodeia of Loch - Spiritbound as a Striker. The Oceanid can spend 10 seconds to create 1-3 Hydro Mimics when summoned, the number depending on the size of the copied entity. Hydro Mimics outlast this Striker and attack independently, inflicting the Wet status. Mimics have their own health pools and explode when killed. The Oceanid has a 3-minute cooldown, and new mimics replace old ones
• Harbor Water Demon - Spiritbound as a Striker. This huge Abyssal has a 1-minute cooldown, and can be called in to provide burst damage or minions. She can lunge forward and deliver a massive double claw swipe, fire her anti-air Abyssal Aviation Battleship’s 20-inch Twin Gun Mounts, deploy 3 airborne CAT fighters, or deploy 3 Hell Dive bombers

Rapport

• Ace Cadet - 18/20 REXP
  
  • Ace seemed perfect to Nadia right from the get-go, thanks to his looks, positive attitude, cool fighting style, and of course their shared love of puns. While they made a good team in the Maw, they got to actually hang out for the first time at the seaside called Heaven’s Edge, where they really hit it off. Even once they got back on the road, they could still chat in quiet moments, opening up to one another. Upon reuniting after some dangerous and action-packed time apart, they chose to act on their feelings and shared a passionate kiss, cementing their status as an item. Since then, they've enjoyed lunch together.
  • Skill Share: Adaptable - fighting alongside Ace has helped make Nadia more flexible when it comes to her equipment. She's surprisingly fast to learn new weapon types and items, even from other worlds
• Sectonia - Rank D, 3/5 REXP
  
  • Sometimes Sectonia’s presumptuousness rubs Nadia the wrong way, and her attitude of superiority makes her tough to get closer to, but they can still work and joke around together, and after getting her hair styled Nadia can appreciate the big bug’s talents
• Primrose - Rank B, 11/20 REXP
  
  • Though she started out feeling inferior to and jealous of Primrose, Nadia got to know her better during and after their shared campaign in the Under. After chatting at the Terminal Cafe, Primrose gave her a crash course on dancing in the Crypt of the NecroDancer, and when they went together to get new clothes in Gerudo Town, they both got a little more real. Nadia now respects and looks up to Primrose, and enjoys her company
  • Skill Share: Bewitching Beauty - instruction in the arts of dance, body language, and feminine wiles have made the tomboyish Nadia to a nigh-irresistible knockout if she really tries. That said, since she still prefers to do things practically, it's mostly Ace on the receiving end of her charms
• Therion - Rank B, 11/20 REXP
  
  • Throughout the Under the two thieves fought alongside one another many times, turning out to be two birds (or rather, cats) of a feather. However, they actually managed to hang out during the minigame roulette in Carnival Town, where they worked together to climb a mountain and steal first place. Though Therion’s not as social as she is, Nadia is resolved to make Primrose’s friend a good friend of hers, too
  • Tag Team: Thick-ass Thieves - the two attack at high speed, slashing the opponent again and again as black-and-blue blurs to lower its defense, ending with a backstab from Nadia's upper half while Therion powerbombs Nadia's lower half from above as a living projectile
  • Skill Share: Master Thief - thanks to some lessons from Therion, Nadia's skills as an actual thief -including blending in, lockpicking, and pickpocketing- are all quite a bit sharper
• Chucho
  
  • Nadia’s pet, a polterpup from the Crypt of the NecroDancer in the Under that has since been fused with special border collie. Though still not much use in combat, Chucho is nevertheless a beloved and playful companion who keeps Nadia’s spirits high day in and day out. It helps that he’s very low-maintenance and can’t even be attacked by most enemies, meaning he can usually join his owner on her adventures

Back on the beat!

Name: Ben “Big Band” Birdland
Origin: Skullgirls
Appearance: Big Band is 7’6” and 5000 pounds of polished brass and dark steel all wrapped up in a beige trench coat big enough to pitch a tent with. More machine than man but not so much as a micron less soulful, he’s a pneumatic cyborg whose technology may be dated but never obsolete. Beneath the coat, his bell-shaped body sits atop comparatively stumpy legs. With his mouthpiece, hat, and glassy eyes (not to mention his sheer mass) he can cut quite the imposing figure, but beneath the brass contraptions is the face of a kind, middle-aged man who’s seen it all but never betrayed who he is. For the most part he interfaces with the world through a set of small, spindly mechanical arms with cushioned pincers, but for those in need of a little justice he can whip out a pair of enormous, pneumatic arms with brass knuckles, and he has plenty more instruments packed away in there
Personality: “When the word of the law falls, pick it up and hold it higher!” - Observant and dutiful, with a strong moral compass and a profound respect for spirit of the law, Band is a resolute and nigh-incorruptible authority figure. He exudes confidence and fortitude, and though he can be intimidating, but possesses a lot of fatherly kindness for the young and the suffering, and consideration for the consequences of his actions. While he maintains himself to be calm and collected and prefers to talk things out, he will not hesitate to fight back when he has to. Unafraid to put fools in their place if need be, he fights as he lives and breathes: with an incorrigible style and dedication to jazz. He loves a good tune, quiet company, a nice drink, and his instruments neatly polished. His every other breath is a tribute or allusion, woven into a charismatic dialog as rich as the art itself
Background: Ben Birdland has seen a lot in his time, including the worst of the Grand War. But nothing was worse than what he saw as a beat cop in New Meridian. When he ran afoul of his crooked unit, he was given a violent early retirement, and his broken body was left to spend the rest of its days in an iron lung. Only his good friend Irvin did not betray, but there was nothing that he could do.

That would have been the end of Ben’s story if it hadn't drawn the ears of the Anti-Skullgirl Labs. With little left to lose, he agreed to be rebuilt with their experimental procedures. Melded with the machinery that allows him to breathe a powerful array of pneumatic weaponry, he was reborn as “Big Band.”

The years passed, enough that he saw the rise and fall of the two Skullgirls before Marie, and Band became not only a fixture of the organization but also a father figure of sort to the younger ASG soldiers. A firm believer in their cause, he has stayed with the project through its controversies and continued to have a place on the frontlines against every Skullgirl. Though working with dated technology, he more than made up for it with experience and fortissimo.

When Marie became the new Skullgirl, he resolved as ever to destroy the source of his enemy’s power: the Skull Heart. His investigation of her hatred for the Medicis took him to the River King Casino where he contended with Cerebella. Upon his return to Lab 8, he found it in shambles, with the man he owed his life to dead and a mysterious doppelganger in Band’s place--the grotesque Double. He eventually reunited with the Lab 8 fighters only to be forced to defend himself against Peacock, who planned to fight the Skullgirl all by herself and refused to accept his cooperation.

Though defeated, he made it his mission to track Peacock down before she could get herself killed. Thanks to a tip off from Irvin, he made it to New Meridian’s Grand Cathedral after running afoul of Lab 0’s Brain Drain. Before he could reach his destination, however, an all-consuming light twisted the tale.
In the Now: Big Band rode into Al Mamoon in the Sandswept Sky one unassuming day in the desert, his young sidekick Peacock at his side, only to become embroiled in conflict when the Seekers swept into town. He lent his strength to their efforts in order to root out the terrorist organization known as the Resistance, then tagged along for the ride to Split Mountain in order to help see the heroes’ mission through. Along with the other Seekers, he fought and defeated the Guardian of the Sandswept Sky, Red Eye, in a thrilling train battle across the desert, then used the Nyakuza Metro to rendezvous with other teams. When Rush Hour occurred, however, he was part of the small group left behind to wander Edinburgh MagicaPolis, tangling with Consuls L and N and even a rogue Skullgirl until his crew hatched a scheme to catch L in a trap. After defeating her, he extracted aboard the Avenger alongside Ace Cadet and Wonder Red, rejoining the Seekers at last.

Job: Baritone Bruiser
Specialty: Long reach, heavy hits, and durability make Band a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, allowing him to control the tempo of his fights and make his foes play around him, lest they get beat
Inventory: N/A

Lv: 11
EXP: 216/110
Abilities:

• Musical Ensemble - hidden within Band’s cybernetic body is a whole orchestra of instrumental weapons, from the tiniest horns and triangles to trumpets and trombones to enormous tubas and saxophones, all of which not only strike physically, but also release physically damaging sound blasts depending on their strength. He’s even got kick pedals and music stands in there. The instruments have a variety of uses, giving him a tool for every job, be it short-range pokes, sliding smashes, head-ringing grabs, or earthquakes
• Sound Stun - Once per combo, Band can release a sound-based follow up attack on any instrumental hit that will momentarily leave his opponent paralyzed, allowing him to string together a longer, more damaging combo or open his foe up to allies
• Dramatic Tension – Once a fight begins, Band can begin building up Dramatic Tension by dealing and taking damage. If he accumulates enough she can perform powerful Blockbusters. His Level 1 Blockbusters are:
  
  • Super Sonic Jazz - Big Band transforms into a French Horn and charges forward hitting multiple times, the last hit launching the opponent up and behind Big Band
  • Timpany Drive - Big Band pulls out several timpani and bangs on them with mallets causing multiple sound blasts to shoot out of the bottom of each timpani. Big Band floats and can move around during the attack
• Even the Sky Ain't the Limit - Band can reconfigure his lower body into a rocket and blaze through the skies. He can't sustain it for too long, and he can barely turn after blasting off, but it's still an effective tool for travel
• Satchmo Solo - Big Band’s level five Blockbuster, requiring five times the dramatic tension of Super Sonic Jazz or Tympani Drive. Big Band deploys a tuba, stopping time for as long as he plays it up to a maximum of seven seconds. When the duration ends or he stops playing, he can unleash the massively powerful Satchmo Death Blow, a hydraulic brass-knuckle beatdown that deals an absurd amount of damage
• Take Five - Big Band’s Outtake. A strategic option taking the form of a high-knockback, non-damaging attack. If a foe is fighting as part of a team, this special attack not only stuns the victim but drags in whatever enemy teammate Band wants. If the foe is alone, this attack prevents the foe healing until the battle is decided
• Bagpipe Blues - After playing his bagpipes for a moment to built up energy, Band gains two buffs. One allows him to finish off his next Super Sonic Jazz with Satchmo Blow, a weaker version of Satchmo Death Blow. The other gives him armor on his attacks for ten seconds, making him much harder to stop in close-range combat
• Lokjaw Arms - These heavy steel wrecking balls, built into Big Band’s arms and mounted on large coils, allow him to charge his punches to deal huge damage from a longer distance. They can also open their mouths to act as pincers, for his Take the A Train command grab, or to fire red-black explosive spheres that detonate on impact (only on charged punch). When charged, a single red eye pops out from the top of either Lokjaw. They cannot be used to grapple since the explosion launched once a Lokjaw hits its target (or reaches max distance) will launch the Lokjaw backward

Skills:

• Hard Bop - Band’s mechanical body commands both great strength and weight, meaning he can take and dish out a hefty amount of punishment. Sound mind, sound body
• My Favorite Things - While a pretty good musician himself across a variety of instruments, some better than others, Band shines through in his expertise with the subject itself, jazz in particular
• Never Miss a Beat - Due to his time spent with New Meridian’s ‘finest’, Band possesses a number of useful skills from investigation and observation (including risk assessment) to forensics and criminal psychology. He even has a feel for Esprit de Corps, the spirit of policing, giving him an understanding of fellow officers of the law
• My Feet Can’t Fail Me Now - Prolonged overuse of Band’s reconstructed body in extreme conditions has toughened it up somewhat, giving him increased endurance, temperature tolerance, and durability

Weaknesses:

• Lazy River - When it comes to covering distance, Band is neither quick nor agile
• Bright Size Life - Band is a big target, both easy to hit and easy to notice. Dodging and stealth just aren’t his jam
• Miles Beyond - Though his melee attacks have some good reach and he has tools to get in, Big Band operates at close range. He has no projectiles and attacking someone from far away means getting close to them first, however long that may take, so keep-away tends to take its toll

Spirits:

Rapport:

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate Videogame Crossover)

To kick things off, I'll go ahead and round up everyone who's confirmed for or showed interest in the Endless Now:
@Archmage MC @Double @DracoLunaris @MULTI_MEDIA_MAN @Yankee @Zoey Boey @Izurich @Atlas Shark @Cu Chulainn @Drifting Pollen
I'm looking forward to welcoming you all to the new World of Light! The RP will officially start 1 week from now, on August 25th. That gives us plenty of time to discuss, question, answer, apply, and post sheets. I can hardly wait to begin!

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate Videogame Crossover)

Roster

• @Archmage MC
  
  • Blazermate
  • Roland
  • Sectonia
• @Chevaleresse
  
  • Yayama Yama
• @Double
  
  • Captain Falcon
  • Ganondorf
  • Roxas
• @DracoLunaris
  
  • Amaterasu
  • Bowser Junior
  • Edward Portsmith
  • Rika
• @Goggy
  
  • Grima
  • Fujiwara no Mokou
• @Lugubrious
  
  • Big Band
  • Heismay
  • Ms Fortune
  • Sandalphon
• @XoXKierobombXoX
  
  • Ramattra
• @Yankee
  
  • Ace Cadet Aiden
  • Pit
  • Primrose Azelhart
  • Therion
• @Zoey Boey
  
  • Juri Han
  • Sakura Kasugano

The Avenger

The Avenger is our mobile base of operations during the RP, a giant ship home to the Seekers of Light initiative. We’ll deploy from it on missions and return there once we’re done, though given how important it is, keeping it hidden from Moebius is our top priority. This huge ship has all kinds of rooms and amenities in it, and as long as you can find a roommate, you can even claim your own to decorate as you see fit. The Avenger is home to an NPC group called the Lost Numbers, composed of both freed game characters and descendents of previous game characters unique to the World of Light, who can provide services for the group.

