[Chapter One]
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Rosifo Girtwoud woke up feeling sore and exhausted. He slept well, but never as long as he’d have liked. He could hear his roommates moving around and getting ready for their days. Sitting up in bed, he stretched and took stock. His new job was physically demanding, but it was the best job he’d ever had. By a lot. He loved having his own room in a nice place, all thanks to his generous new salary! He could even afford to eat as much as he wanted, a luxury he’d not even dreamed was possible. Last night he ate three helpings of honey glazed pork at the pub! Still clumsy from sleep, Ros shrugged on a tunic and clean slacks, pausing for a second to appreciate the lordly quality of the garments. He still couldn’t believe he owned such nice things, and the Chief just gave it to him! Well, everyone got a few, but that didn’t make it any less special. Ros put on his belt as he went downstairs to the kitchen, where a few of his roommates were eating breakfast and the landlady was pulling some fresh buns out of the wood fired oven.
“Hey there’s the champ now!” called out Rikad, his housemate and co-worker.
“Heh, there are some perks to being the lightest guy on the squad!” Ros replied, referring to the agility drill he had won at work yesterday. Three days a week of training was by far the hardest part of the job, being trained by the Chief was like weathering a storm. Terrifying and dangerous, but something you could be proud of surviving. The other three days a week they worked were a holiday in comparison. Sitting on carts and standing by warehouses was easy.
Ros devoured his huge bowl of sweetened oats and then three buttered fresh buns. Pushing back from the long table with a satisfied sigh, he got up to leave for work with Rikad. The spring morning air was brisk, and they made sure to stay out of the way of loaded carts and riders that zipped by on the narrow cobblestone streets.
“What do you reckon the Chief will have us do today?” Rikad asked.
Ros snorted, “Quit embarrassing ourselves and pick up the pace?”
“Hah! That’s hardly a guess! I liked the knife throwing we did a few weeks ago, that was fun. I hope it’s not all runs and drills, I’m still aching from yesterday,” Rikad said.
“Yeah, I like combat drills. Other than when I have to spar with the Chief. He’s like a mountain that’s fast. I think the day I get a point on him, I’ll buy the whole team a beer!” Ros motioned a lunging jab as they walked.
“We’ll be too old to drink by then!” Rikad teased.
They were in for a typical training routine, a morning lecture on tactics and formations, some solo weapon drills, a short run, then a hearty lunch delivered from the nearby deli. Other days they just called a food cart into the yard with them, but Ros liked the deli lunches better. Also the novelty of someone else buying his lunches was thrilling. Ros assumed that this must be how pretty girls felt all the time. Maybe less sore and less yelled at. But maybe not.
The real highlight of the day was Ros got to see the owner of the whole company when he came out to observe their exercises. Ros hadn’t seen a real lord up close before he started at Pandemonium, and he thought it was one of the biggest perks. Mostly he looked like a tired doctor or shopkeeper, but Ros wasn’t disappointed. He had a nobility of his bearing, clarity in his eyes and an aura of authority. Even the Chief changed when he was around him! Seeing the him defer to anyone spoke volumes to their importance. Not only was he the lord of a whole company, he was also a mage! They were super rare even before the Church started purging all those heresies in their College of Magic, but now he wasn’t even sure there were any in the city!
“Agility drills are done! Imma talk to Mage Thippily, so you lot do some king of the hill sparring; Sword ‘n board! Ros and Kedril start!” boomed Chief of Security Stanisk.
Ros staggered exhaustedly to the equipment racks to get an arming jacket, leather helm, training sword and shield.
“Mage Thippliy is watching,” he whispered reverentially to himself as he geared up.
“Mind your tone or he’ll turn you into a turnip!” called Rikad.
Kedril grinned, “Hah, He’ll turn you into a turnip, Rik. He’ll just look at Ros and see his work is already done!”
Ros used to despise Kedril. He embodied everything Ros had yearned to become: handsome, confident, affluent, and sharp-witted. The team's dynamic was confrontational, rife with competition; they raced, fought, and scored against one another all day, three days a week. It had taken Ros a while to grasp that they were, in fact, a team. Kedril, infuriatingly attractive, devoted time to helping Ros in a few drills last week and offered valuable advice. So, albeit begrudgingly, Ros began to admire him. Kedril was older by a few years, substantially larger, and appeared to be one of the few who already had some training in arms. The prospect of sparring with him didn’t excite Ros.
Fresh from drills and immediately thrown into sparring, sweat trickled into Ros's eyes. The sting impaired his vision. He repeated to himself, 'Elbows in, shield up, tip forward, hips back,’ partially to fix his stance, partially to focus. Kedril was typically in better shape than him, but now appeared even more worn out. His guard was lax and messy, creating a gaping opening. Ros seized the opportunity and struck with a swift, precise jab. In the fleeting instant the jab took, Kedril's shield snapped into position, and his tip dealt a solid blow to Ros's ribs just beneath his sword arm. It was a feint - a brilliantly executed display of weakness where he was most prepared, exactly the tactic Stanisk had explained yesterday.
“Mashed Turnip!” Kedril shouted to the cheers of the others.
“Ros! You lost because your stance is awful! Keep lower! Coiled spring, lad!” the Chief shouted from across the yard.
Ros raised his hands over his head to cede the point and sat at the end of the bench. He hated losing, but he had expected to lose. He gratefully grabbed a cup of water and watched Kedril make short work of a few more challengers. It seemed like they were picking on him, but Ros was coming to understand they were also bonding with him, and these might be the closest friends he’d ever had. Not that it was a high bar, and he didn’t like all of them, but they had his back, and that meant a lot. Finally Jourgun, the biggest lad on the team, tore into Kedril with so much energy and fury that no amount of clever tactics could stop him. Even though he knew these were his friends, seeing Kedril getting bashed in the face with a shield was almost as good as seeing a real mage!
One thing Ros appreciated about training days was that they were shorter. After the sparring, Stanisk pulled aside Kedril and Jourgun for additional work, and dismissed the rest of the men. Ros trailed behind some of his newfound friends to a peculiar place where one would sit, fully naked, in a steam-filled room, all for two glucks.
“This is a sex thing, right?” Ros asked Rikad cautiously.
“What?! Light, no! It’s to relax and heal," Rikad explained. "They place herbs on hot rocks, we sit there, sweat, and breathe in the steam. It’s excellent, you’ll love it!”
“Sounds like we’re all naked and sweaty, though?” Ros remained convinced this was some intimate activity he wasn’t fully grasping. Rikad rolled his eyes and even paid Ros’s entry fee.
Inside the dim, tiled room was surprisingly comfortable. The steam smelled slightly of herbs and medicine, and it was so thick he couldn’t even see the far wall. A quick survey of the others revealed they were just as covered in bruises as he was, which gave Ros a fresh sense of camaraderie. They towelled off, dressed, drank some cold water, and left the strange business without any hint of the carnal encounter Ros had suspected. Despite his lingering confusion about the whole place, Ros liked it and wanted to come back. He appreciated his squadmates not making a single steamed turnip joke. He was hoping that didn’t stick as a nickname, he felt it didn’t remotely suit him.
After the steam, their muscles relaxed and the day's tension eased away. Ros and Rikad were starving. It had been hours since lunch, so they headed to a nearby tavern for drinks and dinner. Being able to simply enjoy food and drink without concern for the price was an intoxicatingly fresh experience. In fact, Ros enjoyed this newfound freedom even more than the meal itself.
After a huge dinner and a few beers Ros paused, and opened up a little.
"Did you know this is the pub where I talked the Chief into hiring me?"
"Really? To be honest, I've always wondered about that. No offence, but you're a lot smaller than the rest of us." Rikad pushed away his empty plate, taking a long drink of his beer.
"Yeah, I saw the Chief in here, dressed like a shining champion, buying ladies drinks and rounds for the whole bar. He was so confident and kind and relaxed. But also obviously dangerous. I’d never seen anyone like him!" Ros gestured to the tavern maid for a refill. "I must have been a sight. My clothes were more patch than original cloth, I was so skinny you could've counted my ribs through a sweater. Not that I had sweater money!" Ros reflected on the lean muscle he'd gained in recent months with inward satisfaction.
"Did the Chief take you for a beggar?"
Ros bristled at the suggestion. "Hell no! I've never begged in my life, I've always earned my keep!" his brief flare of indignation faded immediately. "No, he thought I was a refugee, from some starving backwater. Of course, I corrected him—after he bought me dinner!"
"Hah! The proper sequence," Rikad agreed, laughing.
"Anyway, he asked about my plans. I told him I was waiting till I was eighteen to join the army and serve the Emperor."
"You've certainly filled out since I met you, but I'm not sure you'd pass the army physical even now," Rikad cautiously speculated.
"The Chief was blunter about it. 'Yer so scrawny, a necromancer would find ya offputting, the army ain't gonna waste rations on ya.'" Ros imitated Stanisk’s gruff rural northerner accent.
"Hah! That sounds about right. Which makes your wearing company purple less clear than ever!" Rikad replied.
"Well, he asked if I knew my way around the city. I said I've tread every cobblestone here, so he offered me a job running letters and picking up parcels. Better work than sweeping alleys for a half-gluck and stale bread. I figured a fancy man like him would pay alright."
The waitress finally brought the next round, and Ros paused to take a long drink. Setting his mug down, he continued. "I walked into the Chief's office, and there he was behind that tiny desk with his book and quill. He looked like a cave troll trying to be a librarian. But I wasn't gonna laugh—it was still the Chief. He said, 'We don’t got a lot for now but I’ll give you a list in the morning, and see that it gets done.' I said ain’t fancy, I don’t know how to read! He didn't lose his cool. He simply nodded and said, 'Alright, just report to me in the morning, and we’ll get you started.' Oh, and he warned me never to speak to the Mage unless spoken to, which suited me fine."
Ros took another drink of his beer, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and continued. "I was hoping for five gee a day. I’d probably have done it for a lone gluck, to be honest. So imagine my shock when he apologised that he could only offer me twenty glucks a day!"
"Where were you living, that five would've been enough?" Rikad asked, curious.
Ros, slightly flushed from the beer, leaned forward. "Under a bloody hedge!" He burst into laughter at his own expense.
"That's rough man," Rikad commented, shaking his head.
Ros nodded. "It was, but it's behind me now. After a month or so of running errands, the Chief finally let me join the crew he was training. That's how I ended up a part of the elite guard of a learned lord mage."
Rikad, his face ruddy, pointed his finger at Ros’s chest. "It’s your attitude! You always train the hardest. It’s changed the whole team's tone."
Ros nodded again, serious. "I gotta! The fifteen hundred gee I make every month now is probably more than I did in the last decade. Total! I bet we make as much as a knight commander does leading a thousand soldiers!"
Rikad looked at him suspiciously. "Wait, a decade? Aren't you still a teenager?"
Ros shrugged. "It's been a long, hard time. Anyway, I know I promised to go to see that folk band with you tonight, but I'm spent. I think I might call it an early night." He finished the beer in two long gulps and stood up.
"I get it. Besides, tomorrow's Sunday. We can finally sleep in!" Rikad pointed out.
******
Ros woke to a frantic pounding on his bedroom door. It was still dark out.
“Go away! Keep it down! You’ll wake the whole house!” Ros grumbled, mostly asleep.
“Come on man! Emergency meeting at the training yard. We gotta go now!” Rikad hoarsely whispered.
“Ah, that’s not good!” Ros threw on some clothes and headed out the door with his friend.
“Think it has something to do with what Kedril and Jourgun were doing after work?” Ros asked.
“Maybe? That was hours and hours ago, and those guys are great, and they were with the Chief,” Rikad countered.
They jogged through the mostly empty streets. The moons were behind clouds, and the dew made the cobblestones slick. The faint flickering of their leviathan oil lamp cast strange shadows in the foggy night. The city felt on edge, too many people on the streets in the middle of the night, whispering. A few times Ros thought he heard something about thunder and demons, which did nothing to calm his growing panic.
“What if something happened to Mage Thippily? Are we all unemployed now?” Ros asked, knowing Rikad knew as much as he did.
“What is the business we guard? Something to do with magically formed super secret goods that no one was allowed to talk about. I think? I should have asked,” Rikad lamented.
Finally they made it to the yard, and Kedril was standing at the gate, torch held aloft.
“Good lads! Go into the workshop and take a seat. The Chief has some tea on.” Kedril’s voice was as calm and steady as ever, but his face was pale and drawn, and his eyes never focused on them, just scanned the night intently.
“Inside? Are you sure?” Ros had never gone inside; that was the single biggest rule.
Kedril just nodded. Ros and Rikad looked at each other for courage and moved forward. The big yard door to the workshop opened a crack, and warm light was spilling out. Rikad motioned Ros to go first, and he poked his head in, fully expecting to lose it.
“Oy, is that Ros? Git your scrawny ass in here,” Chief Stanisk rumbled.
The two men felt like flies exploring a web, but inside was surprisingly normal. Five other guards were already there, and the room was a lot like any other workshop. It had planked floors, shelves and tables and one corner was even converted into a kitchen. There were a few simple stools set up, and two incredibly luxurious loungers. Like everyone else, Ros and Rikad took a stool. The Chief gestured to a kettle and mugs for the tea, but no one seemed interested.
“What’s happening, is everyone okay?” Ros finally asked.
“Short answer is yes, for now.” Stanisk said calmly. “We’ll give the other lads a few minutes to get here, then I’ll explain.”
“Holy light, sir! You aren’t wearing your armour!” This unsettled Ros more than anything he’d seen all night, it was like seeing a bear shaved. Chief was just sitting there in trousers and a shirt, sipping tea. He’d never seen the Chief without armour.
“Needs cleaned,” he answered cryptically.
Follow up questions were interrupted by the rest of the men arriving, followed by Kedril and then Jourgun, who must have been watching the far gate.
“Alright, gather round, at ease.” Stanisk started. He looked relaxed which was probably a good sign.
“You lot were hired to protect the interests of our operations. There was an attempt on Mage Thippliy’s life tonight, at his meeting. Security Specialists Kedril and Jourgun did excellent work, and I have full confidence in all of your growing abilities. Our concern is there will be additional attempts."
There was a murmur of apprehension. The mage was the company. Without him there was nothing to guard. No one here wanted to lose their jobs, but they had been suspicious from the start. The pay didn’t match the work.
Stanisk paused as Mage Thipply and the elv, that had only been speculated to exist, came down the ladder from the loft. The mage was dressed like normal, in his brown pants and a white shirt, frameless glasses and a short well maintained beard streaked with grey. The elv was wearing an oversized sweater and long stockings. It had the effect of making her upper body look human, but with the long spindly legs of a shore bird. Her huge nocturnal eyes stared at them all unblinkingly, and her long narrow fingers with too many segments wrapped around a mug of tea. Ros was both intimidated and repulsed. It was like a bird or an insect pretending to be a person, but with eyes that had intelligence and cruelty.
“Ah! Um, thank you all for coming!” The mage was directly addressing them, Ros grinned despite his fears and worries. “There have been events over the last week or so that have culminated tonight, and I no longer think that our operation in Jagged Cove is viable.” The mage saw the reaction of the crowd turn sharply negative. He hastily added, “Of course I’m not closing up shop, we’re just moving to another location. A location outside of the capital region, and I’d like you all to join us.”
Ros sighed and leaned back in relief. This wasn’t bad news at all. He’d gladly move to the bottom of the sea for the Mage. He could feel his pulse returning to normal, as other people started asking questions.
“What? I can’t leave the city, I got a wife and kids!” a guard named Theros said.
“Oh, I just started dating a baker's apprentice, is there an option to stay?” Jourgun asked.
The elv stood up, and addressed the room with an icy indifference. “This is not a negotiation. There is a ship that is leaving in about six hours. If you are on it, you will remain employed. We have also made considerations for your families. They are welcome on the ship, and you can find new homes in the town we relocate to.” She subtly nodded to the Chief before continuing. “Chief Stanisk values your skills so highly that he convinced the board of directors to offer each of you a five year contract. The contract will have some additional employment conditions, but there will be a 5000 glindi signing bonus. Follow Chief Stanisk’s instructions to get on the boat, and we’ll see you there. Or not.”
She returned to the ornate chair, and the room erupted into chaos.
“Holy light! That’s so much!”
“I’d be insane not to sign!”
“Where are we even going?”
Ros grinned from ear to ear, what’s to decide? This was the best possible outcome! Free money to see the world! Packing his bags would take no time, and he could carry everything that mattered in one trip.
Stanisk took command of the room, “You with young ‘uns, we got the company wagons for you waiting, get a move on. I’ll take the mage’s personal wagon and do a loop to Kedril’s, Eowin’s and Klive’s. The rest of you, leg it! Meet back here in three hours and tell anyone what asks, that you took a job out of the city. Be vague! Come on, pick up the pace you helpless kittens!"
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Hey there, I’m a longtime player that recently returned to the game after about a 10-year hiatus.
After being traumatized by the experience that is the online discord Roll20 community, I decided to try my luck at some good ol’ fashioned in-person D&D.
My latest online campaign hadn’t been going well for a few sessions after the DM took control of a dragon we were supposed to fight and started using it to awkwardly flirt with the only female player while the rest of us spent literal hours perpetually failing our saves against a fear aura with a seemingly unbeatable DC. The female player’s druid was okay though with her 28 Wisdom, and wearing enough artifact-tier magic items to probably qualify as an actual construct.
Anyway, there were probably some red flags I should have picked up on earlier… But by this point my standards were so low that as long as the DM could demonstrate some frontal lobe development and an absolutely basic understanding of the rules, that was good enough for me.
Regardless, all of this is irrelevant to my current predicament.
A bit of background on me. Most of my experience comes from playing 3.5 in college. The culture was a bit different back then, with less focus on player power fantasy and more on brutal campaigns with tactically difficult encounters (at least that’s how we played)... This will be somewhat relevant later.
Anyway, on with the story.
Our tale begins at the local game store with an experienced, older DM. He’s been playing D&D for much longer than me, and I get excited as we start talking about 3.5. The current campaign is 5e, which I don’t like as much, but everyone plays it and it’s fine.
We start in a default Forgotten Realms setting at level 3. The other players are: Gnoll Rogue, Orc Fighter, Halfling Cleric, Human Bard and me (Human Sorcerer).
We roll for stats, which is a red flag, and of course almost everyone cheats, but whatever… That’s just a given. I put a 16 in CHA and garbage for almost everything else, while everyone except the Bard has like, at least 2 17+’s and everything else above 13. Strangely, the DM doesn’t seem to even notice or care.
Regardless, the first session actually goes well. We introduce ourselves and meet up to guard an outpost on the edge of town from bandit raids, and fight some easy combats.
Anyway, session two comes along and the problems start.
We are wandering through the woods and suddenly get ambushed and put in an impossible combat. They have at least 5 mounted fighters, a cleric, a handful of archers and an arcane caster that nukes half the group with a fireball on round two, downing two players. They also have a ton of cover because we accidentally stumbled upon their secret camp or something, while we have none.
I’m ready for the TPK when the bandits surround us and demand our surrender, which of course we do. They say they’ll let us live if we give them all our gold, so… That happens.
We tend to our wounds and stumble back to the outpost, report our failure and everyone generally feels like shit… But the outpost commander pays us each about half of what we lost for ‘finding the location of their camp’, which feels lame, but okay.
And then the game continues… And pretty much every combat from then on starts to turn into a repeat of this scenario.
I quickly notice that monsters have widely inconsistent stat blocks. One encounter we’ll fight 5 goblins that go down without a fight - and the next they’ll have multiple attacks, magic weapons and armor, absurd saves, advantage on pretty much everything, 30+ hit points each, etc.
We actually had a combat where I upcasted my Sleep to second level and affected literally 0 goblins. The DM said they worked for a powerful wizard who gave them focuses to make them immune. I then wasted a turn casting Web in an advantageous spot, and all 8 goblins passed their save without fail (except for one) over three rounds… Which is pretty much statistically impossible even for creatures with moderately high reflex saves.
To make things worse, the encounters seemed to be specifically tailored to counter our party. Whenever we found a strategy that worked, the monsters magically either spontaneously happened to have a solution, or the next fight was even worse.
One time the entire party was routed fighting a bunch of dumb melee skeletons, and so I made myself levitate 15-feet into the air and blasted them with cantrips until they were all dead. The next fight, the skeletons were flying.
Another time, the Fighter ate an attack of opportunity from a large Owlbear so the Bard could get out of melee, only to find out that this Owlbear had multiple reactions for some reason.
Our summons would also be turned against us by ‘powerful wizards’ in the area, and on more than one occasion, when we were winning, a group of enemies were straight up teleported into the middle of our group from outside of combat and got a full round of attacks against us.
I think some of us were suspicious that the DM was just straight up cheating on rolls as well, but a few players were unfamiliar with the rules so they kinda just trusted everything. I started writing down how much HP each monster required to take down, the number of passed and failed saves, etc., and yeah - it became obvious pretty quickly, I think, that the DM was just fudging everything on his end.
And look, I’m no stranger to impossibly difficult combat or campaigns - but at least in those cases the DM was playing by the rules, so even losing could still be fun… But when my actions have no actual impact on the outcome of the battle because nothing is real, I might as well do nothing at all.
But the DM never actually killed anyone, although sometimes I kind of wished he would kill me.
The typical combat would usually go something like this: some weak monsters show up, we start fighting, are suddenly ambushed by much stronger enemies out of nowhere, which then either let us escape or just leave once we are dying and trying to escape.
And the constantly making us feel like shit extended to the story as well. There was no overarching plot. We weren’t the heroes, or even important at all, but just a ragtag band of irrelevant drifters barely scraping together enough gold to not starve.
Not only were we complete losers that could only succeed at quests by getting our asses handed to us and returning with ‘information’, but every decision we made came back to bite us in the ass.
One time we helped a poor villager woman find her son who was lost in the woods, only to be hunted down in a completely different province by a band of extremely powerful cultists who had marked the kid as a sacrifice.
Also, the Gnoll had been eating the corpses of our enemies and generally acting like a murder hobo… And originally our party had a problem with it, but the player got very defensive OOC whenever our characters (IC) tried to stop him and claimed we were ‘ruining his RP’. So I think we all kinda gave up and just ignored him.
So yeah, it turns out he ate the son of some influential noble and we were hunted down by extremely powerful bounty hunters (we were level 4 and they had a wizard who could cast 6th level spells). We frantically escaped and managed to find a body part of said noble. The DM graciously let us resurrect the kid at a church, but we had to fork over literally all of our money and almost every magic item we had earned by that point.
So on top of everything, the party was starting to fall apart. The Gnoll wanted to kill and eat just about everyone, which the Orc thought was funny… But it also made doing any sort of quest just about impossible.
By level 5, we started breaking out into PVP about once a session (usually everyone vs. the Gnoll/Orc)… In response, the Gnoll and Orc (who were newer players) started asking the DM for extremely powerful abilities (that were either incredibly vague or straight up didn’t make sense within the context of the rules) or insane equipment that they ‘should’ have because of their race/background/heritage or whatever just to get an edge - which, to his credit, the DM denied (although the Orc randomly found a +1 Flametongue Greatsword in a cave somewhere).
I do not know why I am still in this game. The DM is nice, friendly and has a very passive demeanor. He also clearly has a very deep understanding of the game across multiple editions, so I’m honestly mystified as to what he is getting out of this - as he doesn’t appear to take any kind of pleasure in just torturing us. He keeps telling us that the early game is ‘hard’ because we are just starting out and making a name for ourselves, but it never gets any easier.
I still have fun hanging out with some of the players and interacting with NPCs, but any time it comes to combat, I keep hoping in vain that this time will be different only to be slapped in the face again.
Anyway, I feel like now I know how the humans in that Ellison novel who were eternally tormented by AM must have felt.
Please help me.
Edit: I should add that the DM likes to brag about how hard his campaigns are. Which like, yeah... Your campaign is gonna be pretty hard if you just cheat.

Previous
Captain Vohr’Doe was waiting in the hangar as Kahv’Hosh set the shuttle down, a slew of emotions raging inside her, all vying to be the leading sentiment. Though, she - of course - would probably have to lean more towards 'gratitude’, if made to pick a single one. She was more than grateful that her crew were no longer in danger - and yes, that even included him - and that those pirates were no longer a threat to anyone else, either.
And then there was the obvious awe at the humans had weaponized gravity; she had heard the horror stories of what could happen if a gravity plate malfunctioned - she had to have electrical replace the ones in the gym just a few days ago, as Kyle had pushed them up to 15G in his training - but to actually use it as a weapon?...
And, of course, there was an overwhelming amount of anger. Well, maybe not anger, per se; but there wasn’t really a word for the feeling between extreme frustration, and anger. What kept her from completely registering it as anger was her wholehearted belief that he had good intentions for having something so destructive on board her ship. But that only just tempered the vexation she felt at him having smuggled a gravity bomb onto her ship! Not only that, but there were two crates that had been marked as ‘gravity generators’, which she had initially assumed were for his comfort, to put his room - or possibly his campsite - to a more comfortable gravity. But she could see now how very wrong she was.
As the door to the shuttle opened, she watched first Admiral Shane, then Kahv’Hosh exit the craft. Kyle exited after a delay of a few seconds, and after sweeping the hangar with his gaze, he lowered it when it met her’s, looking for all intents like her nephew when he gets caught doing something he shouldn’t, and - not for the first time - an almost motherly feeling came over her. Which wasn’t so far out of the question, seeing as - according to the data provided on them - humans were by far the shortest-lived people in Galactic Records, where the shortest-lived species after them - the rahv’oyeck - averaged around 500 years, give or take a few decades.
Not to mention the fact that - for however short a time, he was a part of her crew, and as such, she instinctively felt protective of him, the fact that - as his captain - she was responsible for him notwithstanding. Plus, he really did seem to be almost ‘childlike’ at times, with a simple - almost naive - attitude towards the goings on around him. Not that he was clueless when it came to interacting with others; as many of the crew had come to find out, apparently.
But it was his obvious contrition that tempered her attitude, so that when they had made their way over to her, it had simmered down to intense irritation. Once they were standing before her, Kyle finally looked up to meet her gaze, and she felt her heart soften further at the expression on his face; not that she would let him know that, of course.
“Would you care to explain yourself, Mr. Redding?” she asked, being sure to keep the edge to her voice; she couldn't be seen as ‘soft’.
“I didn't know that they were sending it,” he began quickly, ”I only found out about it after I got to my equipment room, the first time.”
“Them,” she replied, and at his confused look, continued,
“Them; plural: there were two crates listed under ‘gravity generators’, and they were both the same size. I don't believe that the other one actually contains gravity plates stacked up; not this time.”
Kyle gave a look of understanding, and she believed that he really did momentarily forget about the other one.
“Right,” he said, “Two. Yeah, I didn't know they were gonna send them…”
“And afterward, it never occurred to you to tell me that you had two bombs on board that could make this entire ship - and everyone on board - become one dense atom?!” A little more edge crept into her voice than she would have liked at that moment. It was Admiral Shane, however, who answered; taking a step forward, he cleared his throat.
“Captain, if I may?...” It was the respect - the deference - in his voice that gave her pause, and helped to calm her thoughts a bit. She nodded in affirmation, and he continued,
“What would happen to us - in the immediate sense - if this ship were to lose all power right now; primary, and emergency backup power?”
The question seemed so random, that her mind basically blanked out, and she found herself saying the first thing that came to her mind.
“We would all begin floating, seeing as the artificial gravity would be out, as well.”
“Precisely,” he continued, “And short of directly supplying power to the artificial gravity, how could we get the plates to work?”
She began to understand his point.
“I see where this is going, Admiral, but unless I’m very much mistaken, there were no ports on that box that would accept any power crystals with the required energy to fuel that miniature black hole. Which means that it had power the whole time.”
“That's true,” he said in a mollifying tone, “But the power to the core was disconnected, and needed a code that would cause even an A.I. trouble hacking it, as it's a 300,000-page code, randomly coded in every written language known to humankind. There are even symbols in the code that don't show up on the screen, if someone were to try to hack it manually; an A.I. is needed to even crack the code within a year. And only Kay’Eighty has the codes for those two programmed into her memory.
“So,” he concluded, “While I agree entirely with you that he should have let you know about them, I can give you my word - on behalf of the honor of all humans - that no amount of damage could cause an accidental activation. While I won't say that the other one is harmless, I can assure you that there is no chance of it going off by accident. However, I won’t hesitate to take it off of your ship, if you so desire.”
She took a moment to digest everything that Admiral Shane said, and eventually came to a conclusion.
“No, I’ll allow him to keep it on the ship; I would say that there's likely never going to be a reason that we would need it, but I would have said the same thing this morning, and we can all see how wrong that was.”
“If you like,” Kyle offered, “We could attach it to like, a missile, or something, and Kay’Eighty could give you a data chip with the code for it.”
She thought for a few seconds, then nodded.
“That sounds acceptable; but what if we need it detached?”
“She can attach it to the outside on a molecular level with her nanobots, and detach it the same way.”
She nodded her head, and then sighed.
“Well, I won't pretend that I’m not happy about the way this all played out; still, I’m just glad their cargo holds and brigs showed no signs of life. At least we didn't send any innocents to their doom with that ploy. You could have at least told me what it was when I asked you why you needed the scan of the pirate ships in the first place.”
“Yeah,” he replied in that casual tone of voice that she would tolerate from few others, further enforcing that matronly feeling over him, “But we didn't have time for you to be pissed off at me, then… But - for the record - I am sorry for not telling you; I should have let you know a lot sooner.”
She gave him the sternest look she could muster in that moment, and replied,
“I’ll accept your apology if - and only if - you let me examine this fruit tree of yours.”
Kyle's face brightened, and a wide smile appeared as he said,
“Of course; you could've come seen it any time.”
She smiled at him, and turned to leave, passing Kah’Ri, who had held back - as per her request - while she talked to Kyle about the heavy ordnance he had on her ship. She heard the impact of the two, and the sound of them kissing, that was immediately mixed with the sound of hurried footsteps as Kahv’Hosh and Admiral Shane gave the two their privacy.
The meeting with the Council went smoother than she could have expected, with them simply stating that - as a interstellar ambassador - Kyle was authorized for a higher level of weaponry utilized in his protection, and as his current ship of transport, the Golden Egg had the authorization to use such weapons, if need be. They did - however - require any and all recordings of the interaction to be sent to the Council, for analysis of their capabilities.
There was also the matter of Grol’Rosh, the suul’mahr representative who had watched the probe’s descent into the dark of the planet below. The doctors felt that it was best to keep him in a medically induced coma, as when he was conscious - and heavily restrained - he was moaning and whimpering, rambling incoherently about the ‘darkness that sees, hiding the sea of flesh’, of ‘clawed feet on chitinous arms, too-long hands reaching from fanged tentacles’; and the sound, which he mentioned as the ‘screams of the damned from so many mouths, they know all, 'THEY ARE THE HOLES LIKE EYES!!!’
She noted the looks that ranged form disquiet, to disgust, but it was between the humans that she saw a look of understanding horror pass.
“But…” Kyle began weakly, looking at Admiral Shane, “That was just a movie. Wha-…?”
“Well,” the Admiral replied in a slightly dazed voice, “I think it’s safe to say that blowing the planet up is out of the question.”
“Or what?” Kyle began in amused incredulity, “A piece of it’s gonna hit a wormhole, and go back in time to Alaska sometime before the 1980’s?” The laugh he ended this with was close to hysterical, to which the Admiral shrugged.
“At this point, I wouldn’t rule anything out. However, the more likely scenario would be that it lands on a different planet, wreaksand havoc from there. Even worse would be for it to hit a previously uncontacted, sapient species’ home world. The results of a single cell of this… thing’s biomass were to make it to a planet with living creatures on it would be beyond catastrophic. There’s no amount of destruction - short of throwing it into a star, or a black hole - that I would trust the safety of the galaxy to, when it comes to the lifeform that calls this planet its home.”
Chairwoman Hahss’Chom spoke up at this.
“While I obviously have no knowledge of this movie the two of you reference, I must say that your assessments of this seem to be at least plausible. I don’t know so much about the time travel aspect, but it would seem that this would be the best summary of the events, here. It would appear that a sapient race evolved on this planet, and that their Gift was that of assimilation. At some point, it would seem they began assimilating each other, until they reached a critical mass, and ‘they’ became ‘it’. And from Grol’Rosh’s description, it doesn’t sound as if this is a pleasant experience for whatever they… it has become. I believe that it is not only a matter of protection for the wider galaxy - universe, even - but also as an act of mercy that we should put this… thing out of its misery.” There was a general murmur of agreement around the council chambers as no one seemed to want to disagree with that sentiment.
They moved the Golden Egg to the other side of the system from the planet, keeping the sun between it and them. Upon hearing about the ‘darkness that sees’, Kyle had exclaimed that that was what had bothered him so much about the planet; the darkness was watching them. They didn’t want to find out if the life form on the planet may be able to ‘stack’ itself ‘up’, away from the planet, and reach out to the ship were they to get over the dark side, but at the same time, no one wanted to be under the gaze of such a massive predator.
They were parked in that system for almost an entire Standard week, though, it should have been longer; however, with their A.I. able to make the calculations for them, they were able to drop further into subspace, where not only do the ‘shadows’ become larger - therefore reducing the ‘space’ needed to travel - but the speed of your craft rose exponentially, so it was extremely easy to overshoot one’s target, going a ‘shorter’ distance at a greatly multiplied speed.
The moon/ship was amazing to behold. It had - originally - had an outer layer of ice, with an inner ocean, and a deeper ice layer, followed by a rocky mantle, and heavy iron core. The humans - but really, the A.I. - had mined out the iron core, and used it in building the outer shell of the craft. The water was harvested - according to their records - and support columns on the inside were used to maintain integrity of the craft. It now appeared for all intents and purposes as a giant metal moon, with engines on one end, and millions of lights that dotted its surface, obviously viewports. A close-up scan showed that it was blanketed in guns, but those were obviously only big enough to serve as defense; it was apparent that this ship wasn’t built as a gunner.
Once it had come into the system - keeping out of ‘view’ from its dark side - they enveloped the planet with the craft’s tractor beam, the space around the planet lighting up to an almost gray aura, as the beam took hold. Once they had reported a full grip of the planet, the Europa Contingency dropped back into subspace, the planet ‘disappearing’ with them, only to ‘reappear’ around an hour later, the ship’s massive engines working more efficiently in subspace to move the much larger planet. Once they reappeared, the light around the planet went out as the Europa Contingency released it from the tractor beam, dropping back into subspace for an easier retreat from the sun.
No one wanted to go to look at what was happening to the planet, which would entail either getting into its range of ‘vision’, and also the possibility of seeing whatever it was that drove the suul’mahr representative insane. Readings showed the loss of mass, as the planet was burnt up in the corona of the star, and everyone watched on as the sun continued to consume its wayward planet. With the planet also having been thrown - not simply having 'fallen' - into the sun, it wasn’t long before it had been fully encased in the cleansing fires of the star.
She was also relieved to see that the humans had appropriately somber expressions, obviously taking no joy in the destruction - the mass loss of… ‘life’ - that they were responsible for. They watched the reading coming in with the seriousness of attending a loved one’s funeral, and never spoke a word, not in praise, or even the acknowledgement of what was happening. She was glad to see that they weren’t entirely aggressive, that while they had the capacity to not only think of these types of weapons, but to also create them, that they weren’t the type of people who would use them so willingly. She could see in their faces the regret they had in destroying this planet, even as it was done to save countless others; for someone would eventually break quarantine, either to try to exploit the resources ‘available’, or to use the ‘lifeform’ on the planet for their own twisted ploys. And so this was a necessary evil; though they were empathetic enough to realize it for the evil that it was.
After they had witnessed the destruction of the planet, the Admirals insisted on escorting the Golden Egg to Captala’Ellats, the space station that was the next stop on their itinerary. Not having any reason to refuse a military escort, Captain Vohr’Doe graciously accepted, and they were soon on their way; this had certainly earned a bit of a reprieve for her crew, and she wouldn’t say no to a bit of shore leave, herself.