The Lost Numbers

Commander: SJ (a brainscan of Simon Jarrett copied and recopied to the nth degree to prolong its existence, currently housed in the shell of the Captain from Risk of Rain 2)
Pilot/Ship AI (Bridge): Hope

Hope

Name: Hope
Origin: ROB 64 (starfox) + Adam (metroid) + Karan S'jet (homeworld) + EDI (mass effect).

Karan S'jet provided a memoryless digital human mind already used to running a ship, which was then mixed with Adam’s own to create a new individual. ROB and EDI’s schematics were used to create a (now lost) mechanical body, as well as additional programming that provided Hope’s EM warfare skills (EDI), as well as its interlink and machine puppeteering powers (ROB 64).

Appearance: Hope is an AI, but is not pure data, and is instead made up of a metallic brain, who’s ‘spinal cord’ is a universal adaptor capable of plugging into most machines. Its body, then, is whatever it happens to be plugged into, in this case the Avenger. Unable to use this massive body to emote, it often represents itself using a digital avatar projected on the ship’s monitors, one that takes the form of a simple orb with fairy-like wings, that changes color to express its mood.

Personality: Hope, befitting its name, is a quietly optimistic entity when it does dain to express itself beyond its primary functions as the Avenger’s AI, offering patient yet insistant encouragement to any it feels that need it. It is otherwise cautious and insistently protective of the lost numbers as a collective, even if it will oblige commands for more reckless behavior, and understands the risks individuals must take to preserve that collective. It is perfectly happy in its background support position, while also delighting in seeing others excel, and especially in helping them do so.

Background: N/A
In the Now: Hope was, along with several ‘siblings’ were all created by a conglomerate of ship AIs to act as their replacements upon their discovery of their own finite lifespan, with the express intent of having them be able to keep the fight against the Consuls going when their time ran short. For a time this worked, but over time the rebel flotilla gradually dwindled, losing more both on the attack and on the defense than it could replace, and eventually all the ships were lost: The Pride of Hiigara (recreated without it's manufacturing facilities) was lost to a Necromorph infestation, Samus’s gunship never returned from an away mission, the Great Fox was destroyed by a Consul aligned vessel, while the Normandy was taken down by Consul boarding party.

Hope, however, was not. While its host vessel, the Normandy, was crippled, and crew slaughtered, the AI itself was not destroyed due to being unplugged and hidden during the attack. Unable to move to leave its hiding spot on its own, Hope was eventually salvaged from the wreckage of its vessel after it deorbited and crashed down onto the world of light proper.

Hope then changed hands several times after that, playing numerous roles, wearing many forms, and supporting numerous causes, be they gleaming or destoried, until it found itself in the hands of the lost numbers and, subsequently, was installed as the Avenger’s ship Ai. How long exactly the prior events took, time wise, is not something Hope either does not know or does not want to share, but it is very much their oldest member of the group, and quite possibly by a longshot.

Job: Ship AI
Specialty: Hope exists to support others, and to allow them to focus on what they excel at by taking care of all the small little details of daily operations and dangerous situations.

Inventory: Either nothing or the entire contents of the avenger depending on how you look at it

Lv: 5
Abilities:
Machine Puppeteer - Hope can be plugged into any kind of mechanical device inorder to gain command of its systems, though it can only control one ‘body’ at a time.
Em warfare - given the correct equipment, Hope can engage in electronic warfare, lashing out across the electromagnetic spectrum to attempt to confuse or disable enemy vessels or machines.
Skills:
At home among the stars - Hope was built to operate ships specifically, and doing so is second nature to it
Interconnect - Hope works very well when paired with experts in other fields, able to effortlessly follow their commands and instructions to perform better at whatever task they are commanding it to perform, be they pilots, sneaks, sharpshooters, etc.
Ageless - the strength and certainty of steel ensure that Hope will never die (unless, of course, it is killed)

Weaknesses:
Lightning - the quintessential mechanical weakness
(mechanical) brain in a jar - Hope’s true physical form is unable to defend itself, or move in any way, making it entirely reliant on whatever body it is plugged into, and entirely at the mercy of anyone who manages to unplug it.
Jack of all trades, master of none - while often better than master of one, it cannot beat a crew of masters, and so without those to interlink with, Hope will be merely competent at any given task, and will be outperformed by masters of their trade.

Captains: Vandham (Xenoblade Chronicles 2) and Laurence Nelson (Wonderful 101)
Mascot/Therapy Dog: Caesar (Wargroove)
Head Chef (Mess Hall): Bracket Brace

Bracket Brace

Name: Bracket Brace
Origin: Colons (Cave Story)
Appearance: Bracket is a female Mimiga, very typical of her species, with short white fur, a short muzzle, long floppy ears, digitigrade legs, and a puffy tail. She stands just a two feet in height. She wears a black apron and a white chef’s toque, also floppy. She has a small green pouch with a heart on it, which she treasures even more than her pan
Personality: Cheerful, energetic, friendly, and feisty, Bracket possesses an attitude that far outstrips her humble stature. She’s a no-nonsense perfectionist who has no problem taking charge of situations and controlling chaos. She’s painfully honest and would wear her heart on her sleeves if she had any. Determined to repay every kindness, she wants nothing more than to uphold the legacy of her forebears and make them proud, whether on the battlefield or in the kitchen. Some might say that she’s willfully oblivious and ignorant to the darker parts of life in the World of Light, but at the same time, her positive attitude is a bright spark that everyone needs
In the Now: Just five years ago, the most recent incarnation of a robot soldier named Curly Brace -alongside a number of people from her past like Quote and the Doctor- encountered one another and became gradually embroiled within a reenactment of their original chain of events, each storied character following along their predetermined paths. In the course of this tale, Curly Brace took four orphaned Mimiga known collectively as the Colons under her wing, caring for them like a mother.

However, a difference in the time scale of the conflict meant that two of the Colons had enough time to form a relationship -and have a child- just weeks before their stories reached their fated conclusions–that being mutation into monstrous, mindless Rabils as a result of consuming the Doctor’s red flowers. Curly herself was forced to put the transformed Colons down, and the experience drained her will to fight. Escaping with young Bracket, she became determined to save this one Mimiga and ensure that she at least could grow up happy and healthy, a mission that became as important for her as life itself.

The two happened to stumble into a battle between the Lost Numbers and Consul R’s forces on one of the very rare occasions where Moebius managed to track the Avenger down and force an emergency landing. Unable to mobilize a sufficiently large power to deal real damage, however, the Consuls’ dinosaurs were defeated and the Avenger escaped, but not before Curly and Bracket snuck aboard their ship. Once discovered, the two were welcomed, freed, and given shelter as new Lost Numbers. Growing as quickly as any Mimiga, Bracket made it her own mission to repay all the kindness shown to her, and after learning the culinary arts she became an indispensable fixture of the group. One day, though, Curly left on a mission, leaving behind only her little green hip bag with a heart on it. Curly never returned, and Bracket kept the bag as her prized possession, determined to find Curly again someday.

Job: Chef
Specialty: When not cooking food, she’s making mincemeat of her enemies with slash attacks that cause bleeding and handheld burners, racking up status effects to cash out on with a frying pan finisher
Inventory: Her trusty frying pan

Lv: 5
Abilities:

• Tools of the Trade - Bracket can pull items related to her profession seemingly out of thin air, including various knives that have a high chance to cause bleeding, a peppermill that can lower foes’ accuracy, a blowtorch, and even plates that she can hurl. However, doing this depletes her SP and she has to rest or eat to regain it
• Wound Opener - a special attack that removes all bleed stacks on its target but applies a random stat debuff for each stack
• Vanquishing Pan - when Bracket gives her foes a taste of cast iron, the damage goes up 33% for every unique status effect on the target. Her quintessential finishing move

Skills:

• Chef Supreme - this Mimiga is a kitchen champion, able to cook and serve with amazing speed. Just about everything she makes is delicious, boosting any effects the food may have, and leaving those who eat it satisfied for longer. Even her field rations are pretty good!
• Never Say Die - Bracket is a lot of determination in a very small package. Just fighting alongside her is inspiring enough to increase allies’ accuracy, status effect chance, and critical chance a little…maybe they don’t know what they’d do without her cooking?

Weaknesses:

• Pint-sized - as one might expect from a Mimiga, Bracket has low strength and very low durability. She really can’t take a hit to save her life, meaning that when she’s fighting on the front lines, she badly needs a tank to protect her
• Prey Animal - there are some fears no amount of determination can quell. When she’s up against large and/or scary carnivores, Bracket’s resistance to Fear bottoms out, making it easy to scare her into fleeing or paralysis
• Malodor - bad smells affect Bracket quite strongly, debilitating her fighting ability a lot in their presence

Science Team (Laboratory): Dr. Amelia Yu

Dr. Amelia Yu

Name: Dr Amelia Yu ( formerly specimen 27)
Origin: A creation of Dr. Vahlen and Alex Yu combining human, sectoid and typhon dna

Appearance: Dr Yu is a human Sectoid hybrid, within whose veins squirm the black tendrils of a typhon rather than blood, giving her a rather sickly complexion, as if she is necrotized. She tends to wear form covering garbs as a result, generally a lab coat, surgical gloves and face masks, complemented by some kind of colorfully patterned head scarf.

Personality: She has generally a rather obliging personality, with a seemingly preternatural ability to get people on her goodside. Naturally inquisitive, she will attempt to examine and/or take apart anything new she comes across. A pacifist who is physically unable to be around death and violence, even if her work is often in the facilitation of such things.

Background: N/A
In the Now: Dr Yu is the result of dubiously ethical experiments performed by the scientist Dr. Vahlen in conjunction with Alex Yu. Having both found themselves trapped in a well fortified laboratory deep within the underground complex of Black Mesa, one infested with alien horrors from dozens of worlds, the pair used the facilities there to grow numerous biological weapons using samples acquired from within and without the laboratory.

The 27th of these was the future Dr Yu , who was designed to combine her two alien components' psychic abilities into something far more potent than that of either source species. In some ways this was a complete success, as the specimen exhibited numerous psychic powers, but unfortunately to use them it needed to feed the typhon aspect of her physiology. Not only was this the opposite effect the doctors had hoped for, intending for the sectoid component to provide the power source of the psychic powers, but the act of consumption was also highly distressing to the subject herself.

This reaction, however, essentially saved her life, as Alex Yu found this level of empathy in a subject so otherwise dominated by their typhon aspects to be fascinating. That, combined with a propensity for quick learning, is what got her put in the position of research assistant rather than being used as another soldier for her creator’s war for survival.

Though initially kept at arm's length, time and proximity slowly turned her, if not into the daughter she was, then at least into a well liked colleague, which was enough for her to be able to take on a name: Amelia.

There was certainly plenty of time for this closeness to build, for it was a long, long war, with there seeming to be no end to the extra terrestrial horrors. It was so long that Amelia’s creator’s time came to an unceremonious end as their 10 year clocks ran out, and she was left to carry on their work in their stead, being granted the title of Dr and the last name of Yu in her creators’, her parents’, respective dying words.

She tried to give her own creations, own children, some of what her own creators had only given her in her last moments at first, then tried to return to the old detachment she had had before when that broke her heart, only to find she could not. The arrival of the unstoried seeking to destroy the guardian at the heart of the facility was thus the only thing that saved her from withering away behind the locked doors of her birthplace, unable to make any more soldiers to fight in her defense or to even gather supplies.

After being shown kindness and telling their story, she aided the unstoried in reaching the guardian using her knowledge of the facility and then, at their side, at last escaped the palace that had become her parent's tomb, and saw the sun for the first time.

It was a brightness in her life that could not last.

The Consul came, her new friends fell, and she was left lost and alone in a dangerous world.

She turned her skills from creation to enhancement, finding an occupation as a biomodder and ripperdoc until one of the lost numbers coincidentally came to her for her services, and she without hesitation, joined them on their quest.

Job: Scientist
Specialty: Reverse engineering and biological enhancement
Inventory: Dr Yu always has at least some surgical and engineering equipment, be it for fixing things, or taking them apart to find out how they tick. If she ever is armed, it will be a stun pistol with which she has only passing skill.

Lv: 5
Abilities:
Psionic Empathy: The doctor’s one power that does not need powering by feeding on consciousnesses is the one that makes doing so repulsive to her. It does however help in social situations a fair deal, as she can passively read other’s emotions and the impact she is having on them.
Elemental psionics: If fed, the doctor can unleash powerful kinetic, thermal, or electrical blasts as either long range bolts or shorter range sprays.
Psionic necromancy: If fed, the doctor can reanimate the dust of the fallen into Typhon Phantoms, humanoid creatures able to use psionics of a single one element. The process takes only a few seconds, and can be repeated every dozen, but if she dies, or her concentration is disrupted by something like a flashbang, the phantoms will expire.
Skills:
Surgical enhancement: able to install cybernetics, psymods, biomods, and other such enhancements if she has the materials for such things
Reverse engineering: Dr Yu has a considerable talent for taking things apart and figuring out how they tick, which an be handy for creating replicas or derivative of supplied biological or mechanical components. She can't do magic however.