The time it took to travel between that system, and the station went by fairly quickly for Kyle. He’d been alone most of his life, with little to no friends, so to have a group of friends now - who actually wanted to spend time with him, who would seek him out to do so - brought him to a new high that he had never acquired in his memory. But having acquired a girlfriend - one who came from a people whose culture emphasized affection - brought him to a level of bliss that he didn’t think was possible. Kah’Ri had taken to spending her nights in his room, as the only real difference between general, and officer’s quarters was a bigger gym, that also served as a bit of a lounge for the officers.
He had - of course - applied for shore leave, and it had been immediately approved. Kah’Ri had also applied, and likewise was approved immediately; she had apparently never really gone on shore leave that much, only ever going at certain spots that were closer to any drahk’mihn colonies they happened to go near, or similar space stations. They had opted to get a hotel separate from the one that the Captain would be hiring to room the crew, as staying in the same hotel as the rest of the crew on the same space station would be little different than being on the ship. Zeck’Tish had recommended her cousin’s hotel, stating that he could use the business. Not that he was failing - Captala’Ellats was a major space station along the trading lanes - but with the divide between insectoid, and vertebrate species, he didn’t get as much business as others might. Of course the insectoid races all patronized his hotel, but with the insectoid species making up only about a third of all known species in the Federation, that wasn’t as much business as one might like.
And so he was currently on a call with Kohr’Sahr and Kahs’Hahn, having invited them to meet up a few days prior.
“... and so we’ll have to stop by the Council Headquarters to give our testimony of our time spent with you,” Kahs’Hahn was saying through Kohr’Sahr, “But we should be able to meet up tomorrow; we’ll send you a message when we arrive on-station, and we’ll go from there.”
“Sounds good,” Kyle said, just as he heard the door open; he’d given Kah’Ri the authorization to unlock his bedroom door without her security card, and she’d authorized him for her’s, in turn, “We’ll see you, then.”
“We?” Kohr’Sahr asked - he had long since learned to tell the difference between their slight accents when talking.
Kyle turned to Kah’Ri, smiling as he put his arm around her waist, and she slipped her tail around his, while wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He noticed her eyes widen slightly as she saw who was on screen, and he looked in time to see Kohr’Sahr’s eyes also widen in shock. He opened his mouth slightly, and Kyle noticed the barely perceptible shake of Kah’Ri’s head. Kohr’Sahr then cleared his throat, and said,
“Well… it seems as if we made quite the impact on you, eh Kyle?” ending in an awkward chuckle.
“Well,” he continued, “I don’t want to keep you from packing; Kyle, we’ll talk later. It was nice meeting you,” he added to Kah’Ri, and before either of them could reply, he cut the call short. Kah’Ri gave a soft sigh, then turned to walk to the bag she’d left on the floor by the ‘wall’ in front of the door.
“Come on,” she said, “We’ve docked with the station, and it’s time for us to go.”
Grabbing his own bag from the bed, he followed after her, locking his door behind them, and slipping his arm back around her waist.
“Did you know him?” he asked as they made their way to the elevators; she sighed lightly, but answered with a simple,
“No.”
“Well,” he pressed gently, “He seemed to know you… What are you, like, a runaway princess, or something?” While he finished with a light chuckle, Kah’Ri gave another slight sigh, and stopped walking. Kyle looked at her, feeling a growing sense of unease.
“Holy shit,” he said as she remained silent, “Are you?!”
She closed her eyes for a second, then turned to look into his eyes.
“I promise,” she said, and he was absorbed by the genuine care in her gaze, “I’ll tell you everything; but not right now. Later, when it’s just you and me, I promise I’ll tell you the truth.”
He looked into her eyes for a second, seeing the tears that wanted to come, and simply reached out, putting his hand on her cheek, and drawing her in for a kiss. As they separated, he gave her a small wink, and said,
“C’mon, let’s go see this station.” She gave him a shy smile, and they set off again.
After they’d been checked out by one of the other security chiefs, they were met by a crowd of their crew mates, all of whom were milling about outside the ship. They were soon informed why, as the Captain came up to them and informed them that the Federation Council was conducting interviews with a number of the crew, most notably those who’d had contact with Kyle; they would be conducted by the Council Representative for their people. Kyle also had an interview scheduled, though his would be with the suun’mahs Representative, in a mirror reason for the interviews of the rest of the crew: where the crew was obviously being interviewed to see how the newest species fit in from their point of view, he would be interviewed to see how other humans might react to the Federation, along with a chance to voice any grievances of his own.
Soon enough, they had all been contacted by their respective Representatives, and led off into separate rooms. Kyle was glad to see that this wasn’t an interrogation room, again, looking more like a general conference room. The suun’mahs who was to be interviewing him was male, and hadn’t seemed taken aback by the presence of Cheshire, indicating that while he may - or may not - have known about Cheshire himself, the human drive to turn predators into traveling companions was nothing new to him.
“Well, Ambassador Redding, this shouldn’t take too long; a few questions about your time in the Federation, so far, and then we can have you out of here, and enjoying your time off.”
“Thank you,” he replied, “And please, call me Kyle.”
Representative Ran’Teek smiled as he put what Kyle recognized as a holocamera on the table.
“Of course,” he stated, “You don’t mind if I record this, do you?”
“Of course not,” Kyle responded.
The questioning indeed didn’t take very long, barely even ten minutes worth of explanation, while other parts he was able to supply with a simple transfer of video data. Kay’Eighty made her appearance for that, and Representative Ran’Teek had a few questions for her, as well. Mostly about what she may need for the A.I. to be properly accommodated in the Federation, though he was obviously in untrodden ground, on that topic. Soon enough, they were done, and had exited the room.
“Well, Kyle,” Representative Ran’Teek stated as they made their way to the ‘streets’ of the station, “I guess this is where we part ways; unless you’d like for me to show you around? I still have quite a bit of time before our ship leaves, and it would be my pleasure to show you a few sights.”
Kyle checked the time on his wrist, and seeing that he also had no message from Kah’Ri telling him she was done, he could see no reason to refuse.
“Sure,” he replied, smiling, “That would be great.”
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Ability: The Tarot-Tarot Fruit allows the user to create, shape and manipulate tarot cards. The user is able to create a full deck of tarot cards, and each card gives the user a unique one-time use ability.
Once a card is drawn the effect will immediately be in use and the card (as soon as the power has been used) will disappear and (Like a Vivre card in reverse) will become a small piece of the tarot card that slowly becomes a full card (The user is able to expend extra stamina to speed up the process of completing the card), Once the card is whole again it can be used immediately.
The time taken to regain a full card varies, if the user does not put in any energy of their own to regain a card they have used the process can take a month, but with energy that process can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a few hours and even with extreme levels of energy being put into the card and a decent level of mastery over the fruit the user can reduce the time even more to about ten minutes.

Weaknesses:

1. Card Limitation: The user can only create a limited number of tarot cards at a time, a typical full deck of tarot cards. Once a card is used, it takes time for the user to replenish their deck.
2. Physical Vulnerability: The user is vulnerable while creating and manipulating tarot cards, requiring focus and concentration. Any interruption or attack during this process can disrupt their abilities.
3. Card Dependence: The user relies heavily on the tarot cards for their abilities. If their cards are lost, damaged, or stolen, they lose access to those specific abilities until they can create new ones.

Abilities:

1. The Fool - The user gains the ability of unpredictability and adaptability. The Fool card represents a journey into the unknown, and as such, the user can temporarily access abilities from other drawn cards, mimicking their effects for a short period of time. However, the mimicry is not as potent as the original card's ability. The Fool card adds an element of surprise and versatility to the user's arsenal, making them unpredictable and challenging to defeat.
2. The Magician - The user gains the ability to manipulate and control the fundamental elements of the universe. They can create, shape, and manipulate all four classical elements: earth, air, fire, and water. This includes the ability to generate powerful elemental attacks, create barriers or shields, manipulate the environment, and even transmute matter to some extent. The user can also perform alchemical experiments and create potions with various effects, utilizing their mastery over the elements. The Magician card represents the user's proficiency in manipulating the basic building blocks of existence, making them a formidable force to be reckoned with.
3. The High Priestess - The user gains enhanced intuition and psychic abilities. They can tap into the collective unconscious and gain knowledge or insights about the past, present, and potential futures. They can also create psychic barriers to protect themselves or others from mental intrusion. Additionally, they have the power to manipulate the flow of time within their own mind, allowing them to process information and make decisions at an accelerated rate.
4. The Empress - The user gains the ability to manipulate and control plant life. They can accelerate plant growth, shape vines and branches, and even communicate with plants on a basic level. They can create barriers and traps using thorny vines or unleash powerful plant-based attacks. The user can also extract medicinal properties from plants to create healing remedies or toxins for offensive purposes. Additionally, they possess an inherent connection to nature, granting them enhanced vitality and resilience when in natural environments.
5. The Emperor - The user gains the ability to manipulate and control authority and leadership. They can project an aura of dominance and command respect from others. The user can temporarily enhance their own leadership skills, making others more inclined to follow their orders or be influenced by their suggestions. They can also create illusions of grandeur and authority, temporarily intimidating or subduing opponents. Additionally, the user gains a limited control over objects and structures, allowing them to manipulate and reshape them to a certain extent. This ability can be used defensively to create barriers or fortifications, or offensively to create weapons or traps.
6. The Hierophant - The user gains the ability to tap into spiritual energy and manipulate the spiritual realm. They can communicate with spirits, channel their energy, and perform rituals or ceremonies to achieve various effects. This ability allows the user to gain knowledge from the spiritual realm, perform exorcisms, or even summon and command spiritual beings to aid them in battle or other tasks. The Hierophant card grants the user a deeper understanding of the supernatural and the ability to harness its power.
7. The Lovers - The user gains the ability to manipulate emotions and create bonds between individuals. They can enhance or dampen emotions, influencing the feelings and relationships of others. They can create temporary alliances or induce temporary infatuation or loyalty. The user can also sense the emotional connections between people, allowing them to detect hidden relationships or feelings.
8. The Chariot - The user gains enhanced speed, agility, and control over vehicles or any means of transportation. They can manipulate the momentum and direction of vehicles, making them move faster or change their course abruptly. The user can summon and control a spectral chariot, allowing them to traverse land, sea, or air with ease. Additionally, they can create temporary tracks or roads for their chariot to travel on, even in difficult terrains. The Chariot ability grants the user a formidable advantage in transportation and mobility, making them highly versatile in combat and exploration scenarios.
9. Strength - The user gains enhanced physical strength and durability, surpassing the limits of a regular human. They can perform feats of great strength, such as lifting heavy objects or overpowering opponents. Additionally, they possess a heightened resistance to physical harm, allowing them to withstand attacks that would normally injure or incapacitate others. However, it's important to note that the user's enhanced physical abilities are not limitless. They may experience fatigue and exhaustion after prolonged use, requiring rest and recovery. Additionally, their strength does not grant them invincibility, and they can still be defeated through other means such as strategic attacks or weaknesses unrelated to physical prowess.
10. The Hermit - The user gains the ability to manipulate shadows and darkness to a greater extent. They can create a cloak of darkness that grants them enhanced stealth and invisibility, making it difficult for others to detect their presence. They can also manipulate shadows to create defensive barriers or offensive tendrils that can immobilize or restrain opponents. The user can tap into the knowledge and wisdom of solitude, gaining heightened perception and insight, allowing them to uncover hidden truths or see-through illusions. Additionally, they can create pockets of darkness that distort light and sound, creating areas of silence or darkness that can disorient or confuse enemies. The Hermit card provides the user with enhanced introspection and self-reflection, enabling them to understand themselves and their surroundings on a deeper level.
11. The Wheel of Fortune - The user gains the ability to manipulate luck and probability. They can alter the likelihood of certain events occurring, increasing their chances of success or causing misfortune for their opponents. They can change the outcome of random events, such as dice rolls or card draws, to their advantage. The user can also enhance their own luck, granting them temporary advantages in various situations. However, it's important to note that the user's control over luck is not absolute. The manipulation of probability is subject to chance itself, and the user cannot guarantee specific outcomes. They can only influence the odds in their favour or against their adversaries. Additionally, the effects of luck manipulation may be temporary and limited in scope, depending on the situation and the user's mastery of the ability.
12. Justice - The user gains the ability to manipulate balance and justice. They can sense imbalances in situations and adjust them accordingly. This power allows them to enhance their physical and mental abilities to their peak for a short period of time, granting them heightened strength, speed, agility, and perception. They can also create an area of influence where the concept of justice is intensified, causing those within the area to be bound by a sense of fairness and moral responsibility. This can result in individuals feeling compelled to act justly and face the consequences of their actions. The Justice ability requires a strong sense of moral judgment and a deep understanding of the concept of justice. The user must possess a firm belief in the balance of the universe and the consequences of one's actions. Without a strong moral compass, the Justice ability may not reach its full potential.
13. The Hanged Man - The user gains the ability to manipulate gravity and alter their own orientation in relation to it. They can create gravitational fields, causing objects or people to float or be pulled towards them. This ability allows them to move in unconventional ways, such as walking on walls or ceilings, and can also be used defensively to repel or immobilize opponents by manipulating their gravitational force. Additionally, the user can induce a state of suspended animation in themselves or others, temporarily slowing down bodily functions to conserve energy or avoid attacks. However, this ability is limited to gravitational manipulation and does not grant control over time manipulation.
14. Death - With the "Death" card, the user can induce decay and deterioration in their surroundings, causing objects to crumble and wither. They can also drain the vitality from their opponents, weakening them and sapping their energy. Additionally, the user gains a heightened resistance to death-related effects. They can withstand poisons, diseases, and other harmful substances that would normally be fatal, granting them a degree of immortality. However, this immunity is not absolute, as extremely powerful or specialized death-related abilities may still pose a threat. The user can also sense the presence of life forces, allowing them to detect living beings even if they are hidden or invisible. This ability grants them an advantage in tracking and locating their targets. It's important to note that while the "Death" card represents the concept of transformation and renewal, it does not grant the user the ability to control the actual concept of death. They cannot kill someone directly with this ability.
15. Temperance - The user gains the ability to manipulate the balance and harmony of elements. They can blend and mix different substances or energies, creating unique combinations with enhanced properties. For example, they could mix fire and water to create steam, or combine earth and air to create a swirling vortex. The user can also use this ability to restore balance in chaotic situations, calming conflicts or stabilizing turbulent environments.
16. The Devil - The user gains the ability to manipulate darkness and temptation. They can create and control shadows, obscuring vision or trapping opponents within darkness. Additionally, they can tempt others by amplifying their desires or fears, influencing their actions and decisions. The Devil card grants the user the power to tap into their own inner darkness and unleash it upon their opponents. They can create an aura of malevolence, causing unease and fear in those around them. This ability allows the user to manipulate negative emotions and temptations, making it difficult for others to resist their influence. With the power of The Devil, the user can manifest dark tendrils or shadowy constructs, which can be used for offensive and defensive purposes. They can ensnare opponents, drain their energy, or even manipulate the shadows to form weapons for close combat. However, it's important to note that The Devil's power comes with a price. The user must exercise caution, as delving too deep into darkness may risk their own sanity and moral compass. Additionally, the manipulation of negative emotions and temptations can have long-term consequences on the user's psyche and relationships with others.
17. The Tower - The user gains the ability to manipulate structures and cause destruction. By drawing "The Tower" card, the user can create powerful seismic waves or generate localized destructive explosions. They can also disintegrate or collapse buildings and other structures with their abilities. This power is particularly effective against fortifications, defences, and barriers. However, it's important to note that the use of "The Tower" card comes with risks and limitations. The user should exercise caution when wielding this power, as its indiscriminate destruction can harm innocent bystanders or even themselves if they're not careful. Additionally, the user may find it challenging to control the magnitude and range of their destructive capabilities, potentially leading to unintended consequences.
18. The Star - The user gains the ability to manipulate celestial energy and harness the power of stars. They can create and control starlight, using it for offensive or defensive purposes. They can generate dazzling light beams or create protective barriers using starlight. Additionally, they can tap into the energy of the stars to enhance their own physical abilities, granting them heightened strength, speed, and agility. When the user activates The Star card, a radiant star symbol appears before them, serving as a focal point for their celestial abilities. They can channel the energy through their body or project it outward, unleashing devastating star-based attacks. The intensity and potency of their powers depend on their skill and mastery of this particular card.
19. The Moon - The user gains the ability to manipulate illusions and emotions. They can create realistic illusions that can deceive the senses of others, making them see, hear, and feel things that are not there. Additionally, they can manipulate the emotions of those around them, inducing fear, happiness, sadness, or any other desired emotion. When the user invokes "The Moon" card, they can create complex illusions that can affect multiple senses simultaneously. They can make themselves or others invisible, create lifelike illusions of objects or people, or even alter the perception of time and space within the illusion. The emotional manipulation aspect of this ability allows the user to influence the feelings of others. They can amplify existing emotions, suppress emotions, or even implant false emotions in their targets. By manipulating emotions, the user can create distractions, incite conflicts, or manipulate people to act in certain ways. However, it's important to note that while illusions and emotional manipulation can be powerful, they are limited by the user's creativity and the understanding of the target's psyche. Skilled individuals with strong mental fortitude or abilities to detect illusions may be more resistant to these effects.
20. The Sun - The user gains the ability to manipulate solar energy and harness the power of sunlight. They can create intense beams of light that can blind or burn opponents. Additionally, they can absorb solar energy to enhance their physical attributes, granting them increased strength, speed, and endurance. The user can also project solar flares or create protective shields using solar energy. When the user activates The Sun card, they radiate a brilliant golden light, symbolizing their connection to the sun. This card grants the user immense power during daylight hours, making them a formidable force in sunny environments. However, the user's abilities may be weakened or diminished in the absence of sunlight or in shaded areas. It's important for the user to strategically plan their actions and take advantage of sunny conditions to fully utilize the potential of The Sun card.
21. Judgement - The user gains the ability to pass judgment and enforce consequences. When the user draws "The Judgement" card, they can evaluate the actions and intentions of individuals and determine their fate. They have the power to render judgments and enforce corresponding punishments or rewards based on their assessments. This ability allows the user to hold others accountable for their actions and mete out justice accordingly. They can expose the truth, uncover hidden motivations, and reveal secrets. Additionally, the user can invoke the power of "The Judgement" to cleanse and purify, removing corruption or negativity from individuals or environments. This ability can also be used defensively to shield against attacks or to grant temporary invulnerability as a form of protection. It's important to note that the user's ability to pass judgment is based on their own moral compass and understanding of justice. Their judgments may be subjective and influenced by their own biases or beliefs. Additionally, the consequences enforced by "The Judgement" card are not absolute and can be subject to interpretation or negotiation.
22. The World - The user of the Tarot-Tarot Fruit gains the ability to summon and control "The World" card. When thrown, this card has the power to trap anyone it makes contact with within a dimension known as "The World" for a duration of 24 hours. The trapped individual is completely cut off from the outside world and unable to escape until the time limit expires. While trapped within "The World," the victim experiences a suspended state of time and remains unconscious. They are essentially frozen in time and unable to age, interact with their surroundings, or engage in any activities. However, their physical condition remains intact, and they do not require sustenance or suffer from any bodily harm during this period. After the 24-hour duration elapses, the trapped individual is automatically ejected from "The World" and returns to the location where they were initially trapped. The person's memory of the time spent within "The World" may be hazy or fragmented, depending on the individual's mental fortitude.

It's important to note that this ability is all the cards are limited to a single use (at a time, ie they cannot be stacked or have multiple of the same card in the deck at one time), as each card created by the user of the Tarot-Tarot Fruit provides a unique one-time ability. After a card (eg "The World") is used, it disappears from the deck and must be replenished over time.

Awakening:

The user's awakening with the Tarot-Tarot Fruit allows them to reach the pinnacle of their abilities and gain greater control over their tarot-based powers.

Card Fusion:

After awakening the Tarot-Tarot Fruit, the user gains the ability to fuse multiple tarot cards together, creating new and unique abilities that combine the powers of the individual cards. By selecting specific tarot cards and infusing them with their own energy, the user can create a fused card that represents the combined essence of the chosen cards.
Card fusion requires concentration and a deep understanding of the individual cards' powers. The user must carefully select the tarot cards they wish to fuse and channel their energy into the fusion process. Once the fusion is complete, a new tarot card is created, representing the combined abilities of the fused cards.
The abilities of the fused card can vary greatly depending on the chosen combination. For example, fusing The Magician and The High Priestess cards may result in the ability to manipulate elemental energy with heightened psychic control. The possibilities are vast, limited only by the user's creativity and knowledge of the tarot cards.
However, it's important to note that card fusion consumes a significant amount of the user's stamina and energy. The more powerful and complex the fused ability, the greater the strain it puts on the user. Additionally, the user must have access to the individual tarot cards they wish to fuse, as they cannot fuse cards they do not possess.
Card fusion adds a new layer of versatility and unpredictability to the user's arsenal. By combining the powers of different tarot cards, they can create unique abilities tailored to specific situations or opponents. The fused cards can be used in the same way as the individual cards, granting the user temporary one-time use abilities.
However, just like with the individual tarot cards, the user is limited by the number of fused cards they can create at a time. Once a fused card is used, it takes time for the user to replenish their deck and create new fusions. The user must carefully manage their resources and plan their strategies accordingly.
Overall, the ability to fuse tarot cards expands the user's range of possibilities and allows them to adapt their powers to different challenges. It requires careful thought and understanding of the individual cards' abilities, as well as strategic thinking in combining them to create powerful and unique fused abilities.

Summoning Archetypes:

With their awakening, the user of the Tarot-Tarot Fruit gains the ability to summon powerful archetypal entities associated with each tarot card. These entities embody the essence and symbolism of the respective cards, amplifying the user's abilities and granting them additional powers.

1. The Fool's Archetype: The Trickster - This archetype embodies chaos and unpredictability. When summoned, the Trickster grants the user heightened agility, reflexes, and an even greater degree of adaptability. They can create illusions and manipulate probability to deceive and confuse opponents, making them unpredictable in battle.
2. The Magician's Archetype: The Alchemist - This archetype represents mastery over the elements and the manipulation of energies. When summoned, the Alchemist enhances the user's control over the fundamental elements. They can transmute matter, manipulate energy flows, and unleash devastating elemental attacks with even greater power and precision.
3. The High Priestess's Archetype: The Oracle - This archetype embodies wisdom and foresight. When summoned, the Oracle enhances the user's psychic abilities and intuition. They can delve into the depths of the collective unconscious, gaining profound insights into the past, present, and future. The Oracle's presence grants the user heightened perception and a deeper understanding of their surroundings.
4. The Empress's Archetype: The Nature Guardian - This archetype embodies the power of nature and its regenerative properties. When summoned, the Nature Guardian enhances the user's control over plant life, allowing them to manipulate flora with even greater precision and strength. They can summon powerful vines, create massive plant-based barriers, and tap into the life force of nature to replenish their own vitality.
5. The Emperor's Archetype: The Sovereign - This archetype represents authority and control. When summoned, the Sovereign amplifies the user's leadership abilities, making their commands even more compelling and influential. They can create illusions of grandeur and authority on a larger scale, instilling fear or admiration in their opponents. The Sovereign's presence grants the user heightened control over objects and structures, allowing them to reshape their surroundings to a greater extent.
6. The Hierophant's Archetype: The Spirit Guide - This archetype embodies spiritual guidance and connection. When summoned, the Spirit Guide enhances the user's ability to tap into the spiritual realm. They can communicate with spirits, summon and command spiritual entities, and channel spiritual energy with even greater potency. The Spirit Guide's presence grants the user a deeper understanding of the supernatural and access to more powerful spiritual abilities.
7. The Lovers' Archetype: The Charmer - This archetype represents the power of emotions and their influence on relationships. When summoned, the Charmer enhances the user's ability to manipulate emotions and create bonds. They can intensify or suppress emotions on a larger scale, influencing the feelings and actions of multiple individuals simultaneously. The Charmer's presence grants the user an even greater sensitivity to emotional connections, allowing them to detect hidden relationships or intentions.
8. The Chariot's Archetype: The Navigator - This archetype embodies mastery over transportation and mobility. When summoned, the Navigator enhances the user's speed, agility, and control over vehicles or means of transportation. They can create and control spectral vehicles on a larger scale, allowing for faster and more versatile travel. The Navigator's presence grants the user the ability to manipulate terrain and create temporary paths or roads over longer distances.
9. Strength's Archetype: The Titan - This archetype represents immense physical power and endurance. When summoned, the Titan enhances the user's strength, durability, and resilience to an even greater extent. They can perform incredible feats of strength, withstand powerful attacks, and push their physical limits beyond what was previously possible.
10. The Hermit's Archetype: The Shadow Master - This archetype embodies mastery over darkness and stealth. When summoned, the Shadow Master enhances the user's control over shadows and grants them even greater proficiency in manipulating darkness. They can merge with shadows, becoming virtually undetectable and gaining heightened stealth abilities. The Shadow Master can create illusions and distortions within darkness, making it difficult for opponents to perceive reality accurately. They can manipulate shadows to form solid constructs, such as weapons or defensive barriers, increasing the user's offensive and defensive capabilities. With the Shadow Master's presence, the user gains enhanced control over the domain of shadows and can tap into their full potential.
11. The Wheel of Fortune's Archetype: The Fateweaver - This archetype embodies control over destiny and probability. When summoned, the Fateweaver grants the user unparalleled mastery over luck and fate. They can manipulate the outcomes of events on a larger scale, shifting the probabilities in their favor or against their adversaries. The Fateweaver's presence grants the user precognitive abilities, allowing them to glimpse into possible futures and make informed decisions. They can also alter the threads of fate, influencing the course of events to achieve desired outcomes. With the Fateweaver's guidance, the user gains ultimate control over the unpredictable nature of chance.
12. Justice's Archetype: The Balancekeeper - This archetype embodies the concept of balance and equilibrium. When summoned, the Balancekeeper enhances the user's ability to manipulate balance and justice. They can restore balance to chaotic situations, harmonizing conflicting forces and resolving disputes. The Balancekeeper's presence grants the user heightened control over their physical and mental abilities, pushing them to their peak performance. They can deliver swift and precise justice, punishing wrongdoers and protecting the innocent. With the Balancekeeper's guidance, the user gains an unwavering sense of fairness and an unyielding determination to maintain equilibrium.
13. The Hanged Man's Archetype: The Gravity Master - This archetype embodies mastery over gravity and altered orientation. When summoned, the Gravity Master amplifies the user's gravitational manipulation abilities to new heights. They can manipulate gravitational fields on a larger scale, creating intense gravitational pulls or nullifying gravity in specific areas. The Gravity Master's presence grants the user enhanced control over their own orientation and the ability to manipulate the gravitational forces acting upon themselves and others. They can alter the direction and magnitude of gravitational pulls, granting them unparalleled mobility and maneuverability. With the Gravity Master's assistance, the user gains supreme control over gravity itself.
14. Death's Archetype: The Revenant - This archetype represents transformation and renewal. When summoned, the Revenant further enhances the user's ability to induce decay and drain vitality. They can accelerate the deterioration of objects and organisms, causing rapid decay and withering. The Revenant's presence grants the user heightened resistance to death-related effects, granting them a greater degree of immortality. They can also tap into the life forces of others to replenish their own vitality, further extending their lifespan. With the Revenant's power, the user gains an even deeper connection to the cycle of life and death.
15. Temperance's Archetype: The Elemental Harmonizer - This archetype embodies the harmonious blending of elements. When summoned, the Elemental Harmonizer amplifies the user's control over elemental manipulation. They can seamlessly blend and fuse different elements, creating new combinations with enhanced properties and powers. The Elemental Harmonizer's presence grants the user the ability to maintain and control complex elemental reactions, unleashing devastating elemental attacks with even greater precision and magnitude. With the Elemental Harmonizer's assistance, the user gains unparalleled control over the balance and harmony of elemental forces.
16. The Devil's Archetype: The Tempter - This archetype embodies the allure of temptation and the seduction of power. When summoned, the Tempter enhances the user's ability to manipulate desires and corrupt others. They can intensify the desires and cravings of individuals, clouding their judgment and making them susceptible to manipulation. The Tempter can create illusions of power and wealth, enticing others to make regrettable choices. They can also corrupt energies, tainting or perverting their opponents' abilities. Additionally, the Tempter can draw upon their own inner darkness, channeling it into devastating attacks or defensive barriers. With the presence of the Tempter, the user becomes a master of temptation, ensnaring their foes in a web of desires and manipulating them to their advantage.
17. The Tower's Archetype: The Cataclysm - This archetype represents the destructive force of upheaval and change. When summoned, the Cataclysm enhances the user's control over destruction and chaos. They can unleash devastating seismic waves or generate powerful explosions on a massive scale. The Cataclysm can disintegrate or collapse entire structures, rending the environment apart. They can also disrupt energy flows, destabilizing opponents' abilities or rendering them ineffective. Additionally, the Cataclysm grants the user heightened resilience to destructive forces, allowing them to withstand the aftermath of their own devastating attacks. With the presence of the Cataclysm, the user becomes an agent of chaos, capable of reshaping the battlefield through sheer destruction.
18. The Star's Archetype: The Celestial Ascendant - This archetype represents transcendence and connection to the cosmos. When summoned, the Celestial Ascendant enhances the user's control over celestial energy and amplifies their star-based abilities. They can create and manipulate starlight on a grander scale, summon meteor showers, and tap into the immense power of the stars to enhance their physical attributes and abilities even further.
19. The Moon's Archetype: The Illusionist - This archetype embodies the mastery of illusions and emotional manipulation. When summoned, the Illusionist enhances the user's ability to create complex illusions and manipulate emotions on a larger scale. They can create intricate and multi-layered illusions that affect multiple senses simultaneously, making it even more challenging for opponents to distinguish reality from deception. The Illusionist's presence amplifies the user's emotional manipulation, allowing them to manipulate the feelings and perceptions of others with greater precision.
20. The Sun's Archetype: The Radiant Guardian - This archetype represents the embodiment of solar energy and radiance. When summoned, the Radiant Guardian enhances the user's control over solar energy and grants them even greater power during daylight hours. They can create intense beams of light, generate solar flares, and radiate blinding golden light to overwhelm opponents. The Radiant Guardian's presence further enhances the user's physical attributes and grants them increased resilience and endurance in sunny environments.
21. The Judgment's Archetype: The Arbiter - This archetype embodies impartiality and the administration of justice. When summoned, the Arbiter enhances the user's ability to pass judgment and enforce consequences. They can evaluate the actions and intentions of individuals with even greater accuracy, revealing hidden truths and motivations. The Arbiter's presence amplifies the user's authority and grants them the ability to render judgments and enforce corresponding punishments or rewards with greater potency.
22. The World's Archetype: The Dimensional Weaver - This archetype represents the manipulation of dimensions and the control over spatial boundaries. When summoned, the Dimensional Weaver enhances the user's ability to manipulate and traverse different dimensions. They can create portals, rifts, or wormholes to instantaneously travel from one location to another, bending space to their will. The Dimensional Weaver's presence grants the user the ability to alter the properties of space within their vicinity.

Come on a perk that allows the killer to see the exact locations of ALL survivors for 4 seconds is busted af because if it wasnt then nearly EVERY killer you play against runs it.
A game that requires you to be stealthy and try not to get caught by the killer yet they get perks which actively go against that.
Are the survivors that good that the killers need notifications when fail a skill, rushed action, and can see aura's of survivors as well as getting a movement speed increase in a chase...
Kind of feels like that the killers are soo weak that they can only compete if they have notifications of every little thing the survivors do and/or are doing.
Aura revealing perks are good but theres too many of them, And if you are quite new to the game like i am and enjoy the stealthy side of the game it just makes the game quite difficult for newish players.

Gaze in terror at these shadow beasts on Dump Stat

 
Part demon, part servant, and part emotion, the Sorrowsworn are creatures of despair and, you guessed it, sorrow. They are foul creatures who are terrifying to face, incredibly strong, and feed off the mental anguish of others.
Before we dive into this very messed-up demon, we just want to put a warning out there. Sorrowsworn delight in the misery and failures of others, so if topics of depression and misery aren’t exactly your thing right now, we recommend checking out a happier monster, like the Faerie Dragon!
 

3e/3.5e - Demon, Sorrowsworn

Large Outsider (Chaotic, Evil, Extraplanar, Tanar’ri)
Hit Dice: 18d8+216 (297 hp)
Initiative: +7
Speed: 40 ft (8 squares), fly 80 ft. (poor)
Armor Class: 28 (–1 size, +3 Dex, +16 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 25
Base Attack/Grapple: +18/+31
Attacks: +2 glaive +23 melee (2d8+25)* or bite +21 melee (1d8+14 plus 1 Con)*
Full Attack: +2 glaive +23/+18/+13/+8 melee (2d8+25)* and bite +16 melee (1d8+9 plus 1 Con)* or 2 claws +21 melee (1d6+14)* and bite +16 melee (1d8+9 plus 1 Con)*
Space/Reach: 10 ft./10 ft. (glaive 15–20 ft. only)
Special Attacks: Aura of loss, spell-like abilities, whispers of loss
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 10/cold iron and good, darkvision 60 ft., immunity to electricity and poison, mind reading, outsider traits, resistance to acid 10, cold 10, and fire 10, spell resistance 25, strong willed, telepathy 100 ft.
Saves: Fort +22, Ref +14, Will +17 (+21 against mind-affecting spells and abilities
Abilities: Str 29, Dex 17, Con 32, Int 20, Wis 22, Cha 21
Skills: Bluff +26, Concentration +32, Diplomacy +9, Hide +28, Intimidate +28, Knowledge (arcana) +26, Knowledge (geography) +26, Knowledge (the planes) +26, Listen +29, Move Silently +32, Sense Motive +27, Spellcraft +28, Spot +29, Survival +35 (+37 on other planes, +37 avoiding getting lost and hazards)
Feats: Ability Focus (aura of loss), Alertness, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Great Cleave, Improved Initiative, Improved Sunder, Improved Toughness, Power Attack
Climate/Terrain: Infinite Layers of the Abyss
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: 17
Treasure: Standard coins; double goods; standard items, plus +2 glaive
Alignment: Always chaotic evil
Advancement: 19–36 HD (Large); 37–72 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: -

A sickly thin demon standing 15 feet tall with bat wings, this creature of sadness and pain, the Sorrowsworn, first appears in Monster Manual III (2004). Twisted horns protrude from the top of its head, and the creature has a wide mouth and hooked claws as hands. While it may look like a sad and severely depressed demon, it appears this way to mock the pain and suffering that its victims feel. If you feel happy because you just killed a dragon and have multiple bags of holding filled with its hoard, you're not safe from the creature. They will force you to remember everything painful you have felt in your life and even suffer through the pain of things that have not, and may not, happen to you.
How does the Sorrowsworn go about this? It has several abilities that allow it to eat your pain and suffering, just like those bullies in high school. It's a sneaky bastard and will hide, waiting for the right moment to strike and when you are at your emotional weakest. Though, if you expect to see it trying to hide its 15-foot frame behind a bush, you are going to be disappointed since it has access to spells like invisibility and nondetection.
Once it is ready to strike, this gaunt demon of sorrow will first cast greater dispel magic on whoever has the most buffs or auras, like your cleric. This is followed by it casting mind fog, which causes Will saves to tank while in the spell’s effect. On the third round, it then casts feeblemind on the most powerful spell caster, like your wizard, and then teleports into the thick of things and begins tearing with claws, biting with teeth, or slashing with their magical glaive.
Once you are surrounded, or well, you have the Sorrowsworn surrounded, it then activates its aura of loss ability. All creatures near the horrid demon start getting very sad and must make a Will save or find spellcasting to be far more challenging than it ever was before as now you have to contend with your inner demons telling you that you aren’t good enough. If your mind telling you that your father will never be proud of you isn’t enough to make you want to leave the fight and cry in a corner, good news is that the Sorrowsworn will also be talking about how you were always a disappointment and how no one could ever possibly love you. It can even access the most vulnerable parts that you keep locked up tight since it can read your thoughts and will capitalize on your mental weakness.
Once you are an emotional wreck - well, even more so than usual - the Sorrowsworn can then begin targeting creatures that are very sad with its whispers of loss ability that will make you sob like a baby with three different flavors of depression: Future Sorrow, Great Emptiness, and Past Losses. Future Sorrow fills your head with bad things to come, and you'll wonder why you even try to prevent them from happening, and you get to be stunned for two rounds. Great Emptiness shows that all great battles or wars result in nothing changing and that the greater good is a fallacy, so you should abandon trying to make a better world, leaving you confused for five rounds. The last, Past Losses, is the opposite of Future Sorrow, with the death of your friends and family crushing your heart and soul, leaving you dazed for three rounds.
While you’re crying and wondering why you should even go on, the Sorrowsworn then takes the opportunity to use more of its offensive spells, use its glaive, teeth, claws, or maybe even more mental anguish to overwhelm you and your party, leaving you in need of an owlbear plush to cry into.
 

4e - Sorrowsworn Soulripper

Level 25 Skirmisher
Medium shadow humanoid / XP 7,000
Initiative +27
Senses Perception +27; darkvision
HP 236; Bloodied 118
AC 39; Fortitude 35, Reflex 39, Will 36; see also Bleak Visage
Speed 10; see also Sorrow’s Rush
Claw (standard; at-will) Psychic +30 vs. AC; 2d8 + 7 plus 2d8 psychic damage.
Flutter and Strike (standard; recharge 4-6) Psychic, Teleportation The sorrowsworn soulripper teleports 10 squares and makes a claw attack, gaining combat advantage against its target.
Sorrow’s Rush (standard; encounter) Psychic The sorrowsworn soulripper moves up to 10 squares and makes three claw attacks at any points during its move. Each attack must be made against a different target.
Bleak Visage Fear Melee and ranged attacks made against the sorrowsworn soulripper take a –2 penalty to the attack roll.
Combat Advantage The sorrowsworn soulripper deals an extra 3d6 damage on attacks against any target it has combat advantage against.
Alignment Unaligned / Languages Common
Skills Insight +27, Stealth +30
Str 24 (+19) Dex 36 (+25) Wis 31 (22) Con 28 (+21) Int 18 (+16) Cha 22 (+18)