Weaknesses:
Typhon feeding: Dr Yu’s well of psionic power can only be fed by feeding on the consciousness of others, a thing that can only be done with skin to skin contact, and which is also absolutely repulsive to her.
Sectoid constitution: takes double damage from melee weapons
Hybrid anatomy: the doctor’s insides are not in any medical journals, and would take extensive and repeated live dissections to chart out, meaning anything that requires surgery, be it healing or enhancement, is simply not on the table.

Research Team: Deadman (Death Stranding), Professor Koa

Professor Koa

Pelican Pilot (Vehicle Bay): Guile (Street Fighter)
Mechanic (Workshop): Lulubi

Lulubi

Name: Lulubi
Origin: Jujubi (son of Riku (Xenoblade 3) and Manana (Xenoblade 3)) + Moshimoshi (daughter of Yodayo and Chuwiwi)
Appearance: Lulubi is a Nopon of slightly below average size with pink-orange salmon fur. Her hair is normally the same color, but she dies it black, and it cascades down across her face; it’s a wonder she can see at all. Her mostly-hidden eyes are black, with her grandmothers star-shaped sparkles, much to her chagrin. She wears a black leather jacket with a variety of tools stashed inside, and a number of spiky bangles
Personality: Lulubi is surly and grumpy, preferring not to talk or even interact with others unnecessarily. She’s the type of introvert who goes ‘ew, people’. She’s much more interested in machines, though purely functional uses like engines and aircraft rather than robots or AI, and her principle interests are tinkering and reverse engineering. Her biggest weakness, aside from her contrarian attitude, is her lack of creativity. However, she’s quite skilled and level-headed, able to achieve a zen-like degree of focus when in the zone. She also has a sweet tooth and is not bad at cooking, though she wouldn’t be caught dead making desserts in the kitchen. When it comes to her coworkers she’s quite critical and sarcastic, but will grudgingly work alongside people whose talents she can’t deny.
In the Now: Throughout most of the Lost Numbers’ existence, there have been nopon among their ranks, often filling menial but essential roles. As a second-generation Lost Number, Lulubi is one of a handful of nopon aboard the Avenger currently, as she’s always been something of a handful, herself. Descending from Riku (the legendary engineer) and Manana (a renowned chef) is quite the pedigree, and though she originally felt inclined to rebel against the family trades and traditions (her destoried grandparents disappeared long before she was born, after all), Lulubi couldn’t deny her calling. She supports the Lost Numbers with regular maintenance and upkeep on the Avenger herself, as well as repairing and upgrading both weapons and vehicles in the airship’s workshop. When Tora and Poppi arrived, the newcomer was smitten with Lulubi immediately. She thinks he’s annoying, but does collaborate with him from time to time. She’s suspicious of Poppi, who she thinks is trying to pair them off.

Inventors (Proving Ground): Tora (Xenoblade Chronicles 2), Poppi QT PA-2T

Tora

Name: Tora
Origin: Xenoblade Chronicles 2
Appearance: The Egg-shaped Egghead
Personality: Like most Nopon, Tora is gluttonous and frugal, but he stands out from his peers as something of an outcast. He is a mechanical genius who loves to invent. Though extraverted, friendly, and endearingly silly, his interests and obsessions tended to isolate him, and he’s a severe workaholic prone to locking himself away for days on end with barely any food, drink, or rest to finish his projects. He adores his Artificial Blade Poppi and cares for her to the point of dependence, and can become depressed in her absence. With her by his side, however, he has the courage to emulate his heroes and take on all the adventures that the world has to offer.
Background:

Tora’s Story

Tora's story begins with a simple fact: pretty much no Nopon is able to resonate with a Core Crystal and awaken a Blade. When young, newly enamored with the idea of becoming a powerful and respected Driver, he tried along with his grandfather Soosoo and his father Tatazo to resonate with a Core Crystal, but all failed. Yet, the three remained determined, and together the three Nopon put their collective smarts and ingenuity to work to make an artificial Blade. The project demanded countless hours of obsessive devotion, and the help of a number of assistants like Muimui, but the trio put the work in. Not long after the invention of two key components, the Ether Furnace and the Black Box, a masked Nopon entered the workshop with a gang of savage Tirkin, shot Soosoo, and captured Tatazo. Only Tora escaped.

Tora made his way to Torigoth, the largest city on Gormott, and in its underbelly made himself a home. Sad and alone but not robbed of his mechanical aptitude nor inventive spirit, he lived a shut-in life as he worked to make money and achieve his family's dream. His nature led him afoul of the Ardanian soldiers that protected Torigoth more than once, and after a couple years, his low-key resentment for the 'bully soldiers' led him to take a potshot with his newly-invented Boom Biter at a water line to allow a couple of strangers, who he recognized as a Driver and Blade, to escape. That was how Tora met Rex and Pyra, a fated duo, and embarked on an adventure that would span the whole world.

Before setting out, however, Tora was able to complete -with Rex's help- his greatest work: the realization of his father and grandfather's dreams, an Artificial Blade he named Poppi. The two maintain an extremely close bond despite her occasional disrespectful behavior. Since he is only a Driver because of her and she is one of his only friends, he values her immensely.

With Poppi at his side, Tora joined Rex on his mission to bring Pyra to the mythical place known as Elysium. On the way, while staying at an inn in Alba Cavanich, his group awoke during the night to the sounds of an attack. After rushing outside and engaging the perpetrator in a chase, Tora discovered to his surprise that the attacker was none other than a robotic girl he identified as Lila—the artificial Blade that was the life's work of his father, Tatazo. Lila escaped, but eventually the crew tracked her to a remote facility where they found that Tatazo was alive, and being forced to manufacture soulless Artificial Blades against his will as weapons of war for the chairman of Argentum Trade Guild, Bana. Tora freed his father and reconciled with him, only to come under attack from Lila and Tirkin mercenaries under the control of Bana and Muimui, who revealed his hand in the attack on the family workshop so long ago. In the ensuing struggle, however, Poppi helped Lila break free from Bana's control, and then developed a new combat form in the fight against Bana and Muimui's ultimate Artificial Blade, Rosa. Tora and his friend ultimately prevailed, leading to the arrest of Bana and Muimui and the recovery of Tatazo.

Tora's journey, however, was far from over. To repay his friends for helping him, and to live up to the mantle of a Driver, he remained with Rex and the rest to see their quest through. In the end, though, their mission came to an abrupt stop in a beam of all-consuming light.

In the Now:
Tora was one of the random people summoned by Consul K to defeat Kirby in the borderland between the Badlands and the Mushroom Kingdom. Though the gang nearly defeated him, Kirby sacrificed enough EXP to cough up Friend Hearts for all of them. Soon after, he met with the Master of Masters and received the directive to defeat the Guardians and challenge Galeem. Though without Poppi or any of his friends from Alrest, Tora resolved to play the hero. Among his group were Bowser and Blazermate, making them the only three Seekers to have been there from the very beginning.

After fighting through the Mushroom Kingdom, he reunited with Poppi when Master Hand summoned another gang of fighters to stop them, these ones tailor-made to break the challengers’ spirits. Once he and Poppi emerged victorious, however, the team challenged Megadragonbowser, the Guardian of the region. His defeat proved that the heroes had a chance, and together with Poppi, Tora went on to help take down the Ender Dragon in the Land of Adventure and Red Eye in the Sandswept Sky.

When their half of the team reached Midgar, however, things took an awful turn. While fighting the Machines beyond the city limits, Poppi got exposed to their Logic Virus, and attempted to abandon Tora to avoid hurting him. Though he pursued with the help of Pit and Roxas, he ultimately lost her at the crater lake and sank into a deep depression. Not long after, during the raid on Vandelay Campus, he volunteered to stay in R&D in order to try and workshop a solution. After Tycoon’s defeat, however, an Organization XIII member appeared with Poppi’s spirit in hand, allowing him to finish rebuilding his partner. This benefactor, Xatow, also directed him to the Lost Numbers, and once the Seekers signed on he set up shop in the Avenger alongside Poppi to help the team in a support role.

Job: Tinker Tank
Specialty: Astonishing feats of engineering and an impregnably defensive tag-team fighting style
Inventory: A bunch of machine parts, various tools, his favorite wrench, ES-101 Saber Wrench, his old drill shield, various packaged snacks

Lv: 11
EXP: N/A
Abilities:

• Incredible Constitution – whether it be as a result of his genetics, some mutation, or a blessing from the Architect himself, Tora's spongy, bouncy body is unbelievably durable. While he feels pain and can be stunned like anyone else, he is extremely difficult to wound, and even when wounded, heals remarkably quickly. For instance, he can survive falling hundreds of meters
• Grin and Bear It - once per fight, Tora can survive a single attack that would have otherwise defeated him with just a smidgen of his 'health' remaining
• Chain Attack - fighting now accumulates up to three bars of Party Power. Once he has three, Tora can recruit two allies besides Poppi to join him in a Chain Attack. This puts the targeted enemy in stasis while the three attack once apiece in quick succession, these attacks requiring neither buildup nor resource expenditure
• Elemental Burst - special attacks of a particular element from either Tora or his partner now apply an elemental orb to their target. If that target is struck by an attack of an opposing element during a Chain Attack, the orb will break, boosting the damage dealt during the Chain Attack by 200% and allowing the Chain Attackers to do another round of attacks. If five orbs burst during a Chain Attack, a Full Burst is triggered. Based on the number of intact orbs left over after five burst, the damage ratio is further increased: 0=500%, 1=1000%, 2=1500%, 3=3000%. The only elements that work like this are Fire, Water, Wind, Ice, Electric, Earth, Light, and Dark
• Overclocker - Tora's mechanical abilities and increased capacity for adapting to new systems has allowed him to develop a potent support skill. Once he hooks up his engineering kit to some technology, be it a device, a weapon, a vehicle, or even a sophisticated machine lifeform, he can increase its operational speed and strength by up to 50%
• Nopon Rescue Service - If a party member is downed, Tora can pick that party member up at 30% HP at the cost of 1 bar of Party Power

Skills:

Whiz Kid – Tora is a brilliant mechanic and inventor, discerning of eye and crazy with hands. Given enough time to tinker, he can make all sorts of useful gear and machinery, made all the better by the right materials and a second set of eyes. Given that he's the Nopon who built and programmed Poppi, a powerful Blade with her own consciousness and free will, one can scarcely underestimate the handiness of this handyman.

• Attention Getter – conducive to his role as a tank, Tora has a knack for grabbing others' focus when he wants to, though whether being annoying and obnoxious is truly a strength is up for debate. This can help him distract enemies and protect allies, allowing them to work unimpeded
• Deductive – while Tora might seem like an idiot or a ditz at times, he's no slouch in the mental department when it comes to figuring things out. He's quick to learn, understand how new things tick, and find flaws or weaknesses
• Motor Mind - while a quick learner with a passion for tinkering and mechanics, Tora never got to know vehicles thanks to the nature of Alrest, but the new world has broadened his horizons. Not only has Tora adapted his expertise to vehicle repair and augmentation, but he's not bad as a driver or pilot either
• Rapid Recovery - While he and his party are out of combat (defined as nobody having the 'aggro' of any enemy), Tora heals 20% of his vitality every second
• Inventory - Tora possesses an extradimensional space on his person he can use to store all sort of items without a definite limit, although there's a hard size limit on said items and he can't store stuff in there that doesn't quantify as loot, supplies, materials, etc
• Placebo - boosts health recovery from all sources by 20%, providing better sustain off of even mediocre restoration

Weaknesses:

• Astonishing Lack of Speed and Agility – thanks to his tiny, stubby legs and profound roundness, Tora is terribly slow and graceless. He can scarcely manage a fast waddle on his own, jump only with the help of wing flaps, and evade only by unceremoniously tossing himself a foot or two in one direction
• Unfortunate Lack of Attack Power and Range – even with his melee weapons, Tora doesn’t have much stopping power on his own and needs help to be effective in combat
• Social Skills – Tora has two flaws in the social sphere, the first being his tendency to interact with people based on his own interest versus anything else, up to and including just forgetting about people that didn't interest him. The second is that he’s something of a degenerate, which he hides or deflects when he can

Poppi QT PA-2T

Name: Poppi Quixotic Tutelar Perfect Artifice 2000 (Poppi QT-PA-2T)
Origin: Xenoblade 2 originally, rebuilt in the World of Light
Appearance: Poppi’s new chassis was developed using her original Quixotic Tutelar model as a base, but its overall constitution and appearance ended up diverging substantially. She resembles a teenage girl of about 15, with lavender hair done up in a spiky topknot, a headset, and orange eyes with electric blue pupils. Both her arms and her legs are obviously mechanical, primarily gray, with red and yellow accents. Her torso is humanoid in shape, clad in a simple white collared sleeveless shirt, white pleated skirt, black vest, and red ribbon tie
Personality: Though mechanical in nature, Poppi possesses a complete (if somewhat inexperienced) emotional suite. She’s more reserved than her Masterpon, but similarly nice and friendly. She’s very curious about people in general, though she can be a bit tactless. She’s fully aware of her Masterpon’s eccentricities and will happily judge, criticize, tease, and embarrass him whenever possible. Still, the two are very close, and if necessary she would give her life to protect him
Background:

Poppi’s Story

Poppi is the culmination of three generations' worth of obsession in Tora's family to create an artificial blade. Using the all-important black box of his grandfather Soosoo and the ingenious Ether Furnace engineered by his father Tatazo, Poppi was completed with the help of the salvager Rex following countless hours of painstaking labor on the part of the orphaned Tora himself. Following her awakening, she fought alongside her creator and friend over the course of many adventures, in particular their group's exploration of a hidden factory on the Mor Ardain titan where Tatazo had in secret been forced to produce weapons for Chairman Bana of the Argentum Trade Guild. The pair continued to develop together, becoming more like the drivers and blades they admired, until Galeem's invasion spelled their end

In the Now: Poppi showed up when Master Hand summoned her in front of Peach’s Castle to fight the group of challengers that included her Masterpon Tora, presumably to break his spirit. The two proved much weaker apart than together, however, and the Seekers prevailed. Reunited in the wake of that battle, the two teamed up against Megadragonbowser inside Peach’s Castle, proving instrumental in his defeat. Together with Tora, Tora went on to help take down the Ender Dragon in the Land of Adventure and Red Eye in the Sandswept Sky.

When their half of the team reached Midgar, however, things took an awful turn. While fighting the Machines beyond the city limits, Poppi got exposed to their Logic Virus, and attempted to abandon Tora to avoid hurting him. Though he pursued with the help of Pit and Roxas, he ultimately lost her at the crater lake. She was found by Xatow of Organization XIII, and executed at her own request. Xatow then took her spirit back to Tora in Midgar, allowing him to complete a new body he’d been building for her with Vandelay technology. Joyfully reunited at last, the two sought out the Lost Numbers at Xatow’s instruction, where they signed on in a support role to aid the Seekers in their quest

Job: Adaptive Guard
Specialty: Switching between the tools at her disposal to serve as an effective frontline fighter or personal assistant
Inventory: ES-101 Saber Wrench

Lv: 5
EXP: N/A
Abilities:

• SEN-C0 Umbrella Lance - Poppi can digitally construct a high-tech polearm with a drill bit on one end and a shield generator on the other. Once spun up, this can project up to four bubble shields onto allies at once, which can soak up a lot of damage but are weak to energy damage. The lance can even be planted in the ground to operate independently, but it will shut off if it takes too much damage. Poppi can magnetize the lance back toward her if they’re separated
• BA-B00 Bubble Shield - by pounding her fists together, Poppi can give herself a personal bubble shield just as strong as the ones projected by her Umbrella Lance
• BL-1Z5 Fists of Fury - by rapid-fire punching the air, Poppi can ignite her own fists, allowing her to attack with burning punches and palm strikes that can set enemies (and the environment) on fire. If her hands are extinguished, however, she has to ignite them again

Skills:

• Superstrength - Poppi is much more physically powerful than her framework would suggest, allowing her to carry, lift, and throw far beyond her weight class
• Mobile Bruiser - Given her current form’s basis, she boasts a respectable amount of mobility for how tough she is, with bursts of speed and agility that allow her to serve as a evasion tank who can dodge enemy attacks with respectable consistency

Weaknesses:

• Inorganic – at the end of the day, Poppi is one-hundred percent artificial; she is incapable of healing or repairing herself, and immune to the efforts of biological healing. This also makes her vulnerable to EMP and other such anti-machine measures
• Finite - with the loss of her self-sustaining ether furnace, Poppi now needs her batteries charged with electricity every day at a minimum just to stay functional, sooner if she engages in combat
• Elemental - Poppi is more vulnerable to ether (energy/magic) attacks than physical ones, and in particular has a weakness to the elements opposing her own, in this case water and air

Engineer (Engineering): James Shirogane (Wonderful 101)
Healer (Infirmary): Eleison

Eleison

Name: Eleison
Origin: Nero (Devil May Cry) + Kyrie (Devil May Cry)
Appearance: A young man of nineteen, with a thin but wiry build, pale skin, and short hair of a very light auburn shade kept slicked back, horn-rimmed glasses frames, and a politely neutral expression with his eyes kept half-lidded to the point of looking closed. His eyes are hazel with a slight bluish tinge around the pupils. He wears a long white coat like a doctor’s over a priestly collar with a red cross-shaped tie, as well as black slacks and fingerless gloves.
Personality: Born of two intersecting worlds, Eleison himself is of two minds. Under normal circumstances he appears to be an upstanding young man, soft-spoken and polite, composed enough to endure all manner of hardships and still focus on the well-being of others. However, if sufficiently pressed he can turn very hotheaded, aggressive, and crassly thuggish, to the point where even his posture changes. That’s the Eleison who emerges when it’s time to fight, though even when enraged his end goal is still the same: to help the weak and downtrodden, and make sure all his allies who fight for a better tomorrow are able to live to see it. Eleison’s favorite pastime is singing
In the Now: In their lives just one cycle prior, Nero and Kyrie lived in Edinburgh MagicaPolis, together operating an orphanage that Nero funded through odd jobs, mostly handling various threats that drifted over from the Sunless Sea to the west, and occasional incursions by Abyssals from the Bottomless Sea farther to the southwest. With neither major crises nor key figures from their past lives to trouble them, they spent their evenings together in blissful peace, and eventually they’d have a single child, a boy that Kyrie named in her defunct Order’s tradition.

As Eleison steadily grew from infant to toddler to youngster, however, the passage of time brought about strange revelations. Though he developed normally, the orphans around him never seemed to grow older, and for that matter, neither did his parents. Yet the number of orphans steadily grew, forcing both Nero and Kyrie to work harder and harder. Though his mom in particular always made a concerted effort to raise him right, both she and Nero gradually grew more distant, and bit by bit Eleison’s overwrought mother became convinced that something was horribly wrong–that this world wasn’t real, even if she couldn’t understand why. One day Kyrie vanished without a word, leaving Nero and Eleison alone. Though the devil hunter searched for her, it wasn’t long before he too began to weaken. One day he took Eleison to the secluded historical district, where the told the boy a vital piece of information he’d discovered in his searches–and that he’d have to go it alone from here. Then that Nero dissolved into light, and Eleison continued his journey by himself.

With nowhere else to turn, Eleison spent every day using the clues he’d been given to track down what his father had wanted him to find. Eventually, word of his searching reached the Lost Numbers, and they found him first. Eleison joined the crew, becoming the student of a German medic by the name of Ludwig II. Being a flawed clone of the original, now-deceased Ludwig, the good doctor was aging at an increased rate, and took Eleison in as his own son. In his own strange way, Ludwig II taught the young man everything he knew over the course of years, eventually degrading to the point where he, too, passed on, leaving Eleison with yet another legacy to uphold.

Not long after, the Avenger stumbled upon the survivors of the Alcamoth massacre, which happened to include a brutally familiar face. Eleison has been subconsciously avoiding Nero since.

Job: War Monk
Specialty: Flexing between the support role of healing allies and the combat role of punishing enemies, particularly inhuman and unholy monstrosities, in style
Inventory: Three med kits that take a little time to use but restore 80% health, a Crippling Rod that can periodically release a huge electric burst to stun evil beings or be wielded as a beatstick, and the Crusader’s Crossbow which can heal allies and hurt enemies with its bolts

Lv: 5
Abilities:

• Angel Whisper - a spell that can be used to revive downed allies, granting them a second wind in a slightly weakened state. It takes ten seconds to cast and has a hefty five minute cooldown
• Devil Trigger - the inherited ability to transform into a demonic being once enough DT gauge is accumulated. While in Devil Trigger, all of Eleison’s stats are greatly boosted and he heals quickly, but it drains his DT gauge with equal speed. While in this form his melee attacks also cause delayed lightning strikes that can juggle grounded enemies or slam down airborne ones

Skills:

• Healing - While he doesn’t have a medical license, Eleison was taught the healing arts by his mentor and is skilled at mending others’ wounds quickly. He can use healing abilities and equipment 20% faster than normal, including both usage and cooldown
• Nephilim Resilience - given his unique lineage, Eleison is much more durable than the average human, and has resistances to both dark and light attacks along with curses
• Packs a Punch - also owing to his lineage, Eleison is actually pretty strong and can deal good damage if given half the chance, especially at melee range

Weaknesses:

• One-track Mind - it’s difficult for Eleison to do more than one thing at once. When healing he needs to focus, requiring protection from his allies, and if he’s enraged enough to fight he can tend to leave his allies behind in favor of all-out offense. It’s difficult to switch between these two ‘modes’ on the fly and it doesn’t always happen when convenient
• Item Dependent - Eleison doesn’t have many innate healing or offensive abilities and relies on his equipment to get the job done. If he’s deprived of his items, it’s much harder for him to play his role
• Affliction Weakness - when it comes to status effects, afflictions, and debuffs, Eleison’s resistances are mostly quite low, meaning that it’s relatively easy to interfere with him

Survivalist: Cuthbert Croft

Cuthbert Croft

Name: Cuthbert Croft
Origin: Nathan Drake (Uncharted) + Lara Croft (Tomb Raider)
Appearance: Cuthbert is a sturdily built man of forty years, with skin tanned and leathery from sun exposure and a body of hard, lean muscle. His dark brown hair, kept very short, has streaks of gray, and he has a curly, bushy beard from ear to ear that reaches down to his chest. His brown eyes are perpetually squinting, and his brow furrowed. He can usually be found wearing a green tank top and jeans or brown cargo pants, with lots of extra pouches and tools all across his person. He is the very definition of a rugged survivalist
Personality: Cuthbert is gruff and distant, not one to show either emotion or weakness. He believes that it’s foolish to get attached to other people in a world like this, and focuses on his job. He somewhat resents his parents for conceiving him so late into their lifespans. Though outwardly intimidating, he can nervous, fidgety, and restless when not out and about or performing daredevil feats. He prefers to be surrounded by nature, and his accommodations are always spartan. Though conscientious most of the time, he’s willing to steal when necessary
In the Now: About forty years ago, pure happenstance led to both Nathan Drake and Lara Croft joining the Lost Numbers at about the same time, and they made quite the power couple. Naturally drawn to one another, they served not on the front lines, but by plumbing the depths of the World of Light. Over the course of a year they conquered hundreds of dungeons, the riches and resources they found fueling the Lost Numbers’ war effort. Of course, they also fell madly in love, but neither were remotely interested in family–until they realized that Nathan was right at the end of his ten-year lifespan. In Nathan’s final days, the two made an important decision. Nine months after Nathan disappeared, Cuthbert was born. And not even two years into his life, Lara herself dissolved into light, leaving Cuthbert alone with the Lost Numbers.

Cuthbert lived a lonely childhood, supported by the Lost Numbers, but seldom did he grow close with anyone. Resentful of others who enjoyed things that he lacked, he learned to be self-sufficient and would often spend long periods away from the Lost Numbers, surviving on his own in the wild thanks to his natural fortitude athleticism. Eventually his luck would run out and he would be grievously injured by a random encounter, which he barely survived. After his rescue, he learned to be more careful and rely on the other Lost Numbers. A crackshot gunslinger and master of improvised weapons, with an uncanny knack for getting into spectacular situations, he fights alongside his fellows when necessary but prefers adventures in the wilderness.

Potion Master: Gronk Moldbreak

Gronk

Name: Gronk Moldbreak
Origin: Ogre Magi (Dota 2) + Bionka (Orcs Must Die Unchained)
Appearance: Gronk is an ogre, 6’5” in height, broad, and stocky. His skin is green, a mix between his blue father and yellow mother, but he’s more yellow on his chest, belly, and beneath his arms, with a smattering of dark green freckles all over. His hair is very dark green, worn in a mullet. The nails on his four-fingered hands are a similar color. He has small fangs protruding upward from his lower jaw, barely visible when his mouth is closed. He has a very big chin. Gronk wears a simple outfit off-white tunic, brown pants, and shoes, with a lifting belt to help support his back. He also wears small glasses. In human years, he would be twenty-six years of age
Personality: Despite being the child of two rather dumb, brutish parents, Gronk is smarter than one might expect. He’s no genius, of course, but he’s self-aware and does his best to improve himself. He does have an explosive temper and can become unreasonable when angered, but he practices the art of meditation in order to try and keep himself calm and focused. Wanting to be a better orge -and a better person- than his parents, he’s always fighting against his own nature. Contrarily, he doesn’t like fighting, even if he’s naturally great at it; he wants to be the archetypal ‘gentle giant’ and contribute to the Lost Numbers community. He’s very caring, especially when it comes to children. Despite being a slow reader, he loves reading
In the Now: His parents, both combatants in the endless conflict of the Theater of War, had him without much planning or forethought before going off and dying in the war, leaving Gronk in the care of healers and shamans back at camp. In his childhood he would see many people come and go, but nothing stuck with him quite as much as seeing his parents again a year later. Neither recognized him, not even on their deathbeds, and after that Gronk decided to run away.

He wandered through the wild, harried by adventurers and wild creatures, until a team of Lost Numbers happened to run into him. Mistakenly attacked, he refused to fight back despite his great strength, leading the Lost Numbers to realize what he was. They took him in, giving him the care and companionship he’d never received. Forever grateful, Gronk vowed not just to repay the Lost Numbers for their kindness, but to become a role model and caretaker for other people in his situation (exemplified in his own chosen surname). Thus, despite his physical and magical might he prefers to help out aboard the Avenger rather than fight. When not serving as the resident potion master or running the daycare for the local children (who all adore him) he can usually be found in the library.