Because this edition wants you to continue feeling emotional pain and misery, there are now three Sworrowsworn, all found in the Monster Manual (2008) with the Sorrowsworn Soulripper, Sorrowsworn Reaper, and Sorrowsworn Deathlord. Each still preys on your guilt of those who died and the impending deaths of those you love, but now they aren’t quite as horrific as before. While they still look like demons, they are in fact not demonic or fiends. Instead, they are death incarnate itself, basically twisted angels of the Shadowfell who track down mortals who refuse to die, like liches or vampires.
As one might guess for twisted angels of shadow, they are under the employ of the Raven Queen and many shadar-kai crave to one day ascend and become a Sorrowsworn. The shadar-kai see this ascension as a way to obtain their desperately desired immortality, which we guess means that the Raven Queen is cool if her favorite servants get to live forever, but everyone else needs to die.
Looking at the Sorrowsworn, the Soulripper is a sneaky death angel, stalking its target and surprising them from the shadows. It can move quickly into battle, and then ripping through large hordes of creatures as it moves, like a swirling hurricane of death, claws, and sorrow. After them are the Reapers who target a single creature to inflict as much pain as possible. We all know it hopes that all that pain results in your death, and we're sure it will bring the Sorrowsworn some sick sense of pleasure. It utilizes a scythe, just like a real angel of death, and attempts to rip your very soul out. If it can reduce you to 0 hit points, not only does that put you pretty close to absolute death, but it also heals the Sorrowsworn, restoring some lost hit points every time it brings a creature to death. If this happens, just know your party will experience a mix of emotions. They’ll be sad to see your broken corpse on the ground, but also very angry with you since you now just healed the enemy you selfish jerk!
The Deathlord is the most powerful of the bunch. It can phase in and out of the walls between attacks, all the while it rips you apart, which is beyond frustrating to fight. Even if you do manage to hit the Deathlord, more than likely it’ll be insubstantial, allowing it to ignore part of your damage. If you think those three are particularly annoying to fight, wait until you have to face a swarm of Sorrowsworn with the Shadowraven Swarm. They look like ravens, but when they gather into a swarm, they are almost as powerful as a Deathlord and only get more painful to fight the more damage you deal to it.
In the Manual of the Planes (2008), the Sorrowsworn hunt nightwalkers and death giants, seeing such creatures as contaminating the Shadowfell. Nightwalkers are creatures made out of shadow, undead who live on the fringes of the Shadowfell. The text gives us information about the Sorrowsworn who reside in the Shadowfell, most of which we've discussed already. We find out that a truly impressive Sorrowsworn can rise to become a Raven Knight, the foremost soldier in the Raven Queen's army with even more information on the Raven Knight found in Open Grave: Secrets of the Undead (2009).
If you are wondering if all Sorrowsworn are content to serve Raven Queen, well we are here to burst your bubble with the adventure Winter of the Witch by Stephen Radney-MacFarland in Dungeon #162 (Jan. 2009). This Deathlord, Morthalat, is a renegade and serves as a chief agent for Orcus. If you know anything about Orcus, then you know that Orcus believes that life continues into undeath and is the biggest enemy of the Raven Queen. It’s a shame Morthalat decided to turn from the Raven Queen, especially since your group of adventurers get to take the Sorrowsworn down.
In the adventure E1 - Death's Reach (2009), we are introduced to the Sorrowsworn Fleshripper and Sorrowsworn Doomguard. The Fleshripper is armed with spiked gauntlets. They move around the battlefield quickly, punching you repeatedly in the face while you remember better days of not being punched in the face. The Doomguard wields a scythe and can teleport, which is kind of like cosplaying as Death itself. If you are hit by the scythe, prepare to be immobilized by Shadow Reap, which will heal the Doomguard if you are reduced to 0 hit points by the attack.
The adventure E2 - Kingdom of Ghouls (2009) brings us the Sorrowsworn Dread Wraith and Sorrowsorn Blade. The Sorrowsworn Blade is charged with the psychic energy of their wielder, dealing slashing and psychic damage to any who get too close. The Dread Wraith is truly frightening. It regenerates and has an aura that reduces bright light to dim light called Shroud of Night. In addition, it can teleport, daze you, and eventually raise you as a Spawn Wraith when, not if, it kills you.
Not surprisingly, the Sorrowsworn are brought up throughout the sourcebook The Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond (2011). It tells us about Vorkesis, considered the first of the Sorrowsworn and the current exarch of the Raven Queen. Being born without eyes doesn't impede his sight, as he can see far and wide. He also only has one hand, in which he wields a black longspear.
Vorkesis primary responsibility is to guard the souls of epic heroes. He does so with a variety of abilities and his deadly longspear. He is a powerful warrior, as befits an exarch’s position, and is a skirmisher without equal. He can turn invisible, launch his spear with ferocity, and deal tons of damage against single-target creatures, making him quite the dangerous enemy to have.
In addition, Vorkesis is also known as the Master of Fate and knows the fate of every creature that has lived, is currently living, or is dead. If you're curious about this and behave yourself in his presence, Vorkesis will happily regale you with stories, for being around mortals lets him experience what everyday life is like. Maybe if you are really unlucky, he’ll even let you know how you’ll die, giving you a firsthand experience with his longspear.
 

5e - The Angry / Angry Sorrowsworn

Medium Monstrosity, Neutral Evil
Armor Class 18 (natural armor)
Hit Points 255 (30d8 + 120)
Speed 30 ft.
Str 17 (+3) Dex 10 (+0) Con 19 (+4) Int 8 (-1) Wis 13 (+1) Cha 6 (-2)
Skills Perception +11
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing while in dim light or darkness
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 21
Languages Common
Challenge 13 (10,000 XP) Proficiency Bonus +5
Two Heads. The sorrowsworn has advantage on saving throws against being blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, stunned, or knocked unconscious.
Rising Anger. If another creature deals damage to the sorrowsworn, the sorrowsworn’s attack rolls have advantage until the end of its next turn, and the first time it hits with a Hook attack on its next turn, the attack’s target takes an extra 19 (3d12) psychic damage.
On its turn, the sorrowsworn has disadvantage on attack rolls if no other creature has dealt damage to it since the end of its last turn.
Multiattack. The sorrowsworn makes two Hook attacks.
Hook. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (2d12 + 3) piercing damage.

Five Sorrowsworn are first found in Morkenkainen's Tome of Foes (2018) before being reprinted in Morkenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse (2022). The five are The Angry, The Hungry, The Lost, The Lonely, and The Wretched, though in Monsters of the Multiverse they drop the definite article and add Sorrowsworn to the end.
They get a lot of changes in this edition and are completely different from both previous editions. They are now monstrosities when they were demons or shadow beasts before, and have a much lower Challenge Rating, so not quite as dangerous. In addition, they are the embodiment of emotions in the Shadowfell, only forming when intense emotions are felt in the plane of shadow.
We start with the super-weak Wretched Sorrowsworn that only clocks in at a Challenge Rating of 1/4, far weaker than any true Sorrowsworn should be. These small creatures travel in packs, biting and attaching themselves to you on a successful attack. They wander the Shadowfell, feeding on their victim's life force to stay alive. Far, far above them are the CR 7 Lost Sorrowsworn who twist their victims all around in the Shadowfell until they have no idea where they are, causing the rising fear of being lost to become their primary emotion. The Lost have five long spikes for arms, stabbing and grappling you when these arms pierce your flesh.
Next up is the Lonely Sorrowsworn, who prove that you are never truly alone while you are lost. They hunt those who feel alone and abandoned. When you are up close and personal, they drain you of your mental energy, though if you try to get away from them, they’ll launch their harpoon arm at you, and reel you back in since they’re probably scared of the dark and don’t want to be alone. Of course, they aren’t quite as horrifying as the Hungry Sorrowspawn who has a huge maw, eating everything in sight. They are forever hungry and can unhinge their jaws to fill it with whatever they can find. If you decide that fighting these creatures is starting to hurt, and you regain hit points, the Hungry gets incredibly upset that you didn’t feed it too, and gains bonuses to attacks and damage.
The last Sorrowsworn are the CR 13 Angry Sorrowsworn, and we don’t mean that they are just upset. We literally mean they are the essence of anger, though you’d be forgiven if you just thought they were a weird, malformed albino hook horror. They feature two heads, hooks for arms and hands, and an anger problem that you won’t be able to help them with. If you do fight them, you just made a horrible mistake as they get stronger when they are attacked, so we guess the best strategy is to run away as fast as possible… or maybe that would also make them angry? Maybe the best thing to do is just let the barbarian and the Angry figure out their anger issues between them.
 
So there we have it, the Sorrowsworn. They've been demons, shadow beasts, and monstrosities. They've fed off your anguish, been guards of the Shadowfell, and attempted to eat you. No matter what edition you play, they are creatures to be feared and approached with caution.

Past Deep Dives

Creatures: Aarakocra / Aboleth / Ankheg / Balhannoth / Banshee / Beholder / Berbalang / Blink Dog / Bulette / Bullywug / Chain Devil / Chimera / Chuul / Cockatrice / Couatl / Displacer Beast / Djinni / Doppelganger / Dracolich / Dragon Turtle / Dragonborn / Drow / Dryad / Faerie Dragon / Flumph / Formian / Frost Giant / Gelatinous Cube / Genasi / Ghoul / Giant Space Hamster / Gibbering Mouther / Giff / Gith / Gnoll / Goliath / Grell / Grippli / Grisgol / Grung / Hag / Harpy / Hell Hound / Hobgoblin / Hook Horror / Invisible Stalker / Kappa / Ki-rin / Kobold / Kraken / Kuo-Toa / Lich / Lizardfolk / Manticore / Medusa / Mercane (Arcane) / Mimic / Mind Flayer / Modron / Naga / Neogi / Nothic / Oni / Otyugh / Owlbear / Rakshasa / Redcap / Revenant / Rust Monster / Sahuagin / Scarecrow / Seawolf / Shadar-Kai / Shardmind / Shield Guardian / Star Spawn / Storm Giant / Slaadi / Tabaxi / Tarrasque / Thought Eater / Tiefling / Tirapheg / Umber Hulk / Vampire / Werewolf / Wyvern / Xorn / Xvart

Class: Barbarian Class / Cleric Class / Wizard Class

Spells: Fireball Spell / Lost Spells / Named Spells / Quest Spells / Wish Spell

Other: The History of Bigby / The History of the Blood War / The History of the Raven Queen / The History of the Red Wizards / The History of Vecna

Pokemon Insurgence is a wildly unbalanced yet still very fun game, even ignoring the overly edgy plot, so I thought it would be fun to add some of the new Mega Evolutions from that game.
Mega Poliwrath WateFighting Ability: No Guard HP: 90 Atk: 155 Def: 120 Sp.Atk: 70 Sp.Def: 105 Speed: 70
Mega Marowak Ground/Ghost Ability: Parental Bond HP: 60 Atk: 135 Def: 120 Sp.Atk: 50 Sp.Def: 100 Speed: 60
Mega Eevee Normal Ability: Protean Maxima (whenever Eevee uses a move that matches the type of an Eeveelution, it temporarily transforms into that Eeveelution, gaining their stats and Ability. It transforms back into Mega Eevee if it uses a Normal move.) HP: 83 Atk: 83 Def: 83 Sp.Atk: 83 Sp.Def: 83 Speed: 83
Mega Meganium Grass/Fairy Ability: Magic Bounce HP: 80 Atk: 82 Def: 140 Sp.Atk: 83 Sp.Def: 140 Speed: 100
Mega Typhlosion Fire Ability: Hubris (Special Moxie) HP: 78 Atk: 89 Def: 88 Sp.Atk: 159 Sp.Def: 110 Speed: 110
Mega Feraligatr Water Ability: Tough Claws HP: 85 Atk: 140 Def: 110 Sp.Atk: 89 Sp.Def: 103 Speed: 103
Mega Sudowoodo Rock/Grass Ability: Analytic HP: 70 Atk: 140 Def: 145 Sp.Atk: 40 Sp.Def: 95 Speed: 20
Mega Politoed Water Ability: Drizzle HP: 90 Atk: 75 Def: 95 Sp.Atk: 120 Sp.Def: 140 Speed: 80
Mega Sunflora Grass/Fire (if male) or Grass (if female) Ability: Unleafed (Sunflora gets an omniboost that lasts X+1 turns, where X is the number of fainted allies it has. After X+1 turns, the omniboost is removed.) HP: 75 Atk: 85 Def: 80 Sp.Atk: 135 Sp.Def: 105 Speed: 45
Mega Girafarig Normal/Psychic Ability: Spectral Jaws (all biting moves are reclassified as special moves and relieved a 30% power boost) HP: 70 Atk: 80 Def: 95 Sp.Atk: 130 Sp.Def: 95 Speed: 85
Mega Steelix X (the old Mega Steelix is now called Mega Steelix Y) Steel/Fire Ability: Foundry (all Rock-type moves melt, becoming Fire-type and receiving a 30% power boost. The sneaky pebbles also become Fire-type, but they don't get the power boost, thank Arceus. I hope this one line doesn't get the whole post removed.) HP: 75 Atk: 135 Def: 225 Sp.Atk: 65 Sp.Def: 55 Speed: 55
Mega Magcargo Fire Ability: Vaporisation (all Water-type moves fail when used and all Water-type Pokemon take 1/8 damage at the end of every turn when Magcargo is on the field) HP: 50 Atk: 70 Def: 100 Sp.Atk: 150 Sp.Def: 100 Speed: 40
Mega Donphan Ground Ability: Irrelevant (please laugh; Donphan's attacks ignore type-based immunities. F'rinstance, it can EQ a Corviknight.) HP: 90 Atk: 150 Def: 150 Sp.Atk: 60 Sp.Def: 100 Speed: 50
Mega Miltank Normal Ability: Pendulum (acts as if Miltank is permanently holding the Metronome item) HP: 95 Atk: 125 Def: 145 Sp.Atk: 40 Sp.Def: 115 Speed: 70
Mega Shiftry Grass/Dark Ability: Shadow Dance (doubles Shiftry's Speed under the Darkness weather. Darkness increases the power of Ghost- and Dark-type moves by 30%, decreases the power of Fairy-type moves by 25%, allows Phantom Force and Shadow Force to charge instantly, changes Castform into a Dark-type, changes Weather Ball into a Dark-type move, doubles the effects of the moves Nightmare, Hone Claws and Flash and the Ability Bad Dreams, breaks the Fairy Aura Ability, lowers the effects of Geomancy, Light Screen, Reflect, Aurora Veil, Solar Beam, Synthesis and Morning Sun, increases the effects of Moonlight and the Ability Pressure by 50%, and for some reason also doubles the power of Surf. Dear Arceus, that was a lot.) HP: 90 Atk: 130 Def: 70 Sp.Atk: 125 Sp.Def: 60 Speed: 100
My hands are actually starting to hurt at this point from typing too much. I hope this is appreciated.
Mega Flygon (we was robbed) Bug/Dragon Ability: Amplifier (functionally identical to Punk Rock) HP: 80 Atk: 110 Def: 90 Sp.Atk: 140 Sp.Def: 80 Speed: 120
Mega Cacturne Grass/Dark Ability: Sand Rush HP: 70 Atk: 145 Def: 70 Sp.Atk: 145 Sp.Def: 70 Speed: 75
Mega Crawdaunt WateDark Ability: Adaptability HP: 63 Atk: 145 Def: 95 Sp.Atk: 100 Sp.Def: 85 Speed: 80
Mega Milotic WateFairy Ability: Prism Guard (non-contact Iron Barbs) HP: 95 Atk: 70 Def: 109 Sp.Atk: 130 Sp.Def: 155 Speed: 81
It isn't a new Mega, but we have two new Castforms - a Dark-type Cloudy form and a Rock-type Sandy form.
Mega Jirachi Steel/Psychic Ability: Periodic Orbit (delayed-action moves activate twice. Future Sight and Doom Desire activate two and five turns after use, and Wish activates one and three turns after use.) HP: 100 Atk: 100 Def: 140 Sp.Atk: 130 Sp.Def: 115 Speed: 115
Mega Chatot Normal/Flying Ability: Amplifier (see Mega Flygon) HP: 76 Atk: 65 Def: 55 Sp.Atk: 147 Sp.Def: 52 Speed: 116
Mega Spiritomb Ghost/Dark Ability: Tough Claws (note that non-Mega Spiritomb now has Noctem as a Hidden Ability, which sets Darkness when it enters the field) HP: 50 Atk: 142 Def: 128 Sp.Atk: 128 Sp.Def: 133 Speed: 20
Mega Froslass Ice/Ghost Ability: Fur Coat HP: 70 Atk: 80 Def: 85 Sp.Atk: 120 Sp.Def: 105 Speed: 120
Primal Regigigas Normal/Ground Ability: Unaware (luckily, Slow Start doesn't get completely removed until the timer runs down at least once. Switching will pause the timer. The balance is saved, for now.) HP: 110 Atk: 195 Def: 140 Sp.Atk: 95 Sp.Def: 130 Speed: 100
Primal Giratina Ghost/Dragon Ability: Omnitype (defensively, Giratina is every type at once. This means it takes normal damage from Flying, Fire, Water, Ice and Fairy, takes double damage from Rock, takes half damage from Steel and Dark, takes 1/16th damage from Grass and Bug, and is immune to everything else. Ouch.) HP: 150 Attack: 135 Def: 135 Sp.Atk: 135 Sp.Def: 135 Speed: 130
Primal Arceus Normal/Dragon Ability: Ancient Prescence (all of Arceus' moves do neutral damage and gain STAB. This means it cannot damage Shedinja at all, which I find to be really funny.) HP: 120 Atk: 150 Def: 130 Sp.Atk: 150 Sp.Def: 130 Speed: 140
If those last three aren't AG, I don't know what is.
Mega Zebstrika (finally, something that doesn't cause the game to self-destruct) Electric/Fairy Ability: Competitive HP: 75 Atk: 100 Def: 63 Sp.Atk: 135 Sp.Def: 83 Speed: 141
Mega Zoroark Dark Ability: Trace (if Zoroark is disguised as a Pokemon that can Mega Evolve when it does, the text and animation appropriate for that Pokemon plays. If not, the animation does not play and the illusion is maintained.) HP: 60 Atk: 130 Def: 60 Sp.Atk: 145 Sp.Def: 90 Speed: 125
Mega Gothitelle Psychic/Dark Ability: Ethereal Shroud (gives Gothitelle Ghost-type immunities and resistances, making it weak to Bug and Fairy, immune to Normal, Fighting and Psychic, and resistant to Poison.) HP: 70 Atk: 55 Def: 125 Sp.Atk: 120 Sp.Def: 150 Speed: 65
Mega Reuniclus doesn't exist. If you want to know why, pop onto the Insurgence Wiki and look at its Ability.
Mega Haxorus Dragon/Steel Ability: Weak Armor HP: 76 Atk: 182 Def: 130 Sp.Atk: 80 Sp.Def: 90 Speed: 82
Mega Cryogonal Ice Ability: Sleet (summons hail when Cryogonal enters the field. While Cryogonal is on the field, Hail's damage is increased to 1/5th instead of 1/8th.) HP: 70 Atk: 50 Def: 65 Sp.Atk: 115 Sp.Def: 150 Speed: 135
Mega Stunfisk (yippee!) Ground/Electric Ability: Athenian (Special Huge Power) HP: 109 Atk: 76 Def: 104 Sp.Atk: 91 Speed: 56
Mega Bisharp Dark/Steel Ability: Moxie HP: 65 Atk: 145 Def: 130 Sp.Atk: 60 Sp.Def: 85 Speed: 105
Mega Hydreigon Dark/Dragon Ability: Lernean (I can't even begin to describe what this Ability does. Please check the Insurgence Wiki, it will save me a lot of time.) HP: 92 Atk: 130 Def: 105 Sp.Atk: 170 Sp.Def: 105 Speed: 98
And that's it. I'm going to go put my fingers in the freezer now, because that hurt a lot. I did not use Copy + Paste a single time during that. Let me know how many of these absolute busted powerhouses would be banned to AG.

Hello, I am a game analyst and mostly play some random games for fun. After playing this game since season 5, to my interest, compared to games like League for instance, IDV stands out as one of the worst balanced game ever. I am not trying to disregard it as a bad game, but compared to DBD/League that usually has a balance patch every 2 weeks or so, IDV has one like, every 2/3 months?
Here's my take on why IDV is so heavily unbalanced:

• Too low balance patches. Balance patches usually take place at the end of the season, so survivors are usually either broken ass or underwhelming for the entire season.
• NE wants to make money. Some survivors have been in spotlight for over 3 years. Not because they can't be fixed, but because they simply sell skins better than others.
• Survivors suffered from design issues that cause them to always be better than some, and numbers simply can't fix the problem right away. Antiquarian has 3 stuns, 1 dash and 1 move boost; Priestess walks through walls and stun. What does Lawyer have? A map? Even if NE tweaks the number, it wouldn't be making any difference outside of a rework.