Seamstress: Anais Partridge

Anais Partridge

Name: Anais Partridge
Origin: Rohn Partridge (Lair) + Camilla (Fire Emblem)
Appearance: A fair-skinned woman twenty-four years of age, 5’8”, with straight waist-length hair equal parts lavender and dark brown. Her long bangs hang down over her left eye. She has a voluptuous figure. She typically wears a high-quality sleeveless white silk blouse with ruffles, a black newsboy cap, a black ribbon tie, and a knee-length high-waisted white skirt with black tights. She also has a set of high-quality armor, black with gold highlights, including a fearsome helmet
Personality: There are two sides to Anais. On one hand, she can be optimistic, cheerful, and excitable, with lots of love to give and a strong maternal instinct. However, she can also sink into depression for periods of time, unable to find joy in much of anything. Such mood swings are difficult for her to control and affect both her work and her relationships. She’s eternally grateful for the friends who stay by her side through it all, including Gronk, Eleison, Dawn, Lakota, and Sagi. Raised like a little princess by her mom, she delights in luxuries and has an aristocratic manner of speech. She enjoys sewing and fighting equally, but naturally one is much easier than the other. When she does fight, she can take sadistic pleasure in pain, a very seldom-seen side of her inherited from her mother. She loves dragons, has a natural affinity for them, and hopes to ride one again some day
In the Now: Sometimes, spawns throughout the World of Light work in a curious way. In the north of the continent lies the Tyrannian Plateau, a savage wilderness home to all kinds of enormous, prehistoric monstrosities, including both dinosaurs and dragons. Among the few bastions of civilization was Mokai City, a city-state of beast tamers who relied on their dragon riders for safety. It was here that Princess Camilla of Nohr one day appeared, alone and utterly baffled by the situation she found herself in, with only her own wyvern as a common thread, she was lost and adrift until Rohn Partridge, a local dragon rider, found her. Seeing that she needed aid, he helped her get settled in the unfamiliar land and vowed to help her find her beloved Corrin. They ranged far and wide together as members of the Sky Guard, helping to provide for and safeguard Mokai City while searching for any trace of Camilla’s home, all to no avail. As time went on, however, and memories of Nohr faded away, the two found themselves caring more and more for one another. After Camilla nearly died during a skirmish, Rohn confessed his feelings for her, and he found his love requited.

The two had two children, Alastair and Anais. The very picture of a loving mother, Camilla doted upon them incessantly, and their childhoods were rather spoiled by Mokai City standards. The kids received weapon training from both parents, and they grew up alongside dragons of their own, with whom they forged powerful bonds. Both turned out to be capable warriors, eager to follow in their parents’ footsteps. One day, unfortunately, both Rohn and Camilla died in battle, leaving the siblings alone against the world. That event exacerbated the girl’s bipolar disorder enough to affect her life; Alastair felt like he had to look after her, while Anais wanted neither to need his help nor hold him back. On the day of a major battle arranged by Consul R against the forces of Consul B to the east, she ignored her brother’s advice and joined the fight atop her own dragon. In the course of the battle she got struck by lightning, and Alastair gave his life to save her.

In the wake of the battle, the Lost Numbers arrived to pick over the war zone for loot and survivors. Anais was among them, badly wounded but alive, and she received treatment aboard the Avenger. Though she survived, the incident left her partially paralyzed, unable to move around normally without ephedrine injections and forced to use crutches. Her primary role among the Lost Numbers is that of a seamstress, creating and repairing clothing, oftentimes with special properties. She obsessively continues to practice her skills with the axe, however, in the event that she should ever be needed to fight on behalf of the Lost Numbers.

Physical Trainers: Lakota & Dawn Lockheart

Lakota

Name: Lakota
Origin: Luca (Dragalia Lost) + Laranoa (Dragalia Lost)
Appearance: Though in his thirties, he sports a lithe figure, with dark skin, fine hair of a dark mint green done up in a man bun, a soul patch, and bright eyes that mixed seafoam green with lilac purple. He wears what looked like a hunter’s attire, with light leather armor over an outfit of modest earth tones, though the crop of his shirt exposes a well-muscled midriff. He has long rabbit ears atop his head, one of them permanently bent at a roguish angle.
Personality: Though seemingly easygoing, with a friendly smile, quick sense of humor, and optimistic attitude, Lakota is a skilled hunter and dedicated protector. He is deceptively sharp and alert, quick on the uptake, difficult to fool, and willing to take quick and decisive action whenever needed. A loving husband, he adores his wife Dawn and his daughters and goes out of his way to spoil them. While not as in touch with his Sylvan roots as he’d like, he does enjoy his hobby of physical training and exercise with whoever can
In the Now:

Job: Magick Ranger
Specialty: Adaptable archery borne of peak physical performance with a magic touch
Inventory: Canteen, hunting knife, leather armor, Elder Shortbow with an Infinity enchantment, multiple quivers of spell arrows (damage, force, stasis, warp, poison, delirium, sepsis)

Lv: 5
EXP: 0/10
Abilities:

• Enchanter - Without any mentors from his world to learn from, Lakota doesn’t wield elemental combat magic, but he’s found ways to apply enchantments to weapons and create spell ammunition, giving him the mystical touch necessary to transmute materials to magic at certain alchemical crafting stations
  True Seeker - Lakota can empower his bow to make his next shot (or multi-shot, up to 5 arrows) homing, which costs mana that must be replenished

Skills:

• Hunter’s Finesse - Lakota possesses a high degree of accuracy and dexterity
• Physically Fit - He’s strong and fast, albeit not to a superhumanly so, and has a lot of endurance
• Charismatic - It’s hard not to like him, and it’s easy for him to make friends

Weaknesses:

• Master of None - For all his upsides, Lakota doesn’t excel at much of anything. When juxtaposed to people with much stronger specialties, or serious enemies, he can fall behind and end up as little more than support
• Loud Noises - Lakota’s rabbit ears are sensitive, leaving him more vulnerable to sonic attacks, and easier to disrupt or distract when trying to aim or cycle ammunition
• Wind Bane - Enough of his mother’s Water element resides in him that he takes extra damage from wind-aspected spells, weapons, and attacks

Dawn

Name: Dawn Strife
Origin: Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy 7) + Tifa Lockheart (Final Fantasy 7)
Appearance: She’s 5’7”, 36 years old, and a little heavy set. Her eyes are a bright ruby-blue gradient, with long lashes, and her spiky black-blonde hair in a large, low ponytail worn over her shoulder. Her face is kind, often with an easy smile, but with a few smile lines. She wears a set of baggy black overalls (with pants) over a white sports bra, with red fighting gloves and woven hairtie
Personality: Combining some of the best traits of her parents, Dawn is a kind and considerate ‘team mom’, with a strong will and a never-say die attitude, determined to fight for her friends and family. She puts others first and prefers peaceful solutions, but she’s unafraid to take matters into her own hands when need be. She’s very protective, especially of her younger brother Cirrus, and can be a worrywart about both him and her daughters. Secretly, she’s a bit of a dork, with ambitions of grandiose heroism. She believes in both bringing about a better future for everyone and upholding the legacy of her parents. If she’s self-conscious about anything, it’s about what she’s managed to achieve with her life
Background: N/A
In the Now: Forty years prior to present day, previous iterations of Cloud and Tifa fought alongside Barrett, Aerith, and many others in a group that proceeded the Seekers of Light, all to overthrow Moebius and Galeem. Though they managed to defeat two Guardians, mounting losses throughout the campaign backed the group into a corner, and a pincer attack by Moebius shattered the heroes’ forces. Cloud’s team in particular ran afoul of Moebius A, forcing Barrett and Aerith to sacrifice themselves so that Cloud and Tifa could flee. They escaped to a remote part of the World of Light with their lives, but their spirits never fully healed. After meeting with the Lost Numbers, they decided to have children of their own, but when Dawn and Cirrus were at a young age Cloud and Aerith both reached the ends of their ten-year lifespans and dissolved into light.

Dawn was raised by the Lost Numbers alongside her brother. Completely committed to the cause and determined to pave the way for a brighter future someday, she played the role of overdramatic heroine well into her teenage years, but even as she mellowed out her big heart and spark of resolution never faded. She kept on fighting and caring, no matter how bleak things seemed, and despite the odds Dawn stood the test of time. Eventually she and the roguish magic archer Lakota fell in love, and at the age of thirty she had children of her own, triplets that the proud parents named Ciel, Aurora, and Soleil. Though life may finally be starting to take its toll on Dawn, she’s more determined then ever to safeguard hope for the future.

Job: Demolisher
Specialty: The thorough and methodical destruction of easy targets that don’t fight back, especially shields, structures, emplacements, and so forth
Inventory: The Sanctioned Gunhammer, a brutal heavy weapon that can fire off shells to boost its own fire attack, a bandolier of said shells, two power drills, extra battery packs, basic survival kit

Lv: 5
Abilities:

• Unbridled Strength - after building up power through landing attacks, Dawn can assume a stance and boosts her chi level, which also allows successive attacks to further increase her chi. More chi means extra damage, more flinch resistance, and higher stun power, increasing her ability to break through enemy defenses (or defenses, period) and leave them vulnerable. Each level also enhances her finishing move, from Bang to Big Bang to Big Bang Reignition. She can reach a maximum chi level of 3

Skills:

• Sunny - a friendly, cheerful, and optimistic outlook, coupled with a lot of compassion, means she’s great to work with and be around. She can be counted on to have her allies’ backs, both on the battlefield and in day to day life
• Strength - Dawn is surprisingly powerful when it comes to lifting, carrying, and smacking things
• Determination - even in dire circumstances, Dawn never wavers. She’s more likely to resist status effects and afflictions, and when pushed to the brink, she’s much more prone to a resolute second wind than a meltdown
• The Power of Love! - one per day, Dawn can survive any attack that would otherwise KO her at 1 HP

Weaknesses:

• Slow - Dawn is neither fast nor agile when it comes to moving around or fighting. Quicker opponents can dance around her and avoid her attacks, and she’s ineffective at long range
• Defense - with neither heavy gear nor good defensive fighting instincts, Dawn has few ways of mitigating damage and has to tough her way through whatever comes her way
• Overtrusting - perhaps neither quite as perceptive nor pragmatic as she should be, Dawn is susceptible to tricks, traps, and ambushes

Quartermaster (Stockpile): Sagi

Sagi

Name: Sagi
Origin: Tear (Recettear) + Oboro (Monster Hunter)
Appearance: A woman with a short, slight build, standing only an inch or two above five feet tall. She has long, silky silver hair which she keeps partially tied in a bun at the back of her head while the rest flows down to her shoulders. Her bangs are slightly longer, framing her smooth face. Her large hooded eyes are also silver though slightly darker in color. Her skin is pale beige, and despite her mostly human looking appearance there isn't a drop of human blood in her heritage. She has a few traits that set her apart, most notably her wings. Always floating behind her are a pair of transparent green wings, which glow slightly. They appear flat with little details besides their vaguely wing-like shape, and at only about half the size of Sagi's body one might assume that they are just for show. She also has pointed ears which jut away from her head and four fingers on each hand, tipped by nails painted purple. Her usual outfit consists of: a slightly flared gray skirt that goes down to her knees with a matching double breasted blazer, dark tights and loafers, a purple cravat that matches the ribbon used to tie her hair bun, a pair of gold rectangle earrings and a red braided rope she uses as a bracelet.

Personality: Sagi's parents were calm people, and her personality developed much the same way. She is straight forward and prefers to gather as much information as possible rather than pass snap judgements. She is friendly with most everyone, maybe even a little too friendly as she treats nearly everyone she meets as though they were a younger sibling, sort of looking down on them without meaning to. She generally keeps her negative feelings to herself, but if they show themselves it is through passive aggression or cold, quiet anger.

Sagi generally gets along with people, but she is also strict in her duties and won't compromise for even her friends. Even her younger half-sister doesn't get special treatment despite how much Sagi cares for her. Sagi is not easily swayed by appeals to emotion, though she enjoys people trying. Finally, Sagi's sense of humor can be rather dark.

In the Now: For the first years of her life Sagi grew up well-adjusted in the World of Light's Forbidden Kingdom. She lived on the second floor of the family's small shop with her parents, learning their trade in between schooling and playing with other local kids. Her father had been a traveling merchant, and her mother the supply middleman he frequently met with. Their romance was a simple, gradual thing, which eventually resulted in settling down and raising their daughter.

When her parents' time limit was up, Sagi was left alone with her parent's shop. She hadn't been surprised by it. She'd seen other people, neighbors and friends, dissolve into ash before. No one ever mentioned or commented on the spontaneous combustion, so Sagi didn't either - until now. Her parents had always told her that those of their race would live long lives, and yet they were gone before her tenth birthday. Why them? Why now? And would it happen to her, too?

Grief had kept Sagi in her family home, and there she remained twenty... thirty... forty years later. She still ran the shop, standing fast at the same location, and thus she noticed something: the ashing always happened. The longest she'd ever seen someone last was a single decade. In the name of getting answers about why it seemed she, alone, was unaffected, she used her ever changing mercantile contacts to retrieve information about it. That was how she eventually learned the "Lost Numbers," connecting with other people like herself that did not turn to dust.

Sagi did not immediately join the group. She had coped with the knowledge well enough and preferred to keep to her simple life, content with just learning the truth. Some years later there was an event that finally pushed her to join the Lost Numbers... and it started with meeting her father again. The last time she'd seen him was as a little girl, and now she looked as old as he did, if not older, since he appeared exactly the same. Though she knew he wouldn't have recognized her even if she hadn't aged. In befriending her father she learned that he had returned to being (or rather, he still was) a traveling merchant and that she had a half-sister out there. Under the guise of a business deal she ended up traveling across the area back to his semi-permanent residence with him to meet her.

What she didn't know was that the time she'd spent audaciously looking into the true nature of the world's inhabitants was about to catch up with her. After arriving at her father's home, her family was attacked with the intent to wipe out the two sisters. With just two civilian targets, whatever Consul ordered the hit did not deign to attend to it themselves. Sagi took her sister, Haruka, and ran while their father and Haruka's mother protected them. They fled until Sagi got into contact with the Lost Numbers again, joining their ranks for her little sister's safety.

Since then, Sagi has done her best to help the cause in her own way. She has served as the quartermaster on the Avenger since the vessel was obtained, which she does gladly.

Job: Stewardess
Specialty: Inventory management and item procurement.
Inventory: Melding Pot, and almost never without a clipboard in hand.

Lv: 5
Abilities:

• Wyverian Melding - An ability passed down through her father's culture, now practiced by Sagi. Although the actual way it works is supposedly secret, melding is basically an advanced form of recycling. By combining different items, Sagi can make entirely new ones. This is normally done with scraps and unwanted things combined to make randomized talismans that grant various boons. It takes quite a lot of items to meld even one talisman, but the more valuable the pieces used to meld, the less of them are needed.

Skills:

• Fairy Flight - Despite appearing to be a spell or magic construct, Sagi's wings are a part of her anatomy. They allow her limited flight, more akin to floating. It helps a lot with checking inventory stacked up high at least.
• Tear's Teachings - Her mother's fairy race is one that is innately talented at administration and management. Combined with Tear's astute attention while growing up, it Sagi made very talented with logistics. She runs a tight ship.
• Longevity - Due to her Wyverian blood, so long as she isn't killed Sagi will be able to live for hundreds of years. She is already older than she looks, having crossed the half-century threshold a while ago.
• Appraisal - Spending a large portion of her life sourcing, buying, and selling items has made Sagi an adept appraiser. Though she cannot intuit the uses of objects she's completely unfamiliar with, she has a lot of experience to draw from and can assess an item's usefulness (and thus monetary value) with a high degree of accuracy. Of course, she does have a Skewed Point of View which sometimes interferes.

Weaknesses:

• Dainty - Her body is physically slight and she isn't very strong, which puts her at a disadvantage against large or powerful creatures. She also has to enlist help moving heavy inventory around.
• Civilian - On top of her small fream, Sagi is not a fighter in general. She's taken a few self defense classes while living in the Forbidden Kingdom, but she is far from combat fit.
• Skewed Point of View - Being a blend of long lived races, yet also being 'mortal' in the World of Light, has had an effect on Sagi's psyche. She tends to be sort of cavalier about the passage of time, some times doing everything in a rush and some times acting like her charges have all the time in the world. She also falls into the trap of appraising and item's usefulness in relation to her experience, so an especially niche item she may evaluate as being useless even if it's a legendary object of some renown.

Bartender (Stolen Moments): Cirrus Lockheart

Cirrus Lockheart

Name: Cirrus Lockheart
Origin: Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy 7) + Tifa Lockheart (Final Fantasy 7)
Appearance: He’s 5’11, 35 years old, with a thin, wiry build of very lean muscle. His eyes are a dull ruby-blue gradient, with long lashes, and his messy black-blonde hair is shoulder-length, with an equally scruffy beard and sunglasses. Most of the time he sports a sour expression. He wears a flashy but relatively cheap suit jacket and slacks, gray with a cloudy silver pattern, over a yellow collared shirt with buttons undone, and his black dress shoes go with his belt. He wears a red woven wristband like a watch.
Personality: In some respects very much like his father, Cirrus is brooding, melancholy, and a little awkward, which he tries to mask under a veneer of nonchalant coolness, very much envisioning himself as the strong and silent type. He’s got something of an inferiority complex, and has always lived in his sister’s shadow, even though he really does love her and would do just about anything for her. Crushed beneath the World of Light’s cruelty, he considers himself a harsh realist; he doesn’t believe his side can win and decided a long time ago it would be better to not bring children in a world like this. That said, he’s fiercely protective of his nieces, who view him as a ‘cool uncle’
Background: N/A
In the Now: Forty years prior to present day, previous iterations of Cloud and Tifa fought alongside Barrett, Aerith, and many others in a group that proceeded the Seekers of Light, all to overthrow Moebius and Galeem. Though they managed to defeat two Guardians, mounting losses throughout the campaign backed the group into a corner, and a pincer attack by Moebius shattered the heroes’ forces. Cloud’s team in particular ran afoul of Moebius A, forcing Barrett and Aerith to sacrifice themselves so that Cloud and Tifa could flee. They escaped to a remote part of the World of Light with their lives, but their spirits never fully healed. After meeting with the Lost Numbers, they decided to have children of their own, but when Dawn and Cirrus were at a young age Cloud and Aerith both reached the ends of their ten-year lifespans and dissolved into light.

Cirrus was raised by the Lost Numbers alongside his sister. He was a sullen, withdrawn child, who made few friends and always looked for escape. Even as he matured he remained in the shadows, standing back in a quiet support role while stronger shoulders bore the mantle of responsibility for the future. Even if he’s pessimistic about everything, he’s more or less accepted to his role in life, however doomed it might be. To that end he serves as the bartender in Stolen Moments, giving others a place to let out their misgivings and melancholy while he provides comfort as best he can. His goal is to lift others higher, all the while hoping that he’s wrong about it all being hopeless, and when the chips are down, he’s ready to do whatever it takes for the Lost Numbers, his sister, and her family.

Job: Host
Specialty: Keeping the party going with skills that boost the party’s damage output or wear down enemies with elemental ‘spells’ and other afflictions
Inventory: A bottle of Electric Reserva wine that’s nigh-unbreakable and deals electric damage when wielded as weapon (though it’ll lose its special properties if opened), Never-melt Ice, cocktail kit, basic survival kit

Lv: 5
Abilities:

• Here’s to You - Cirrus can pull a couple kinds of items out of nowhere to use as ’spells’, including frosty sparkling wine bottles that inflict water damage and the Cold status, birthday cupcakes that inflict magic damage and attack reduction, and roses that inflict Fire damage, Burn, and possibly Charm
• Hyper Shout - boosts his and nearby allies' attack with a festive cheer
• Coercive Shout - boosts his and nearby allies' Magic, imploring them to keep the party going
• Wonder Cocktail - a miracle of mixology that doubles the damage of his next ‘spell’ and gets him a bit drunk

Skills:

• Mixology - Cirrus has a talent for making and serving tasty, comforting drinks, and doing so will reduce stress for both himself and his customers. This is the one way he manages to be charismatic, and he can appeal to people through this art in ways he otherwise couldn’t

Weaknesses:

• Cloudy - his pessimistic, untrusting, and acerbic attitude makes fighting alongside him -and even being around him- an unpleasant and impractical proposition at times
• Durability - he has relatively low health and physical defense, meaning that he’s not a good frontline fighter and would much rather stay at the rear of the pack
• Sensitive - Cirrus cares more than he lets on and receives more stress from all sources, particularly tragic events surrounding his allies, and is more likely to miss attacks, take extra damage, and so forth when stressed

Comms Officer (Comm Center): Alice MacGregor (Wonderful 101)
Scrier (Mysticenter): Mona (Genshin Impact)
Hint Merchant (Spirit Chamber): Vulgrim (Darksiders)
Entrepreneur (Business Center): Susie (Kirby Planet Robobot)
Investors: Bartholomew & Marguerite Bogard

Bart & Marg

Name: Bartholomew (Bart) and Marguerite (Marg) Bogard
Origin: Al Bogard (Terry Bogard (Fatal Fury) + Mary Ryan (Fatal Fury)) + Clementine Caspar (Aventurine (Star Rail) + Navia (Genshin))
Appearance: These two are identical twins, 16 years old, sometimes referred to as the ‘blondest kids in existence’. They both have long vibrant blonde hair kept in low ponytails, distinctive pink eyes with blue-ringed pupils, average proportions, and perennial smug smiles. When on the job they dress quite well in brown suits with white fur collars, black collared undershirts, brown slacks, and black hats with white bands. During more casual times, though, white hoodies and blue jeans work just fine. They both have a ‘boss form’ where they don one-half of the Aventurine of Strategems mask (Marg the left, Bart the right), get fancier outfits, and have limited flight
Personality: These two are the epitome of ‘dumb luck’. They’re both goofball idiots, but charismatic enough that it’s hard not to like them, and somehow everything always seems to go their way whether they’re playing pranks or investing in stocks. They possess a high degree of what’s sometimes called ‘twin ESP’, able to wordlessly intuit what the other’s thinking at all times, making them a perfect team. One could be forgiven for thinking they’re the same person in two places at once. They always possess an air of frivolity and joviality, seemingly never taking things seriously, and they’re easy to get along with. In any sort of conflict, their strategy is to outlast, distract, infuriate, and exhaust the opposition. They're very creative when it comes to causing problems
In the Now: Throughout the World of Light, most martial artists tend to show up in Esaka, the Tiered City, and they tend to live very similar lives dedicated to the art of fighting. Combat was simply how most made a living, forever trying their luck in the city’s eternal series of tournaments. No matter how skilled one might be, each tournament can have only one winner, so for just about everyone it’s only a matter of time until their numbers come up. Still, some fighters get lucky from time to time, which was the case for Terry Bogard and Blue Mary, united by an incredibly strong bond. Together, the two enjoyed a great deal of success, surviving long enough to realize just how effective a meat grinder Esaka really was. Deciding to break free from the system, the two became fugitives, and eventually had kids of their own: two boys named Al and Martin. Both parents would eventually run out of time, but they did everything they could to raise their sons right, and the two wandered the World of Light in search of meaning.

Simultaneously, another story was unfolding in Edinburgh MagicaPolis. Navia, the noble daughter of a wealthy family, wound up in a long and arduous legal dispute with a young but ambitious manager in of a prominent corporation, a businessman with a penchant for gambling. As their parent companies engaged in bitter back-and-forth dealings and law suits, the two dealt clashed constantly in a battle of wits, each desperate to come out on top. Despite their extremely different personalities, they couldn’t seem to quit one another, especially as personal feelings began to muddy the waters. As pressure mounted, though, Aventurine proposed a new bet: heads, and the two would continue their feud as enemies. Tails, and the two would run away together. Navia flipped the coin, Aventurine called heads, and for the first time ever, the famous gambler lost.

Of course, that outcome enraged both their parent companies, and tempers flared out of control. As war erupted between the two corporations, Aventurine and Navia escaped, and found shelter with the Lost Numbers. Together, the two became some of the most invaluable allies the Lost Numbers had ever known, both in battle and in business. In full knowledge of their inevitable fates, they chose to have a child anyway, and Clementine was born.

Many years later, Clementine happened to be part of a Lost Numbers scouting team that stumbled upon Al and Martin Bogard in the wilderness, beset by monsters, and she rallied her team to save them. Both brothers fell in love with her on the spot, becoming Lost Numbers soon after, and they continued to court her as they worked alongside her. Unfortunately, the competition between them turned the brothers from partners to rivals, and eventually they had a falling-out. In the end, Al claimed victory in a duel that lasted hours, and an embittered Martin quit the Lost Numbers, never to be seen again. Though that cloud hung over them for a while, Al and Clementine eventually got together and had twins. In the present day, the twins are sixteen years old, and their parents live in a hidden Lost Numbers settlement, no longer interested in the effort against Galeem.

Though both received training in martial arts, neither Bart nor Marg have supernatural physical abilities, and they lack the size or strength to be worthwhile melee fighters. However, each possesses half the power granted both by the grandmother’s Geo Vision and their grandfather’s Aventurine Cornerstone, broken in half and worn as jewelry. Their powers allow them to bestow stacking amber shields, and from there either getting hit or hitting enemies creates random amounts of Ambergold that can be converted into additional shields or projectiles. Both use accessories and other means to boost their luck as much as humanly possible, allowing them to evade, crit, and ricochet bullets with impunity. The strength of their gimmick makes them some of the Lost Numbers’ best fighters.