So here, I am just going to try to elaborate on the problem of every single survivor and write down some adjustments that they need. The ones I didn't list out, I think they are just decent enough to not need an adjustment.
​
Doctor (Adjustment)
The problem with Doctor is that she is specialized in countering a very specific type of mechanic: healing - making her super aggressive to those like Hermit or Clerk but incredibly fragile against hunters that have a great pressure pursuit skill like Gamekeepe26/Bonbon/Gala or Joker. Not only that, Doctor struggles to do anything meaningful unless she is the one being in chase, or when there are a lot of injured teammates. And even then her skill is really hit or miss.
Another thing to note is that while Doctor can play very aggressively, it doesn't reflect the normal image of a Doctor (who the fuck spam confused emotes when hitting others with pallets); just a small nitpick, but at least right now she doesn't have to be in chase to be effective at doing her job.

• [Nerf] Bonus self-healing speed is removed (from 20%)
• [New] When being [8-0m] close to the hunter, Doctor gains [0%-40%] bonus self-healing speed. The closer she is to the hunter, the faster she can heal herself.
• [Buff] Vaulting speed debuff is removed.
• [Buff] Doctor can now see the auras of all injured survivors and gain 5% bonus movement speed when moving towards them.
• [Buff] Upon healing a teammate, both of them gains vision of each other. The effect ends when either are incapacitated.

Lawyer (Overhaul)
Lawyer is fine as a concept, but his item is just garbage in a 4v1 game, especially where he is on a 4 players side - where he is simply doing too little to justify using him over someone like Prisoner who can't compete with decoding but makes up a lot for that with his global transmission. Simply reworking his item into a different stuff and rehauling some of his decoding speed to balance him out.

• Foresight: When used, the auras of Dungeons, Cipher Machines, Lockers and Chests are revealed for 5 seconds. When moving towards them within 15m during the period, movement speed + 20%. Has a cooldown of 30 seconds.
• Heartless: No longer remove Terror Shock. Now grants self a 20% Rocket Chair delay.
• Take Notes: Upon decoding for 10 seconds or more, decoding speed + 15%. The bonus is removed when Lawyer stops decoding.
• Veterans (Unchanged)

​
Gardener (Overhaul)
Gardener keeps getting buffed occasionally, but the main reason why she feels so clunky to use stems from her item Toolbox, which is the nichest of item you can get. I want to transfer some of her power back into the Toolbox, and make her shield do less, as she is dominating COA and pro play mainly with her shield, not with the toolbox.
Ingenuity:

• Carries around a toolkit that is used to destroy Rocket Chairs.
• Rocket Chairs can be destroyed in 2 uninterrupted seconds, afterwards unable to be used by hunters for 15 seconds upon breaking. The same Rocket Chair cannot get broken twice within 120 seconds.
• Successfully breaking a Rocket Chair when the hunter is within 18m will increase movement speed of self and all survivors nearby by 50% for 2 seconds. If a survivor gains this buff while being on the balloon, it will be put on hold and start again when they successfully wiggle out.
• The Toolbox has a duration of 12 seconds.

Protection:

• The Gardener can block one incoming damage instance in the entire game. This effect expires when attacked by the Hunter. When the shield is broken, Gardener gains the same movement speed boost as if she was hit.
• When the shield holds, Gardener gains 10% bonus Vaulting speed and 10% bonus decoding speed.

Confidence

• Due to her familiarity with the structure of Rocket Chairs, Gardener is less scared and can locate Rocket Chairs nearby.
• When a hunter puts a survivor on the balloon and Gardener is in their Terror Radius, their struggling speed is increased by 20% and Gardener gains 10% bonus movement speed.

Veterans (Unchanged)
​
Lucky Guy (Buff)
Lucky Guy is simply helpless now considering how the game has abandoned chests as a mechanic just like Lockers. I am just going to increase his numbers to make sure that IF he wants opening chests to be his mechanic, then he MUST be good at it.

• [Buffed] Chest's searching speed is increased by 200%. (From 60%).
• [Buffed] The game automatically adds 3 chests when Lucky Guy is present. (Does not stack)
• [Buffed] All chests are revealed to Lucky Guy for 25 seconds at the start of the match.
• [Buffed] Searching a chest grants 3% decoding speed for the rest of the match (Can stack)

​
Mercenary (Nerfs)
With how important rescuing is, Mercenary saw a sharp rate in usage throughout the years which has still becoming too oppressive in all levels of play. Since I do not want to nerf his Elbow Pad, just kneecapping the Steel Will is enough to push him slightly away from the meta without causing a trouble in lower ranks. To skew the nerf for pro play over lower division, have some fun for the compensated buff.

• [Nerfed] The Steel Will effect will only take place if Mercenary is within 12m of a Rocket Chair with a survivor on it. If he gets hit, his fear gradually increases for 12 seconds during the period. This effect can only be triggered twice per match.
• [Buffed] Decoding speed reduced by 25% -> 15%
• [Buffed] Elbow Pad counts increased to 4 from 3

​
Mechanic (Adjustment)
The problem with Mechanic is her capability to turn herself into a 5v1 game which has totally withered with her robots nerfed about 10 times. There is one thing that NE is steering right, and that is leaning her capabilities into the kiting area instead of forcing her to be a dead survivor that only decodes on chair (which is why she is so popular in higher divisions).
Because of that, a buff to her kiting skill would well be appreciated, as well as increasing the incentive of using her as a Minds' Eye who focus on completing a single cipher instead of doing 2 ciphers at once, which is mainly why she is so strong.
Operator:

• The Robot's battery only gets reduced when decoding, and battery decoding consumption is increased to 1%/second when decoding (was 0,56%/s)
• If the Robot is being chased and it is not crouching, it will automatically move even if it is not being controlled by Mechanic.
• The Robot cannot heal other survivors except for Mechanic, and its healing speed towards Mechanic is increased by 50%.
• Remove the effect during which the robot can be used on chair.

Fragile:

• Vaulting speed debuff is reduced to 5% (was 15%).

Mech Master:

• Mechanic’s default decoding speed has been removed.
• Robot's decoding speed is reduced to 40% of original decoding speed (was 100%), but does not get calibrations when decoding.
• When decoding with Mechanic, its decoding speed is increased to 75% of the original decoding speed. (Both of them still receive the normal coop decoding speed penalty, thus the total decoding speed is only about ~125%, lower than 130% of Mind’s Eye)

Cowardly (removed)
​
Explorer (Buff)
Kurt's lackluster win rate and pick rate are mainly from the fact that he takes more time using his skills (1. Go to a password page; 2. Dig a password page; 3. Go to a cipher to spend the page) than decoding normally on a cipher in early game. A single buff to his decoding speed to increase the incentive of decoding early rather than digging the password pages would be enough to increase back his popularity as a hyper decoder late game.

• [Nerf early game, buff late game] Digging up Password Pages takes [40 – 20 seconds, scales with game time, digging speed is increased by 5% each 10 seconds, up to 100%]
• [Buffed] No longer trigger notification when finish decoding a page.
• [Added effect] Curiosity: The Explorer is curious about his new environment. When the Explorer starts decoding, his decoding speed is increased by 30% for 15 seconds. The effect is removed after 30 seconds from the start of the match.
• Energy Reserved: The time required to trigger is reduced to 5 seconds from 10 seconds, and the bonus movement speed is increased to 15% from 10%.

​
Mind's Eye (Buff)
Even if Mind's Eye is not blind, she would still be bad. When Composer and Prisoner are identified as a Decoder, Mind's Eye "so-called kiting skill" is a complete joke. But to fulfill the wish of her mains that want her to be blind, I want to keep that fantasy while making her bulkier at all stages of the game.

• [Buffed] Using the cane now does not alert the hunter when it's used nor does it creates the sound wave effect nor indicate the hunter of the effects in their HUD, but the animation of Mind's Eye striking her cane is still visible.
• [Buffed] Hunters who are affected by the sound wave within 20m have their next Interaction Speed reduced by 45% for 6 seconds.
• [Buffed] The cooldown of the cane by default is 20s (reduced from 50s). If the Hunter performs an action that triggers the Interaction speed debuff from the cane, the cooldown is increased by 25 seconds.
• [Buffed] The “blind” visual effect is now turned into a greyscale-like effect instead.
• [Nerfed] Decoding speed is reduced to 120% from 130%. Calibrations will now appear normally.

​
Priestess (Nerf)
Although Priestess has never been weak, she has never been truly broken as a kiter either but broken as a supporter that set up portals to transition survivors. A nerf to her Holy Key support capability and her random qualities of life that make her so frustrating to play against, a slight buff to her normal kiting pace. Now everyone's happy.

• [Adjusted] Portal cooldown is reduced to 60s (was 70s), but recovers 40% slower when not in chase, up to 100s (was 70s).
• [Buffed] Vaulting speed debuff is removed.
• [Nerfed] A survivor can only walk through a portal once. This includes Priestess.
• [Adjusted] Priestess's healing speed is increased by 20% and she gets healed 20% faster. She no longer passively reduces the healing speed of the entire team and herself.
• [Nerfed] If Priestess is not in pursuit, portal’s stun duration is reduced by 50%, and the speed at which it disappears is doubled.
• [Nerfed] Hunter can't be stunned or involuntarily walk through two consecutive portals within 2 seconds. This remove the logic in which if Priestess sets up two portals in narrow areas, the hunter can fall directly into another portal.
• [QoL] The portal will now have an indication of when it will disappear to both hunters and survivors, and the aura of it is visible with 8m to both sides.

​
Female Dancer (Adjustments)
Dancer currently relies too much on her music box, which is one of the most powerful items in the game. But that is honestly not a healthy way to design a character, as a nerf to the music boxes can make her entire kit falls apart. I am giving her a completely new trait while simultaneously reducing the highlights she could do with the boxes.

• [Nerfed] The boxes now only reduce/increase Movement speed and the same box effects no longer stack. The Dancer can no longer pick up boxes. The dash is removed.
• [New] Dancer recovers a music box each 60 seconds, up to 3. A music box lasts for a maximum of 8 seconds and cannot be broken by the hunter. Dancer starts the match with 2 music boxes. Dancer will immediately drop the music box instead of having to place it down.
• [Buffed] The movement speed modification is increased to 25%.
• [New Trait] Focus: All windows and pallets are highlighted within 16 meters. Dancer gains 125% bonus interaction speed when vaulting over them (Has a cooldown of 120 seconds, reduced by 10 seconds each time she vaults)
• [New Trait] Footwork: When Dancer takes damage, her movement speed buff is extended by 1 second, increased to 3 seconds if she is within the range of a music box.

​
Coordinator
Among the game, Coordinator is the only survivor who aged super poorly. Although her strength remains the same through patches and patches, Trump Card (allowing for Excitement -> Teleport), new stun resist personas, and the appearance of new stunners really force her to become reliant on her gun which is not reliable at all. Here’s giving her way more room to play while simultaneously making her more comfortable with the Flare Gun.

• [Buffed] The gun silences the hunter for 5 seconds, disabling their ability to use skills or traits. This includes persona branches.
• [Buffed] Remove the decoding debuff when a survivor is put on chair.
• [Buffed] Upon using the gun, Coordinator gains 50% bonus movement speed for 2 seconds, regardless of if the gun shot hit or not.
• [Nerfed] Flare Gun duration reduced to 2.5 seconds from 4.5 seconds. Coordinator’s Flare Gun duration reduced to 3.5 seconds from 5 seconds.
• [Buffed] If Coordinator stuns the hunter when they are carrying a survivor, the stun will be applied after the survivor drops to the ground.

​
Perfumer (Buff)
As a survivor, Perfumer has faded away from the meta even before Journalist was released. Her item either feeds presence for the hunter early game or becomes useless once she gets injured, which becomes more polarizing in later ranks. A strong buff to her can automatically get her to the territory of pick/ban, so giving her some QOLs to at least mitigate her early game while removing her most frustrating feature.

• [Buff] Perfumer gains 50% movement speed for 1 second when the effect of Euphoria ends without her being injured during the process.
• [Buff] If Perfumer is knocked down during the effect of Euphoria, she receives Last Effort for the rest of its duration.
• [Nerf] Getting too far away from the perfume will immediately end it. (descending to first floor; using Holy Key; etc.)

​
Seer (Nerf)
Seer is balanced around the ban button, plus he only really has one skill to play around. While it's safe to assume he does not need a nerf, a QOL nerf can lift people from that ban button to give him some spotlight in all divisions.

• [Nerfed] Maximum number of Owl reduced to 1 (from 5)
• [Nerfed] Time required to get an Owl increased to 25/28/31s for each successful blocked attempt, up to three times (from 25s across the board)

​
Embalmer (Buff)
In circumstances where Embalmer cannot be good when facing certain hunters, he is bad, so I'm lowering the chance for those circumstances to happen.

• [Buff] During Resurrection, the first 2 seconds no longer reveal the coffin’s aura.
• [Buff] The resurrected survivor's invulnerability duration is extended to 15 seconds, during which interacting with Pallets, Windows or Cipher Machines or Rocket Chair will linger the duration by an extra 2 seconds then instantly ends the duration and convert the remaining time into Tide Turner effect instead.
• [Nerf] The Embalmer still gets affected by control effects during the Invulnerability window.

​
Barmaid (Nerf)
Barmaid has been having the time of her life across all skill brackets, from lower divisions to pro play. While she is fair to play against, she shouldn't be too oppressive.

• [Nerf] D.U.P.H.R.I.N now grants 10% bonus movement speed and 10% bonus vaulting speed (was 50% movement speed for 2 seconds).
• [New] Barmaid can drink both drinks at once. She will still lost 25% of her health during the period. If she did, the bonus from Duphrin is increased to 25% bonus movement speed and 10% bonus vaulting speed.
• [Buff] Each stack of Tipsy no longer reduces decoding speed.

​
Postman (Buff)
Postman has seen a drastic drop in usage in lower ranks as the latest nerf hits him a little bit too hard. Since the problem was always cipher rushing with the decoding letter, I would buff him with a small QoL adjustment that directly buff his two most underused letters, while removing his most problematic letter in game. Yes, getting to ciphers faster still let you finish them faster, but at least you will have to actually decide if you really want to use it or not.

• [Overhaul] Bravery Letter: The next controlling effect within 20s (Patroller, Ann's cat,...) has its duration reduced by 80%. Successfully resisting one will grants 50% bonus movement speed for 3 seconds.
• [Buff] Farewell Letter: In addition to the bonus movement speed upon vaulting, the recipient's next vault also has a 25% bonus vaulting speed.
• [Overhaul] Tranquility Letter: For the next 8 seconds, self can see the hunter’s location and gains 20% bonus movement speed when not in chase.

​
Toy Merchant (Adjusted)
Anne has been having a bit of a blast in pro play, though her normal performance in lower divisions does not speak much. Sharply nerfing the coordination though leaving her own performance untouched.

• [Nerf] The distance that Toy Merchant can throw her toys is reduced to 3 meters. The action has a 45 second cooldown.
• [Buff] Gain 20% bonus movement speed upon landing from a height for 3 seconds.

​
Weeping Clown (Buff)
Weeping Clown's item is not bad, but it is simply described through the word average. Giving him more impact instead of simply increasing his numbers.

• The cooldown of Rocket is reduced to 6s (from 20s). If Weeping Clown cancels the Rocket, he retains it but loses 60% of its charges.
• No longer has a cast time when using the Rocket.
• [Nerf] Each used Rocket reduces decoding speed by 8%.

​
Antiquarian (Nerf)
Antiquarian is overperforming and causing problems in both pro play and normal play. Giving her a nerf to her comeback potential which makes her a tad too spamable while still maintaining her identity.

• [Nerfed] Antiquarian now has a 30% healing speed debuff and gets healed 30% slower.

​
Little Girl
By design, Little Girl is one of the few that I utterly despise because of her unhealthy Leeching mechanic. While she isn’t THAT strong, the mechanic removes a lot of interactions and force the hunter to be careful at dealing with her or otherwise she can leech onto a stronger kiter and be unstoppable for the rest of the game, especially if you are tunneling her.
Memory Fragment, is an extremely fun concept and one of the best ability in the game, giving her more power in that; while reworking her most frustrating ability. Now she can become more sufficient on her own, and not having to bind to a Forward or Batter to survive.
Memory Fragment

• [Buff] Self knockback effect is increased to 6m to 4,1m. The radius of the memory fragment is increased. No longer have a delay upon using.
• [Nerf] The hunter's knockback is reduced from 4,1m to 2m.
• [Buff] Initial Charge increased to 2 from 1,25.

Memory Sync (Reworked)

• No longer increasing their decoding speed by 70%, vaulting speed by 15%, and pallet dropping/Rocket Chair-rescuing speed by 30%
• Memory Fragments cannot be recharged during Memory Sync.
• [Sudden Impact] Memory Sync will stop and linger for another 5 seconds when the survivor uses an ability or does anything that would progress the game (decoding, dropping pallets, vaulting, etc), then Memory and the survivor gain 45% bonus movement speed for 2 seconds.

Esthesia

• Little Girl's vaulting speed by default is increased by 15%
• All survivors with less than 100% vaulting speed gains Ambience with Little Girl. (does not count persona branches)
• When Little Girl is not injured and in the effect of Memory Sync, the Ambience Survivor gains 30% bonus vaulting speed and 45% bonus pallet dropping speed. Furthermore, Memory Fragment is enhanced: Self knockback increased to 7.5m, Hunter knockback increased to 3m.
• The Ambience Survivor will not be affected from the [Sudden Impact] effect, but can cancel Memory Sync at any times to gain the movement speed buff. The movement speed duration is increased by 2 seconds.

​
Novelist
Ah yes, good idea but horrendous execution. Novelist is the strongest survivor in the entire game speaking from a mechanically standpoint. But his kit is just super unhealthy, so here's an entire rework.
Metaphor (cooldown: 20 seconds)

• Novelist can gather information from hunters by looking directly at their face. The time it takes to gather information is 16 seconds. (Increased to 16/32/48/64s when more than 1 novelist) Novelist starts the match with 8 seconds of the information progress available.
• Upon using the Metaphor, the hunter will become a helpless survivor for 2.5 seconds and will automatically act as if Novelist is the hunter, moving away from him. During this time, they have greatly obscured vision. Novelist gains 10% bonus movement speed for 2.5 seconds upon using Metaphor. Novelist can only hold one hunter’s information at the same time.

Outline (cooldown: 30 seconds)

• Novelist can learn the behaviors of other survivors by looking directly at their face. The time it takes to gather information is 12 seconds (increased to 12/24/36/48s when more than 1 novelist)
• Upon using the Outline, both Novelist and them gain 40% movement speed for 3 seconds, reduced to 20% if Novelist is 32m away from the survivor. This ability can only be used once for each survivor. Novelist can hold multiple individual’s Outline at the same time.

Resonance

• Upon using either Metaphor or Outline, Novelist gains resonance with them.
• Using Metaphor causes both of you to see each other’s aura for 5 seconds. Using Outline increases healing speed towards each other by 10% for the rest of the match.

Foreshadowing

• Becomes obsessed with the beginning of a new novel and gradually slow down the pace.
• When decoding a cipher with less than 50% of its progress, calibrations rate is increased by 30%. When decoding a cipher with more than 50% of its progress, decoding speed is reduced by 5%, calibrations rate is reduced by 20%, and a great calibration will increase the progress by an additional 0,4%.

[Now allowed in Duo hunters]
​
Psychologist
Though the Stress reduction time window is kind of interesting to play with, it mostly leads to some inconsistencies to both sides, whether chip damage chipping her down too quick; or her being able to back up a second kite after chair which is super frustrating to play against. Though reducing the duration would be beneficial to both sides, Psychologist herself also gets a bonus buff to her support capabilities as a compensation for the seemingly nerf.

• [Adjustment] Stress window is now considered as an additional health bar that will immediately consumed when damaged (from 32 seconds)
• [Buff] Empathize duration reduced to 4 seconds from 5 seconds.
• [Buff] Healing penalty changed to 5/20/35% from 10/20/30/40/50%
• [Buff] The healing penalty will not take effect if Psychologist still has her additional health bar active.

Professor [Rework]
Professor is one of the few survivors who has a good concept, but in practice he is just a less attractive version of Seer. While it is not healthy to discuss which survivor is better, it is not wrong to say that the playstyle of him really feels like a discounted version of Seer who is much more flexible with all hunters. The hunters he counters, should not be countered that hard and the hunters that he struggles to play against should not be too oppressive for him.
Scale Hardening

• The Professor can harden the scales on his body for 2 seconds, granting him the ability to negate all normal attacks and abilities during the duration. A scale takes 30 seconds to charge up. Professor can hold up to 2 scales at a time.
• Upon a successful block, Professor explodes all scales in his possession, stunning the hunter for 1,8 seconds (increased to 2,4 seconds if he has another scale exploded). During the duration, Professor gains 100% bonus movement speed for 1,8 seconds (increased to 2,4 seconds if he has another scale exploded)

Scale Shedding

• Scales now stuns the hunter for 0,8 seconds and raises the survivor movement speed by 100% for the same period. Survivors cannot pick another one for 120 seconds.
• Whenever Professor receives damage not from a basic attack, he gains 30% bonus movement speed for 3 seconds. The ¼ shield is removed.

Insanity

• Professor’s decoding speed is reduced by 10%. If Professor did a successful block on his scale, the decoding speed is further reduced by 5%, up to 20% decreased decoding speed.

​
Painter
There are three problems when it comes to Painter. First, while his Paintings are among some of the most powerful in the games, it is negated by its lackluster number, creating a dilemma where hunters can completely avoid the painting by looking away or simply using Excitement. Secondly, Painter struggles at late game where he has little self-peel to help himself, just like Perfumer. And finally, his painting is just not good in a chase compared to others who have a much easier time controlling their stuns (i.e., Prospector). Here’s to removing one of his most frustrating features of him, while simultaneously getting his own kiting pace more acceptable.
Artistic Sensitivity

• The number of drawing boards is increased to 3 (from 2)
• Painter automatically draws when he is directly looking at the hunter. The time it takes to draw is increased to 12 seconds from 9 seconds.
• When walking to the painting, hunter’s POV no longer gets fixed towards it.
• If Painter is not in pursuit, the stun duration is reduced by 50%. (Nerf)

Aesthetic Resonance

• No longer increases movement speed.
• Now increased vaulting speed by 5%/10%/15%

​
Journalist
Journalist is utterly broken, and people are just starting to realize it by now. Even though her identity is a rescuer, her kiting skills are insane and is basically a better version of Perfumer who doesn’t even need to be healthy to kite. Imagine Seer, with three owls right at the start of the match. Her main persona isn’t even 36, but 39, as kiting with her is insanely strong and the rescue image isn’t anything special. Giving her a tad more power in the rescue department while gutting her kiting skills down.

• The image can now only block basic attacks. Also, it cannot receive damage from anything other than a basic attack.
• The rescue image will automatically block the attack even if Journalist is attacked, as long as she is within 3m of a Rocket chair.

Its like any other day in the violent streets in Yeongdeungpo. The Union is growing at a notoriously fast rate, and it's suddenly popped on Charles radar. He orders Gun to go and take care of it, and just in case he needs help(lol), he brings Goo.
​
"This is so boring" Goo says. "Lets stop by that chicken place first!"
The Monster Duo orders chicken and sits and waits for it to arrive.
Meanwhile Teddy comes and brings it out. "Here's your chick-!"
He stops in his tracks almost instantly. Being a fighting maniac himself, he can almost instantly recognize strong people by their aura. And the aura that these men were radiating were off the charts.
He goes back and tells Gerard, "Hey, those two guys out there... do you know them?"
Gerard takes a look and says "No. they look like businessmen. Where are they from?"
"Don't know" Teddy states. "They're giving me really, REALLY bad vibes."
Gun and Goo discuss the objective. "The Union is a multifaceted organization that has taken control over all of Yeongdeungpo. They have schools like Ganghak, Yoosun, Daehyon, and Hyongshin under their control, along with their respective leaders." Gun states.
"Sort of like the 4 major crews? What a bunch of copycats."
"Be alert. Apparently all of the schools were united together and they all work under one man: Donald Na.
"He sounds strong."
"We'll have to go see for ourselves."
Gun and Goo leave Tteokbokki Chicken and start their venture to look for the Union. Gerard and Teddy overhear their conversation. "They're going after the Union?!?!? Are they crazy?!?" Teddy tells Gerard.
"They must have some ulterior motive for taken them down. Even so, just the two of them?" Gerards responds. "I've got a bad feeling about this. We should tell the gang."
​
Back at Eunjang, Rowan and Alex are sparring again, with Ben spectating. Gray is stuydiing with Eugene when suddenly gets a text.
Eugene states, "Some guys are here to destroy the Union?"
Ben and Alex eyes widen once they figure it out. Gray stops studying and listens. They all agree to meet with Teddy and Gerard.
Outside of Eunjang, They all meet up and talk about it. Teddy describes the two as tall, has glassses on, one is blonde and the other has black hair. Ben looks behind him and says "Is it those two?"
Surely enough, Gun and Goo are making their way to Hyongshin. Gun tells Goo "We should thank Kouji for sending us the coordinates of the schools. This makes things easy."
As they approach the front door, Hyoengshin students are flooding the streets. Grape sees them and says "who the fuck are y-"
Gun kicks him through the front door and he shatters through it. As he struggles to breathe, the rest of the students start rushing him.
Forrest is upsatirs and he hears all the commotion going on he rushes downstairs and witnesses something diabolical.
Gun runs through the students like play dough, swatting his arm back and forth and sends the students flying all over the place. He grabs a student and launches him at Forrest.
Forrest gets up and enraged, throws a wild punch at Gun.
Gun catches his fist and glares at him. "This school is too weak." he clenches his fist harder. "WAY too weak."
Forrest looks into his eyes and realizes with horror there's nothing there. Just pure, black malice.
I.... need to let the others know...about this monster. He thinks to himself.
Gun pulls Forrest towards him and hits him with a body shot that sends him flying up into the second floor of the building. He blasts through it, bleeding and unconscious.
"Sheesh! that's gotta hurt!" Goo exclaims.
"...That takes care of Hyongshin." Gun says. Next up is Yoosun."
As the duo departs, Eunjang watches in horror at the massacre they just witnessed.
Alex turns at Ben. "Ben.... what do we do?"
Bens face is shadowed with fear. "...What can we do?"
Ben hasn't seen anything like this before. Even when he was going against Donald Na, the difference in abilities and power wasnt this big.
​
They go to Yoosun. word has gotten around how Gun and Goo have arrived on the scene. Jimmy talks with Donald on the phone.
"I heard there's these two men running around wrecking everything."
"Yes. they've already got Forrest."
"Hmm. Interesting. it seems like even after all this time, we still have ants running around tying to capitalize on the castle. Stay on guard."
​
Donald talks with Kingsley. "Could they be from Mapo?" Kingsley says.
"No. Changhuis too prideful to go against our agreement like this. It has to be some outside source."
"Gather every executive and have them meet me at Yeoinaru."
"Understood."
​
Gun and Goo barge into Yoosun and starts no-diffing everyone without any problems. Jimmy comes along and attempts to sneak attack Gun.
Goo intercepts and throws a rock at him, which leaves a scar on his face.
Jimmy says, "I've heard about you guys. Guys who think they are the shit. Just wait... Ill crush you into a pulp!"
Jimmy charges at Goo and starts hitting him. Goo laughs and take everything he has with a smile on his face. "You're a feisty one, aren't ya?!?
Jimmy is baffled why none of his attacks are even fazing him. Is he like Wolf? No....even stronger. Much much stronger.
Goo then trips Jimmy and slams his knee into his face. As Jimmy attemps to get up, Goo appears behind him and chops the back of his neck.
As Jimmy loses consciousness he thinks to himself, Could Jake or Donald.....even beat these two.?
"Well that was annoying. But Yoosuns down!"
"So that just leaves Ganghak and Dahyeon... those guys are the stronger parts of the Union. Wolf Keum and Jake Ji."
"This is taking too long. I wanna watch "The Adventures of JoonGoo the swordfighter!" "There's gotta be an easier way to do this."
"If we go straight to the Union's office, we should find Donald Na. It's in Yeoinaru. Wolf and Jake would probably be there too, since word spread fast."
"Alright. let's go there."
So the two head for Donald Na.
​
​
At the office, Jake, Wolf and the Mok-Ha Duo are with Donald, discussing orders.
"They really took down Jimmy and Forrest." Wolf states. "That means they're no pushovers."
"Right." Jake says. "It's been a while since we had any sort of challenge. This could be interesting."
"ARGH, WHO CARES?!?! Dongha shouts. LETS JUST BEAT THEM TO DEATH ALREADY!"
"Quiet."
​
Donalds voice made everybody pipe down.
​
There's knocking on the door. Kingsley opens it, and to their surprise, its Eunjang.
"What are you doing here?" Donald asks.
Ben speaks up. "We know about the men who've been causing damage to all of Yeongdeungpo."
"They're really strong. Not even you could handle them by yourself."
"So why are you helping us then?"
Gray speaks up. "Chances are they're here to take over as some sort of new dictatorship. We just want to protect Eunjang."
"Hmm....Alright, White Mamba. Think of this as a temporary alliance of the Union and Eunjang."
So the Union and Eunjang work together to attempt to stop Gun and Goo."
Attempt.
While that got settled, There's a loud BOOM outside the building. Ruckus continues until a fodder comes flying through the door.
​
"Hey."
As the steam settles, two men with glasses come out of the frame.
Gun locates him and says, "You must be Donald Na."
Donald glares at Gun and says. "....This is quite the mess you've made. Do you really think you guys can handle the consequences?"
Gun smiles and takes off his glasses. "Well let's find out."
​
Meanwhile, Goo and Wolf are just getting started.
"What's up with your hair? are you a mushroom or something?"
Wolf says nothing.
1...2....3.
He socks Goo in the face.
He grabs him and attempts to take him into the abyss.
FACE! FACE! FACE!
​
After enough punches, Goo's glasses break. he kicks Wolf off him.
"This is so fucking irritating." "Who said you could break my glasses?"
All of a sudden, Goo sees a chair leg sitting around. He eerily walks toward it.
Gerard and Gray and Alex go and help Wolf, who starts to feel the danger.
But it didn't matter how many people helped Wolf.
​
Goo, bleeding and smiling, says to him,
"I think you need to be taught a lesson."
In about 3 seconds, he instantly dismantles Wolf blitzing him in angles that he couldn't comprehend. He turns around and does the same to Alex and Gerard. Gray realizes that he can't analyze Goo at all, and it's too late before Goo appears above him and kills him with one blow.
​
Meanwhile, Ben, Jake, Teddy, all attack Gun at the same time, which does nothing. Gun then Aikido flips all of them at once, sending them to the air. Jake gets up and starts fighting Gun, who isn't impressed by his skills at all. Teddy then grabs Gun from behind and him and Jake attempt to hold him still while Ben charges up a superpunch. Gun leans down and does a capoeira kick counter, then proceeds to twist his body and simultaneously take out everyone.
He appears before Donald.
"Looks like no one can save you know. You run a good crew, but it's time for you to go."
Donald attempts to attack Gun using a throat punch, and Gun uses Kyokushin-style strike to instantly crush Donald. He dies.
Gun and Goo meet up in the middle.
"They had a good crew." Gun said. "In any other circumstance, I would've taken them in and trained them."
"Eh, whatever." "Goo says." "Let's Go!"
​
​
And so Gun and Goo leave the dismantled Union.
​
​
THE END
\

Here’s a dream I had a bit ago. Posting it here because I feel like this one is worth sharing because it is an interesting read and want to know what people think about the scenario. Also if you haven’t seen Hazbin Hotel, I highly recommend watching the pilot on YouTube. It’s one episode and it’s free to watch. And it’s really good too… So yeah just let me know what y’all think! Also feel free to share this, just credit Zaun Aura. If you’re an artist, feel free to use this as an idea as well! Thank you.
... I remember seeing Monika and Alastor in Hazbin Hotel. They were in the actual hotel it seemed—in the lobby. I remember Alastor (Radio Demon) told Monika that he was a fan of what she did and to tell him more about how she did it. Monika looked a bit unsure and…not quite aloof…but almost like a little lost for words, and maybe even, tired/(like she's without a part of her soul). She said something like "Well I'm not quite sure…" Then Radio Demon said how he and devils before him acted out from the knowledge of good and evil, and that either their motivation was to do what they thought was good or to “embrace being bad”! And he said this in his usual ecstatic and whirlwind kind of self—it was just the way he normally spoke. And Monika listened and looked on with these kind of downcast eyes and said in a continual, weak-sounding, yet genuine and humble tone: "That's not what it was like for me…I saw my world as having no meaning and when I looked at my friends…they were still there…and still my friends, but I could no longer see how they even saw their meaning, or their purpose anymore…and so I acted in response to this ever-increasing realization of meaninglessness." Alastor listened but he had this skeptical look on his face. He told her "My dear! I can't believe what you're saying to me right now! I don't even know if YOU know what you believe what you're saying!" Monika still has this melancholic, yet sincere, look on her face. Monika: "What led me to my decision-making, my modus operandi, was knowing this place was not real and my inability to see the meaning or purpose in things." Alastor: "How can that be! How can that make sense?!" Alastor's expression changes to one that's more perplexed and bewildered (almost a consternation of some kind) as he's saying this. "Then again, NOTHING you do makes sense!! You're an anomoly…!"
That’s the last of what I remember before waking up.

So this is just my list of powers and abilities if the Greek demigods are as powerful as Percy. This is just my ideas. Idk if some of you feel like Percy is OP too. This is a bit lengthy tho...
Children of Zeus - (more) control over Lightning and Electricity, ability to manipulate and control the air currents, create gusts of wind, and even fly, summon storms, create thunderstorms or tornadoes, and manipulate atmospheric conditions, might possess natural leadership abilities, charisma, and the power to inspire others. (Basically like Jason Grace but more powerful?)
Children of Poseidon - Percy
Children of Demeter - Meg
Children of Ares - Exceptional fighting skills, including mastery of various weapons such as swords, spears, and axes. Their reflexes, agility, and strategic thinking would be honed to a high level, making them formidable warriors. As the children of the god of war, they would have an innate understanding and proficiency with a wide range of weapons.
Ares is often associated with the concept of fear in war. The children of Ares might possess the ability to induce fear in their opponents, manipulating their emotions and psyche to gain an advantage in battle.
The children of Ares might have the ability to enter a heightened state of battle rage or berserker mode. In this state, their strength, speed, and aggression would increase even further, making them more formidable and dangerous in combat.
Children of Athena - They would have exceptional knowledge and understanding in various fields, including strategy, tactics, and critical thinking. They would be excellent strategists and quick thinkers, capable of analyzing situations and devising effective plans. The children of Athena might have an innate ability to absorb and retain knowledge at an accelerated rate. They could quickly grasp new concepts, languages, and skills, giving them an advantage in acquiring and applying information.
Athena is associated with strategic warfare, and her children would have a natural aptitude for planning and executing battles. They would excel in devising battle strategies, understanding the strengths and weaknesses of opponents, and finding ways to outmaneuver and outwit their enemies. Although not as physically powerful as some other demigods, the children of Athena would possess above-average combat skills. They would be trained in various forms of martial arts and armed combat, and their agility, reflexes, and precision would make them formidable opponents in battle.
Children of Athena might have heightened senses and intuition, allowing them to perceive and analyze their surroundings more keenly. This heightened perception could help them anticipate danger, detect hidden traps or weaknesses, and make informed decisions.
Children of Apollo - Children of Apollo would have the ability to manipulate and control light. They could create intense beams of light, manipulate their intensity and direction, and even create illusions using light manipulation. Children of Apollo might have the ability to absorb and harness solar energy. They could draw strength and power from sunlight, enhancing their physical abilities or channeling it into various forms of energy-based attacks.
Apollo is associated with healing, so his children would likely possess enhanced healing abilities. They could heal wounds, cure diseases, and alleviate pain using their hands or through light-based healing techniques.
Apollo is also the god of archery, so his children would have exceptional skill in archery and marksmanship. They could exhibit remarkable accuracy and precision when using bows and arrows or other ranged weapons.
Apollo is the god of music, so his children would have a natural talent for music and performing arts. They could play musical instruments with great proficiency, sing beautifully, and have an enchanting presence on stage.
Apollo is the god of prophecy, so his children might have the ability to receive visions or glimpses of the future. They could possess a heightened sense of intuition and be able to interpret signs and omens.
The Hunters of Artemis - The Hunters of Artemis would possess unparalleled skill and precision in archery. They could hit their targets with remarkable accuracy, even under challenging conditions. Their arrows might possess unique properties, such as enchantments or the ability to track their targets.
The Hunters would have heightened senses, particularly in regard to their ability to track and perceive their surroundings. They could have enhanced night vision, acute hearing, and an uncanny sense of smell, allowing them to navigate and detect potential threats even in darkness.
Artemis is associated with the moon, and her followers would draw power from its influence. They might gain increased strength, agility, and stamina during the night or under moonlit conditions. They could also tap into the moon's energy to enhance their abilities and perform specialized attacks.
The Hunters would have a deep connection to nature and the wilderness. They could communicate with animals, command the loyalty of creatures they encounter, and draw strength from their surroundings. They might even be able to control and manipulate plants to create barriers or aid them in their missions.
Children of Hephaestus - Ofc, Fire Manipulation. Children of Hephaestus would have a natural resistance to fire and heat. They could withstand intense temperatures and forge metal in extreme conditions without being harmed.
Children of Hephaestus would have a natural affinity for technology and machines. They could manipulate and control machinery, making them adept at repairing, modifying, and even controlling mechanical devices. They might be able to communicate with and understand the inner workings of complex systems.
The children of Hephaestus would likely possess enhanced physical strength and durability. They would be stronger and more resilient than regular demigods, enabling them to handle heavy machinery, forge metal with ease, and withstand physical stress and injuries.
They could create and manipulate metal effortlessly, forging powerful weapons and crafting intricate armor. Their creations would be of superior quality and possess unique enchantments or properties.
The children of Hephaestus might have a natural talent for inventing and creating advanced technological devices. They could design and construct innovative gadgets, automatons, or inventions that harness their abilities or serve specific purposes.
Children of Aphrodite (my fave part) - Charmspeak: Aphrodite's children might possess the ability to charm and influence others through their words. They could speak with a persuasive and enchanting voice, compelling others to follow their suggestions or commands. This power could be particularly useful in negotiations, persuasion, or calming conflicts.
The children of Aphrodite would have natural beauty and allure. They would possess an irresistible charm and physical attractiveness, which could captivate and mesmerize those around them.
Aphrodite is associated with love and desire, so her children might have the power to manipulate emotions. They could enhance feelings of love, attraction, and affection in others, or alternatively, dampen or redirect emotions to diffuse conflicts or establish peace.
Children of Aphrodite might emit an aura that promotes love, harmony, and positive energy. Their presence could soothe tensions and conflicts, fostering a sense of peace and unity among those nearby.
Aphrodite's children might possess the ability to create illusions and glamour that enhance beauty, create enchanting environments, or disguise their true appearances. They could manipulate perceptions and create illusions of love, desire, or idealized beauty.
The children of Aphrodite might have heightened empathy, enabling them to understand and feel the emotions and desires of others. This empathy could aid them in building connections, resolving conflicts, and offering comfort and support to those in need.
Children of Dionysus - The children of Dionysus might draw strength and power from the energy of celebrations, parties, and revelry. The more joyous and energetic the atmosphere, the more their own abilities would be enhanced.
Children of Dionysus would possess enhanced resistance to the effects of alcohol and toxins. They would have a higher tolerance for substances and be able to recover more quickly from their effects.
Dionysus is associated with madness, so his children might have the ability to induce temporary states of madness or frenzy in others. This power could be used to disorient opponents or create chaos in battle.
The children of Dionysus might have the power to control and manipulate vines and plant life associated with wine. They could summon and shape vines for various purposes, such as binding or ensnaring opponents, creating barriers, or providing aid and support.
Dionysus is known for his revelry and heightened sensory experiences. His children might possess heightened senses, allowing them to detect subtle changes in their surroundings, perceive hidden dangers, or appreciate the nuances of taste, aroma, and sound.
Children of Dionysus might possess an enhanced ability to influence and persuade others. They could have a natural charm and charisma that makes them convincing and persuasive in their interactions, allowing them to sway opinions and gain allies.
The children of Dionysus might have the power to enhance the atmosphere of celebrations and parties. They could infuse the environment with a sense of joy, energy, and merriment, creating an irresistible party atmosphere that entices and captivates those present.