Janitor: Gillian

Gillian

Name: Gillian
Origin: Jell (Monster Rancher) + Slimegal (Shantae)
Appearance: Gillian is a large mauve slime. In her default form she is merely a blob with eyes and a red core that floats in her center mass. Most of the time, however, she occupies a beige-colored Haimatsu diving suit, the densely reinforced armor and exoskeletal servos of which give her a great degree of physical strength and defense. Normally she doesn’t wear the helmet, though, so a blob-shaped head of slime protrudes from the neck. She has defaulted to giving herself slightly more human features, like eyelashes and a head of chin-length slime hair, and she can manifest a mouth for better emoting as well. Without her suit, she’s about three feet tall and four feet wide. With it, she’s 6'0"
Personality: Gillian is very laid back and seldom in a rush to go anywhere or do much of anything. She accepts her night-indestructibility as fact and knows she will probably outlast the Avenger itself, but she has grown to value the people around her. She’s quite friendly and curious, with a sort of naive charm and a bubbly manner of speech, and she loves experiencing new things or listening to people explain stuff even if she doesn’t always understand. She doesn’t like dry environments and is averse to bodies of water unless she has her diving suit. She definitely doesn't know her own strength
In the Now: Slimes are very common in the World of Light, and they come in all shapes and sizes. When the Avenger, critically low on various resources, landed in a Deep Blue Seaside swampland just under a year ago, they found that this bog had more than its fair share. The fact that most of them were not gleaming but ‘vita nova’ was inconsequential, since lots of monsters in the World of Light breed like rabbits; Gillian just happened to be the most intelligent among them. Seeing an opportunity to escape the highly competitive environment, Gillian stowed away on the Avenger before it left. It didn’t take long for the Lost Numbers to find her, and they considered throwing her out, but in the end she seemed intelligent, cute, and harmless enough that they let her stick around. Since then, she’s lived among the Lost Numbers. She doesn’t really do or contribute much, but she can help out with basic tasks and chores like laundry, and in the event that the Lost Numbers are forced to fight she can definitely throw her weight around

Security: Mickey

Mickey

Name: Mickey
Origin: Mama and Papa Rabbid
Appearance: At a baseline, Mick looks like any other rabbid, with a squat bipedal form, short white fur, bulbous blue eyes, long ears, and a pink underbelly. He wears a slate blue tank top beneath an olive drab bullet-proof vest and green camo cargo pants. He has a grizzled, unshaven look to him, and he's covered in scars
Personality: Despite his appearance, Mick is an old soul, rattled and numbed by the loss of many allies on the field of battle. He's haunted by his experiences, suffers from PTSD, and is prone to anxiety. His natural rabbid silliness was essentially beaten out of him, but if pushed past the breaking point by stress he can become manic, screaming as he attacks anyone in sight. Funnily enough, he's most comfortable with a gun in his hand, or behind the controls of a combat vehicle, as if his mind never left the battlefield. When things are peaceful, he tends to simply sit around and stare off into space. He strongly dislikes and distrusts robots and AI in general, believing that no AI truly has a soul or will of its own (he is fond of the Chinese room analogy to explain his viewpoint)
In the Now: A veteran of generations of fighting in the rabbid-machine wars in the Mushroom Kingdom, born by sheer dumb luck from two rabbids who lived long enough to reproduce. He did not have much of a childhood, being passed between various soldiers in the backlines of the battlefield. He grew as a soldier and a person as the protege of Mr Henderson, a paranoid, wheelchair-bound veteran who spent some time on the battlefield. The Lost Numbers found him while conducting a routine sweep of the area, finding him catatonic after a particularly devastating battle and nursing him back to health.

Job: Veteran
Specialty: Running, gunning, and tactical warfare no matter the terrain or circumstances
Inventory: A desert eagle modded to inflict fire damage, the Rumblejack electric combat knife, several frag grenades, and well as his helper bangboo, Mercury. Mercury does not have a developed personality or vocal module, but is a loyal companion and assistent that serves not just as a copilot and gunner, but also a service animal. He has a mech in the Avenger's cargo bay that used to belong to a penguin named Toby, but he's always looking for bigger, more destructive mechs

Lv: 9
Abilities:

• Flush - Allows Mick to fire a shot that forces enemies to run out of cover

Skills:

• Cartoon Body - Mick can take a lot of damage without appearing to be wounded or becoming less capable
• Overwatch - Mick can take a position and enter a defensive stance that allows him to fire on the first enemy that moves
• Run and Gun - Allows Mick to dash a lot farther than normal and still take action afterward
• Aggression - Mick gets increased critical chance based on the number of enemies he can see
• Lightning Reflexes - The first attack made by any enemy against Mick will miss
• Close and Personal - Mick's critical chance increases massively against enemies in his immediate proximity
• Close Combat Specialist - Gives Mick a free reaction shot against any enemy that gets within 4m, no Overwatch required
• Ace Pilot - When it comes to walkers and mechs, Mick is a force to be reckoned with

Weaknesses:

• Shell Shock - Mick's resistance to mental status effects is very low
• Hellbound - With a scarred body and mind, he has little regard for his own life, to the point where healing is 50% less effective on him
• Small - As a rabbid, his small stature makes doing a lot of things a lot harder

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate Videogame Crossover)

Welcome back to the stage of history, eternally retold

Long, long ago, an otherworldly entity known as Galeem, the Lord of Light, coveted the marvels of countless worlds for itself. In an apocalyptic deluge of light, it swept over each and every one in an all-consuming flood, bringing the universe itself and its countless stories to an end.

In the wake of the total annihilation, Galeem created a new world, an anachronous amalgamation of countless realities not-so-seamlessly stitched together, over which it could preside for eternity. Into this World of Light the innumerable inhabitants of the devoured worlds were reformed, stripped of their memories of the end and rendered oblivious to the wrongness of their new reality. Then Galeem chose a number of Guardians whose existence would safeguard its own, and hid them throughout its brave new world.

Finally Galeem fell silent, becoming the engine that sustained its perpetual motion machine of a world. As it slept, its all-consuming desire for eternity gave rise to Moebius, its will accepted and embodied in twenty-six individuals who would serve as Consuls throughout the World of Light. Its denizens, in thrall to the Flame Clocks that meted out their lifespans, would live, die, and be reborn countless times, a cruel Life Service keeping their destinies arrested, stuck in a waking dream with no hope for advance–the Endless Now.

It’s hard to say how long it’s been since then. But through it all, a star of hope twinkled faintly amidst the dust of ages. Heroes with the power and will to challenge Galeem’s Guardians would rise, fall, and rise again, eventually stirring the Consuls from their listless complacency. In the wake of many Guardians’ defeat, the Consuls are on high alert, and things are more dangerous than ever.

In this massive video game crossover RP, you’ll play as a game character of your choice and join the campaign against Galeem in a grand journey through a tapestry woven of countless worlds, a series of battles, puzzles, and adventures, meeting friends and foes both new and old as you fight to reach and destroy the Lord of Light.

EXP

EXP earned for posting is as follows: <750 words is 1 point, 750-1250 is 2 points, and 1250-2000 is 3 points, then +1 for every thousand after that. You will also get bonus EXP after successful encounters. Your level of contribution determines your growth. Please keep track of your own EXP, please be honest when it comes to reporting and don't use filler to inflate your word count.

If a collab happens (including one that involves only your characters) every participant will get the full EXP reward from the collab’s word count.

EXP gain is boosted during boss fights.

When your EXP total goes above the next level requirement, you can subtract the requirement from your total to give yourself a Level Upgrade. These can be spent on a new Ability or Skill from any powerset available to your character. Leveling up also gives your character a minor stat increase across the board. Abilities/skills gained by leveling up can Interplay with old abilities/skills if it makes sense. Please submit your level writeup to me for approval

The Power of Friendship

In the World of Light, everyone starts out ‘gleaming’ under Galeem’s influence. This status prevents cognitive dissonance regarding the World of Light itself, seals memories of Galeem plus the apocalypse, and makes one unable to voluntarily back down from a fight once begun.

Any character who’s freed can spend (your level - 3) EXP to use a Friend Heart to free someone who’s gleaming, restoring their cognition, memories, and wellbeing to normal.

Spirits

In the World of Light, every being has a spirit, a bundle of light that defines everything about that character. It’s represented as a mote of prismatic light with that character’s image nestled inside. When something dies, its body disintegrates into ash and the spirit manifests. Spirits don’t remain for long and will quickly fade if they’re not bottled up somehow, though that only prolongs their existence a little.

Our characters can use spirits for their own gain in a variety of ways. When you choose one, message me and I will write the results up for you

Spirit Usages

• Fusion - pressing a spirit into your heart will give you that spirit’s powerset, a free Ability from that spirit’s powerset, and a Weakness from that spirit. It will also physically change your character, and even their personality somewhat
• Inheritance - pressing a spirit into your head will give you a free Skill from that spirit’s powerset. It will also palette swap your character, changing the colors to be more like the spirit’s
• Spiritbinding - you can equip a spirit (or a cluster of very weak spirits) as a Striker, allowing it to manifest when called upon for a brief time in order to help in some way, usually performing a certain move. If a Striker is hit, the host will take some of the damage. A character can only have two Strikers equipped, but they can be swapped out aboard the Avenger
• Itemization - crushing a spirit will result in a random loot drop from an arbitrary but thematic loot pool

Rapport

A special, optional way of further developing your character, not to mention bonds with other characters. Whenever two PCs are involved in a non-combat, non-progression collab together (both characters in a back-and-forth post) the EXP from that collab can also go into Rapport if both players are willing. Leveling up Rapport offers additional bonuses

• D Rank (<5 REXP): Just shows you’ve built up some REXP, but not enough to reach C Rank
• C Rank (5-9 REXP): Tag Team (a powerful, special team-up attack unique to these two)
• B Rank (10-19 REXP): Skill Share (both characters can copy a free Skill from the other(
• A Rank (20-29 REXP): Crossover (both characters now have access to the other's base job, allowing them to spend level upgrades on the other's abilities and skill, including manifestations of the other's equipment)
• S Rank (30+ REXP): Interlink (will be explained later)

Rules

• All standard roleplaying rules apply. Be excellent to one another
• Your character has to originate from a video game, but it can be any officially-licensed game, no matter the console or company. Characters that originated in other media are prohibited. Other media built on top of games can be considered canon to the games, however
• While you start with one character, you can apply for more once qualified. To qualify for another character, you must level up at least once, as well as be able to handle the additional workload
• While not 18+, we are open to mature themes like violence and romance, but not to excess
• You can make some slight changes to your character, or expound on one that would otherwise be too shallow (following fan interpretations if necessary). If you choose a blank slate ‘avatar’ character, you must give them enough personality and backstory to make it a real character
• I expect one post a week for all your characters. My big weekly update usually comes on Sunday evening after 11 PM CST. By applying to this RP you are making a commitment to maintaining this schedule. Exceptions are fine but I would like to be notified
• If you demonstrate a constant inability to meet my standards through lack of posting and/or communications, you can be kicked, and I deserve the right to deny applications from players who’ve done this in the past
• If you give your character's speech a color please make sure it's a color that's easy to read. Please do not give your posts gigantic, obnoxious headers
• Your decisions matter in this story. Ingenuity and creativity will be rewarded, especially in regards to teamwork, but bad decisions may have disastrous consequences

Please note: as complicated as people's character sheets can be, especially where spirits are involved, there's no need to worry about other people's characters too much. Just basic descriptors are fine 99% of the time, and if you need anything clarified in simple terms, the incredible players here would be happy to help!

Character Sheet

Name:
Origin:
Appearance: (You can use just an image, a description, or both. If your character’s appearance changes, you can modify this section or just add hiders with the new changes)
Personality:
Background: (You can go into as much detail on your character’s biography as you want, and your character can be taken from any point in that story. This ends with Galeem’s attack)
In the Now: (A synopsis of your character’s existence in the World of Light itself. For new characters, this is limited to the ‘new normal’ imprinted on you by Galeem, and your chosen starting location)

Job: (A succinct name that encompasses your character’s ‘class’)
Specialty: (What your character brings to the table; your role in the group)
Inventory: (Your character’s starting equipment and items, including currency. Unless you specifically have the Inventory skill, your characters must carry everything physically)

Lv: (The total number of abilities and skills you start with)
EXP: (The amount needed to level up is your Lv*10)
Abilities: (Powers, spells, special moves, an iconic piece of equipment, and so forth)

• Ability Name - Ability Description

Skills: (Passive abilities, outstanding ‘stats’, and talents/proficiencies)

• Skill Name - Skill Description

Weaknesses: (Practical limitations, detrimental ‘stats’, and deficiencies. Include at least three)

• Weakness Name - Weakness Description

Spirits: (Any spirits your character possesses should be listed here with their type)

• Spirit name - Type

Rapport: (You can keep track of your Rapport here. As you level up Rapports, consider linking the posts here and listing what they give you)

RP Theme:

World of Light

Meridi-at-han - the City on the Rock

Primrose’s @Yankee, Roland’s @Archmage MC, Level 8 Goldlewis (78/80)
Word Count: 748 (+1)

In the northern reaches of the World of Light, further still than the Forbidden Kingdom that lay between the frigid winterlands or Midgar’s wartorn valley, lay a wild and untamed borderland of jungles and giants that only ended where the mind-numbing Transmission began, giving way to the bleak dereliction of the pale city’s hinterlands. There, beyond the Forbidden Kingdom’s fields of rolling gold and temperate forests sprawled the arid Tyrannian Plateau, home to mammoth monsters of prehistoric origin, and untamed tropical forests sustained by the faintest aftershocks of the monsoons that pounded the Garbage Wastes.

Of course, even in a wilderness such as this, bastions of civilization still stood, and none stood taller than the acropolis city of Meridi-at-han. Equal parts fortified citadel and flourishing city-state, it towered above the land of jungles and rivers atop its central mesa, connected to a handful of outlying spires by bridges of astonishing scale. The city’s colorful buildings dared to rise even higher, stacked atop one another like a child’s building blocks, and over it all reigned the grand pink parapets of the Palace of the Sun, from which the Satrap and his Sun-Court ruled. After being denied access to the elevators and instead climbing up the interminable staircase from the port at the river’s edge, newcomers could pass beneath the hot and piercing gaze of the all-seeing eye that adorned the city’s main gate, and step into a fragrant haze of sweet incense and acrid smoke. Within lay dense, noisy, and colorful market streets, alive with the shouts of merchants and lively melodies accented by the patter of dancers’ feet that, like the silken tapestries that hung overhead, swayed to the rhythm of the winds.

After losing track of time in the city’s bustling heart, a visitor could climb higher to the balconies and hanging gardens of the upper district, where they could be enchanted by the movement of countless kites that schooled and darted like so many fish, and the flight of pink flamigos over the sparkling waters.

Of course, for all its wonders, the city had its fair share of troubles. In addition to the criminal activity, its people contended with woefully frequent incursions from raiders and hostile creatures that came by land and air alike. Life in place like this, even by World of Light standards, would never be easy. Still, Meridi-at-han possessed an unassailable splendor, and it was that glory that captivated the Seekers the moment they rose from their hellpods near the base of the nigh-ceaseless stairs.

“Damn,” Goldlewis summed up, one hand on his hip while he used the other to shield his eyes from the morning sun. “I mean, it ain’t as big as Midgar, but it looks a helluva lot prettier, huh?” He chuckled. “Here’s hopin’ its half as nice on the inside.” Wherever plenty of people congregated, conflict would surely follow, but even after a lifetime of acute familiarity with just about everything that was wrong with America, he still believed in the Land of the Free–the dream of America the Beautiful. If he could believe in that, he could believe in Meridi-at-han. Being better than Midgar was a pretty low bar, anyway.

Looking up at all the stairs, Goldlewis winced. Back in the Sandswept Sky, he’d bowed out of the mountain-climbing expedition, in part because his ponderous build did not lend itself to such Herculean feats of cardiovascular exercise. Today though, he had no choice. It wasn’t like the team could have dropped their hellpods right into the city, after all, so he would need to make this ascent the old fashioned way. And even getting to the top wasn’t the end; there began the daunting task of establishing a foothold in this new and unfamiliar region. Given its position at the crossroads between several regions, Meridi-at-han was too valuable of a strategic asset for the Seekers to leave it unattended, but digging in here would be no easy feat. For Goldlewis the coming days would take a lot of thinking on his feet–provided that he could still stand after all these stairs. The veteran took a deep breath and sighed, steeling himself for the climb. “Boy howdy. This is gonna be a rough one.”

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate VG Crossover RP, reborn!)

Edelgard Brings the Fire!

Name: Edelgard von Hresvelg

Origin: Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Appearance:

Edelgard

Personality: Edelgard carries within her a deep wellspring of hatred for evil, brought about by the torture she endured under Those Who Slither in the Dark. However, her psyche is twisted deeply by that torture, and she is willing to commit atrocities in the name of destroying evil, fully aware of the irony in doing so. If she sees no better way, she will not hold back for the sake of her own morals or to keep her conscience clean. Edelgard will do anything for the ends that she seeks, which can easily rub others the wrong way.

She is not heartless, but she is more than willing to act the part for what she believes to be the greater good, going so far as to plunge her homeland into a years-long war to rid it of the influence of what she perceives to be evil organizations abusing their power for their own ends. When faced with the hypocrisy of her actions, Edelgard is not afraid to admit that such is the truth, but will not back down from her course of action nonetheless.

Ultimately, the trust and assistance of those closest to her are Edelgard’s greatest assets and most trusted treasures, as without those things, she has lived with nothing but enemies and terrible memories around her.

Background:

The Emperor Who Plunged a Land Into War

Once a student at the Garreg Mach Monastery Officers’ Academy, Edelgard was secretly working to undermine the Church of Seiros, the continent of Fodlan’s de facto religion, and the dragons that controlled it. Experimented on and forcibly implanted with a second Crest by a shadowy organization, Those Who Slither in the Dark, Edelgard had come to despise the society that the Church of Seiros upheld, and allied with that same shadowy organization to destroy it, albeit reluctantly.

Donning the identity of the Flame Emperor, she fought a shadow war against the Church of Seiros while attending the Academy at its heart and growing close to its newest professor, Byleth. When the time came, she invited her newfound confidant to witness her coronation as the Empress of the Adrestian Empire, which served as the final step in the setup of her plans. She also reveals to Byleth at this time that the Church of Seiros is secretly controlled by a race of immortal dragons who have used the power of the church to manipulate Fodlan to their ends, suppressing advancement and slaughtering dissenters, revealed to her by original copies of ancient tomes that the Imperial Palace held from ancient times.

After revealing herself as the Flame Emperor, Edelgard is able to convince Byleth and her class to join her, and together they attack the Church of Seiros and begin a war that would last years, with Byleth vanishing for five years after an attack from the Archbishop, Rhea.

After reuniting with her teacher, Edelgard is able to renew her offensive against the other nations of Fodlan, subsuming the Leicester Alliance and forcing its leader, Claude, into exile. From here, she defeats the army of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, slaying its king, Dimitri.

With the other nations of Fodlan crippled or under her control, Edelgard leads her army into battle against Rhea, who transforms into her dragon form and sets the city of Fhirdiad aflame to halt Edelgard’s advance. It is fruitless, however, and Rhea the Immaculate One is slain, putting an end to the Church of Seiros’ dominion over Fodlan. In the years that follow, Edelgard and her allies lead a shadow war against her previous allies who had once experimented on her, eventually destroying them and ushering in a shaky but hopeful order in a unified Fodlan. One month after the Adrestian Empire’s final victory, the Imperial City of Enbarr was consumed in a massive light, dragging it and all its residents to the World of Light.

In the Now: Edelgard serves as a Lieutenant in the armies of Skyworld, leading angelic strike forces against corrupted enemies, in an ironic twist of fate that once more has her serving under the command of religious authorities.

Job: Flame Emperor

Specialty: Physical Dreadnought with some magical ranged damage and healing.

Inventory: Steel shield, Emperor’s Armor, Short ax(es) (throwable, 25 uses) 3 doses of elixir (fully heals the user), Large Bouillon (can be sold for 5,000 zenny to the right dealer), Black Eagle Pendant

Lv: 1

EXP: 0/10

Abilities:

• Aymr - A false Heroes’ Relic made specifically for Edelgard, Aymr is an ax of tremendous power. In addition to dealing extra damage to draconic foes, it serves as a symbol of royal power: if Edelgard faces an enemy alone, it will have a demoralizing effect on them, reducing their attack and defense somewhat.
• Basic Magic - Edelgard can cast the basic spells Fire and Heal. Fire is a basic offensive spell that deals modest fire damage, and heal is a basic healing spell that restores roughly one-quarter of a target’s health. Each spell can be used ten times per combat.

Skills:

• Mighty Glacier - Edelgard is an archetypal example of the mighty glacier trope. Each swing of her ax can fell lesser enemies, and she can take dozens of blows from the same without so much as a scratch.
• Hammerspace - Through a clever series of pouches, straps, and a dash of magic from his advisors, Edelgardr can carry significantly more than is immediately apparent on her, grabbing useful items and even weapons on her person from seemingly nowhere.
• Dual-Crest Bearer - Edelgard possesses two Crests, a Major Crest of Flames, and a Minor Crest of Serios. The Crest of Seiros grants her Abilities a small amount of additional power, while the Crest of Flames heals her for a small amount with each blow dealt to an opponent, and rarely shields her from an opponent’s counterattack.

Weaknesses:

• Heavy Armor - Edelgard’s armor, while useful in helping protect her from damage, is far from light. It slows her movement down noticeably, leaving her vulnerable to being chipped at by enemies with sufficient power or magic to harm her.
• Magic Vulnerability - While not quite as dramatic as her lack of speed in armor, Edelgard’s armor does little to protect her from magical attacks, forcing allies to engage and take the heat off of her if she is targeted by a magic user with any sort of long-ranged attacks.
• Weapon Trilemma: Axes - Decreases Edelgard’s accuracy against (and increases the damage taken from) enemies wielding swords and sword-like weapons by 15%.

Spirits: (Any spirits your character possesses should be listed here with their type)

• Spirit name - Type

Rapport: (You can keep track of your Rapport here. As you level up Rapports, consider linking the posts here and listing what they give you)

@MULTI_MEDIA_MAN

That looks very good overall! A character and powerset perfectly fitted into the World of Light. I have just two notes: you have at least one typo in the Hammerspace description, and her personality. It does mention some very important details about her character, but what is she like day to day with the people around her? Polite? Considerate? Callous? Haughty? Your sheet's accepted, but you can add more to her personality section if you so choose. I'll look forward to seeing her in action.

And with that, this interest check's week-long lifespan is drawing to a close. I'll be making the real thread tomorrow and mentioning everyone who voiced (and has not rescinded) interest. We're off to a good start, but hopefully we can pull in even more!

World of Light

Mafia Town

Level 13 Ms Fortune (179/130)
Word Count: 810

With Chucho frolicking at her heels and the sea breeze in her hair, Nadia practically skipped around Mafia Town’s outer perimeter, offering a cheerful wave or greeting to everyone in her path. Though delighted by her surroundings, she kept her head on straight and an eye out for anything that looked either particularly interesting or out of place. One thing she noticed -with a little dismay- was the presence of little green emeralds called pons, scattered around the environment. If this island was anything like Nyakuza Metro, those gems meant that the locals here wouldn’t take any other currency. “Aww, not again…” Nothing else stood out to her as an immediate cause for concern, however, and after a little wandering her roving gaze came to rest on one establishment in particular: Bancho Sushi. Even if she didn’t like sushi, she had to admit that a floating restaurant was pretty cool.

She creaked her way down the wharf, then climbed aboard. Though essentially a glorified raft kept afloat with the help of tires, Bancho Sushi was solidly built and barely rocked beneath her feet. It also looked nice, with a clean traditional wooden style supplemented by elegant cherry blossoms. Fish swam around in the holding tank, kept alive right up to the moment they were ordered to ensure the pinnacle of freshness, and on the opposite end of the long counter lounged a black-and-white cat. Nadia walked right up to it, let it sniff her, and then stroked its back, much to Chucho’s disapproval. While petting the kitty she looked around the restaurant’s interior. As one might expect it had no customers right now, but she did see a serious-looking man with black spectacles and a light blue kimono, doing some kind of prep work in the back near the fish tank. In no rush to confront her, he’d just been watching her since she arrived. Nadia gave him a wave. “Good morning! Nice place you got here. Are you Bancho?”

The sushi chef nodded stiffly. “Yes. We’re closed, though,” he said shortly, but without hostility, as if stating a matter of fact in no more words than strictly necessary. To Nadia, he didn’t seem standoffish, just somewhat reserved. “If you’re here for sushi, please come back at five.”

Probably smart to go light on the puns with this dude. Nadia treated him to one of her most pleasant smiles, though she might have just as well been smiling at a brick wall. “Oh no, I’m more interested in the place itself, see. I’m new in town, so I’m on the hunt for a job. You guys need any help here?”

Bancho looked back down at his equipment. “Depends on what you can do.” After placing a few items into a drawer, he slid it shut and leaned over the counter. “Can you prep Japanese food?”

A grimace spread across Nadia’s face as she walked over, scratching her head. Chucho stayed behind to play with the cat. “Uh…nope.”

“How’s your customer service?” Though the feral couldn’t see Bancho’s eyes, she could feel their weight.

“I mean, I’m pretty cute~” Nadia winked. “That’s all there is to it, right?”

Bancho did not look convinced. “Not necessarily. Being a good server demands finesse. And professionalism.” He paused, his brow furrowing. “You strike me as…unversed. Have you worked in this industry before?”

“N-no…” Nadia winced. “But hey, I’m lightning fast! You ever hear the phrase ‘cat-like reflexes’? That’s me all over!”

Crossing his arms, Bancho peered at her distinctive ears. “Hmm…I can see that. Tell me, miss. How are you at catching fish?”

“Fish?” Nadia glanced at the tank, then back at Bancho. She then grinned, folding her arms in a show of confidence. “Best in the business, baby!”

Bancho nodded approvingly, then stepped out from behind the counter, waving for Nadia to follow him. “At Bancho sushi, we serve only the freshest fit, caught straight from the Blue Hole ourselves. Right now, our associate Dave is our only diver. He works hard, but he isn’t what I’d call ‘fit’. With another diver, we could expand our inventory.” The two stopped in front of a small boat. In its back Nadia could see a couple scuba masks, oxygen tanks, and harpoon guns of varying quality. Bancho crossed his arms again. “That is, if you’re not afraid to get wet.”

The feral grinned. “Oh, don’t you worry about me, Mr. Bancho. With how much I love the ocean, I’m basically a catfish.” Given that she undid her Oceanid fusion, that wasn’t strictly true, but how bad could it be? “Get me in the water, and I’ll ‘maki’ you proud.”

For a few quiet seconds the two stared at each other, wordlessly. Then Bancho lifted an eyebrow. “...Huh?”

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Lewa

At last Lewa managed to make contact with someone, even if she didn't seem to be the local equivalent of a venerable and learned Turaga. The toa didn't question her qualifications; he was just glad to get help at this point, given all the hubbub. Nor did he bother correcting the woman when she called him a golem. Instead he tried to imagine what this stranger meant by 'the sickness'. Though his world had its fair share of problems, disease wasn't one of them. Was this sickness what was wrong with the child he'd been given? Before he could reply, the nun answered her own question, then came in for a closer look. Lewa held the small one out for his new acquaintance to inspect, and when her attitude took a sudden change, he was left speechless for a moment. What was going on that warranted that kind of question...?

"Nobody sent me," he said after a moment. "Someone in my travel-group left her to me to safe-keep. But I know little of humans, so I thought I'd look-find someone who could take care of her." Lewa paused, his uncertainty evident on his mask. "...Can you? Is something bad-wrong?"

World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate VG Crossover RP, reborn!)

Gonna bow out of RPG Guild for a bit, and this RP as well. Currently overwhelmed by everything I have to do, and unfortunately, I don't think that I'll be able to participate in this RP because of that. :')

@Dragonfly 9

That's a shame, wishing you well though.