I had a feeling that it was just me, but the (VIP) Gladion Battle in Sunshine Circus seems impossible. The VIP fights in general can be pretty tough (and possibly have Pokemon with modified stats. *cough* Harrowk *cough*), but the Aura Tournament specifically doesn't seem normal at all. Gladion's Zoroark has basically no weaknesses, and I'm not just talking about the fact that it's a Normal-Ghost Type. It outspeeds my Galvantula, which almost has a 300 in speed, it three-shots my Shulong, and it takes 3 Star Bursts to kill. It's ridiculous. It doesn't even have a Life Orb or anything, it only has an Expert Belt. His Lucario has literally the same problems except it can Mega Evolve. It takes like 5 hits from my Mystic Water Shulong to kill, and it ALMOST one-shots Shulong with Close Combat. Since no one can outspeed it, it's basically unkillable. His Porygon-Z is strong, but in comparison to his first two, it's much more tolerable. Mainly because you can actually outspeed it with a fast Pokemon and it uses Hyper Beam. I had to sacrifice my Hangead to set up Trick Room, and that runs out at some point so it's not a valid strategy. I've seen videos where his Pokemon are easily outspeedable, so maybe it's a version thing? I have the latest version (which I'm pretty sure is 1.5.4 or 1.5.2), so maybe the fight was buffed? I don't know what it could be, or what I'm expected to do. I'd appreciate any tips or tricks because I'm exhausted at this point.
I mean....
come on.
Seriously?

Spoilers for Naruto and Naruto Shippuden

Conditions

1. Healthy pre-reaper death seal Orochimaru (not war arc)
2. Shippuden Jiraiya
3. Both start in base
4. Edo tensei restricted (otherwise it would turn into a stomp since Jiraiya doesn't have a lot of sealing jutsus)
5. Location: The grassy area where the three way deadlock battle happen in the search for Tsunade arc
6. Starting distance 20m
7. Victory by killing or subduing the opponent

The other day I decided to simulate a battle between the two so I thought I would post it here to hear opinions and have a discussion, but before that I will do an analysis of their abilities so that we're all on the same page. First we will start with:

Jiraiya

​

Taijutsu:
​

Jiraiya isn't a taijutsu heavy fighter but he is not too shabby in the field. Strength wise he is easily able to lift and toss around boulders in base scoring a 4.5 in strength in the third databook. In terms of speed, he was able to keep up with an armless Orochimaru while being at 30% of his power scoring a 4.5 in speed in the third databook. Additionally he scores a 4.5 in stamina in the third databook. Finally Jiraiya is durable enough to tank a kick from guy. With all this Jiraiya scored a taijutsu point of 4.5 in the third databook.
Ninjutsu:
​

Jiraiya has a plethora of different ninjutsu, let's take a look at them

1. Fire style: Flame Bomb Jutsu

A C-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya shoots a ball of fire which then causes a mini explosions. Not too powerful as Konan tanked its with no issue.
2.Fire style: Dragon Flame Jutsu
A C-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya shoots out several bullets of fire
3.Fire style: Toad Flame Bomb
A B-rank ninjutsu which is a combine attack between Jiraiya and Gamabunta where Jiraiya shoots fire while Gamabunta shoots oil that enhances the flames. Attack was strong enough to incinerate Manda's shed skin
4.Earth release: Swamp of the Underworld
An A-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya summons a swamp of sticky mud to trap opponents. Note that the swamp can be formed on any surfaces including ceilings. The swamp in strong enough to trap one of Orochimaru's big snake summons and also trap the human path on the ceiling.
5.Rasengan
An A-rank ninjutsu, I think we're all familiar with this rotating ball of chakra so I won't be talking about it.
6.Rasengan Barrage
An A-rank ninjutsu, its just 2 rasengans on in each hand
7.Odama Rasengan
An A-rank ninjutsu, a bigger rasengan
8.Needle Jizo
A B-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya hardens and wraps his hair around himself to become a porcupine
9.Needle Hell
Can't find the rank of this jutsu. Jiraiya hardens and shoots his hair in a barrage of hardened hair, this attack is strong enough to destroy boulders
10.Wild Lion's Main Jutsu
A B-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya strengthens extends his hair, the technique is strong enough to rip Nagato's crab into pieces
11.Barrier: Canopy Method Formation
A B-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya creates a spherical zone around him where he can sense anything within. The zone moves with Jiraiya.
12.Hiding in a Toad Jutsu
A C-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya hides in a small toad
13.Toad Flatness - Shadow Manipulation Jutsu
A B-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya flattens himself and hides in a targets shadow. While doing this he can also control the targets actions, and after the jutsu is dispelled the target has no memory of being controlled. However Jiraiya has to hold his breathe for the duration of the jutsu
14.Toad Oil Bomb
A C-rank ninjutsu where Jiraiya shoots sticky oil, was able to prevent Konan from dispersing into paper
15.Shadow Clone Jutsu
A B-rank ninjutsu, I think we're all familiar with this jutsu
With all these Jiraiya scores a 5 in ninjutsu and 4.5 in hand signs in the third databook
Genjutsu:
Jiraiya doesn't use any genjutsu by himself in the series but he scores a 3 in the field according to the third data book. However he does have access to one of the most broken genjutsu that we'll get into later.
Summonings:
​

Jiraiya has various toad summonings, we'll take a look at them
1.Summoning: Food Cart Destroyer Jutsu
A B-rank summoning jutsu where Jiraiya summons a massive toad above the target which falls on them and crushes them. This jutsu is powerful enough to oneshot one of Orochimaru's big snake summon.
2.Summoning: Toad Mouth Bind
An A-rank summoning jutsu where Jiraiya summons the oesophagus of the great fire breathing toad to trap opponents. Jiraiya can manipulate the flesh of the toad to attack opponents.
3.Summoning: Crushing Toad Stomach
Can't find the rank of this jutsu. Jiraiya reverse summons both himself and anything nearby into a toads stomach where they are crushed. Though this sounds like a suicide attack, Jiraiya can get a shadow clone to perform it.
4.Summoning: Toad Shop Jutsu
A B-rank summoning jutsu where Jiraiya summons a small toad which has the ability to transform into a shop.
5.Barrier: Toad Gourd Prison
A B-rank summoning jutsu where Jiraiya summons a gourd toad which he can enter its stomach. It can also drag opponents into its stomach. Inside its stomach is like a rooms sized chamber filled with gastric acid.
6.Summoning Jutsu
A C-rank summoning jutsu where Jiraiya can summon various animals. Most notably toads, lets look at a some of the more notable toads.
a) Gamabunta
The chief toad of Mount Myoboku is a massive toad that wields a giant samurai sword. Gamabunta is extremely agile being able to jump great distances in a short duration. He is heavy enough that when summoned in the air, was able to knock Kurama, the nine tails, to the ground. He is also skilled in ninjutsu able to fire toad oil in his combo jutsu with jiraiya, Toad flame bomb. He can also shoot out powerful water bullets capable of clashing with the air bullets shot by a weakened Shukaku, the one tail, and durable enough to tank a hit from said air bullets. He was also intelligent enough to come up with a strategy to cancel Shukaku's awakening by waking Gaara up.
b) Gamaken
A giant toad who wields a giant sasumata and a giant shield attached to giant bandages which allows him to both use the shield defensively, and offensively as a flail as well as a rope to grab onto poles and swing around. Gamaken was durable enough to tank several bites from Nagato's dogs and did very well against the canines. He also defeated Nagato's rhino with his sasumata. Finally he was also able to create at least one shadow clone which acted as a decoy and was reversed summoned into the crushing toad stomach.
c) Gamahiro
A giant toad who wields two large swords and is proficient in close quarters combat.

1. Shima and Fukasaku (Ma and Pa)

The two great sage toads, to summon them, Jiraiya has to keep his hands together for several minutes. They are easily Jiraiya's most powerful summons and are his trump cards. Shima and Fukasaku are both physically very strong thanks to infusing nature energy with their own chakra. They can also merge with Jiraiya allowing him to enter an imperfect form of sage mode which we will get into later. Shima is capable of extending her tongue to great lengths to attack and restrain an opponent. Her tongue can move at an immensely fast speed, to the point where even pain was surprised by how fast it was. Additionally she can detect opponents with her tongue in a matter of seconds. Finally it can also release a corrosive mucus from the pores. Fukasaku is capable of firing powerful jets of water which sliced Nagato's chameleon in half. Together with Jiraiya, they can use a combine attack: Fire Style: Goemon, which we will get into later. Finally, the two of them can use one of the most broken genjutsu in the series: Demonic Illusion: Toad Confrontation Chant, where they sing a complex frog song which puts opponents in a powerful genjutsu where they are stunned and feel like they are drowning. This genjutsu was powerful enough to defeat 3 paths of pain despite the numerous powerful genjutsu barriers Nagato placed in each path. The only drawback being that the jutsu takes some charge up time to cast.
Senjutsu:
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Jiraiya can enter an imperfect form of toad sage mode by merging with Shima and Fusakasu. In this form, not only is Jiraiya's physical stats vastly improved but also his ninjutsu.
Taijutsu: Jiraiya gains a massive strength boost in sage mode, capable of shattering the ground just by jumping down. He was able to send human path flying and destroying the boulder the path flew into with just one kick. Do note that the human path also casually blocked a punch from sage mode Jiraiya with just one hand so he is still nowhere near as strong as a perfect sage like naruto in terms of physical strength. Jiraiya also gain access to frog kata where he can hit opponents with his aura. To top it all off, Jiraiya also gains the sensing abilities of sage mode.
Ninjutsu: Jiraiya gains various new ninjutsus as well as enhancements to previously mentioned ninjutsus in sage mode, lets take a look at them:
1.Fire Style: Giant Flame Bombs Jutsu
A B-rank ninjutsu which is the enhanced version of the previously mentioned Fire style: Flame Bomb Jutsu. It now adds oil along with the fire to create a bigger flame bomb.
1.Sage Art: Goemon
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. This is the combination attack with ma and pa mentioned prior where Shima shoots fire, Jiraiya shoots oil and Fukasaku shoots wind. This awesome attack unfortunately has no AP feats since it was absorbed by the preta path but I would imagine it has similar AP to Mei's lava release.

1. Cho Odoma Rasengan

Can't find the rank to this jutsu but its an even bigger rasengan.

1. Ninja Art: Needle Senbon

Again can't find the rank of this jutsu but it is just the enhanced version of needle hell. It's basically the same thing just faster and stronger, it is also apparently the fastest attack in Jiraiya's arsenal.
Fuinjutsu:
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Jiraiya doesn't have many sealing jutsus so we'll just quickly look over the few he has.

1. Sealing Jutsu: Fire Seal

A B-rank sealing jutsu where Jiraiya uses a scroll to seal fire. The seal is even capable of sealing Itachi's Amaterasu.
Other Notable Facts:
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Despite his goofiness, Jiraiya is actually very intelligent being able to analyse the quirky abilities of the 3 paths of pain he fought and come up with a counter strategy. He also has an excellent memory being able to craft a coded message using the page numbers of his book Make Out Tactics, with the first word on each page serving as his message in a couple of seconds while he was dying. This scored him a 4.5 in intelligence according to the third databook. Additionally, Jiraiya is one of the most experienced shinobi, like ever. He completed the most number of missions in the entire hidden leaf village, totaling out at 1,839 official missions, 138 of them being S-rank missions.
That sums up the abilities of Jiraiya the Gallant. (That was way longer than I expected) Now onto:

Orochimaru

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Taijutsu:
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Orochimaru is extremely strong wielding enough strength to punch entire trees down, this scores him a 3.5 in strength according to the third databook. Orochimaru is also extremely fast being able to blitz four tails naruto in his snake tail form while sick, he was also the teacher of hebi sasuke who has been complimented numerous times by the likes of deidara for his speed, as his mentor, Orochimaru should scale above Hebi Sasuke. This scores him a speed of 4.5 in the third databook. He also scores 3.5 for stamina in said book. The most notable component of Orochimaru, is tenaciousness and durability. Apart from his absurd regen that we will get into later, Orochimaru is very resistant to blunt force trauma, capable of tanking numerous punches from Tsunade , with her final punch being specially infused with extra chakra. Note that Tsunade's punches casually broke Madara's susanoo in its ribcage from. All these scores him a 3.5 in taijutsu according to the third databook.
Kenjutsu:
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Orochimaru masterfully wields the legendary Sword of Kusanagi (as seen in the image above lol), which Orochimaru keeps in the mouth of a snake, which is then is kept in his mouth......snek. Enma commented that even in his Diamond-hard Staff form, the Kusanagi blade still hurts. It should be noted that it couldn't pierce V2 jinchuuriki cloak. Orochimaru can extend and retract the Kusanagi blade at will, and by extend, I mean extend. Orochimaru doesn't have to fully pull out the sword from the snake in his mouth to attack, he can partially pull out the blade from the snake in his mouth and just swing his head around. Finally the Kusanagi has one last hidden trick that we will get into later.
Ninjutsu:
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Orochimaru has a lot of unique and weird ninjutsu's, let's go through them

1. Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu

A C-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru fires a fireball out his mouth
2.Wind Release: Breakthrough
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Orochimaru fires a powerful gust of wind out his mouth
3.Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
A C-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru fires a hurricane level gust of wind capable of easily uplifting multiple trees out his mouth.
4.Wind Release: Gale Palm
A C-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru fires a strong gale of wind out his hands.
5.Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole
A C-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru turns the earth around him into fine sand, allowing him to burrow into the ground. While underground he can sense the magnetic forces, effectively allowing him to sense what is happening on the surface.
6.Earth Release: Shadow Clone
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Its a shadow clone made of mud.

1. Hiding in Surfaces Jutsu

Can't find the rank to this jutsu. With this jutsu Orochimaru can phase through his surroundings, allowing travel undetected.

1. Sound Wave Jutsu

Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Orochimaru releases a burst of deadly sound, it was powerful enough to instantly kill 2 anbus.
9.Temporary Paralysis Jutsu
A D-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru temporarily paralyses his target
10.Sword of Kusanagi: Longsword of the Sky
A B-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru can control the Kusanagi blade telekinetically.

1. Soft Physique Modification

Can't find the rank to this jutsu. It allows Orochimaru to stretch and bend his body however and whenever he please, extending it to great lengths and retracting it again. He most commonly uses this with his neck and his tongue, with the latter being strong enough to give Tsunade trouble in pulling it away from her neck, and with the former, when I say extend, I mean extend.

1. Living Corpse Reincarnation

A S-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru transport both him and his target into the dimension inside Orochimaru. In this world which comprise of and endless plane of flesh which Orochimaru can manipulate, Orochimaru can transfer his soul into his target stealing their bodies.
13.Four Black Snakes Formation
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Orochimaru and his clones stand in a square formation, erecting a large barrier between them. On command it incinerates its contents.
14.Oral Rebirth
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Orochimaru regurgitates himself fully restoring himself from any injuries. Note that this jutsu takes up a lot of chakra, like hebi Sasuke used it once and he ran out of chakra. However Orochimaru managed to use it 4 times while sick (like literally days away from coughing blood on his death bed). Healthy Orochimaru should be able to spam this way more.

1. Binding Snake Glare Spell

A C-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru summons a snake out his sleeve which coils around his target.

1. Hidden Shadow Snake Hands

A C-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru summons several snakes from under his sleeve to strike opponents.
17.Multiple Striking Shadow Snakes
A B-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru summons EVEN MORE snakes from under his sleeve to strike opponents. This jutsu seems to strike incredibly fast as it was capable of catching Yamato mid jump and even Hanzo the Salamander.
18.Gathering of the Snakes
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Orochimaru is able to reconnect his body with snakes if he is severed into pieces.
19.Slithering Snake Mode
Can't find the rank to this jutsu. Orochimaru turn his legs into a snake's tail allowing him to move at unbelievable speeds.
20.Twin Snakes Mutual Death Jutsu
An A-rank ninjutsu which we never got to see what it does but it is suppose to cause the death of both the caster and the target.
21.Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes
A B-rank ninjutsu where thousands of snakes crawl out of Orochimaru's mouth to attack opponents. The snakes can also extend blade out of their mouths to attack opponents.

1. Eight Branches Jutsu

A S-rank ninjutsu where Orochimaru transforms into a massive 8 headed and 8 tailed serpent with immense strength. This is said to be Orochimaru's strongest snake related jutsu. When using this technique, Orochimaru can emerge from the mouth of one of the heads and use his Sword of Kusanagi to attack. Finally the serpent is said to possess a powerful healing factor.
Additionally Orochimaru scores a 5 in hand seals according to the third databook. With all these Orochimaru scored a 5 in Ninjutsu according to said book.
Genjutsu:
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Orochimaru doesn't use any genjutsu in the series apart from his killing intent which isn't really a genjutsu. His killing intent paralyses his targets in fear making them visualise their own death. Despite this Orochimaru scores a 5 in genjutsu according to the third databook.
Summonings:
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Orochimaru has various summonings, we'll take a look at them.

1. Summoning: Rashomon

A B-rank summoning jutsu where Orochimaru summons a demonic gate from the ground to block an incoming attack. The gate was able to block Kiba's twin fang attack but dented.
2.Summoning: Triple Rashomon
An A-rank summoning jutsu where Orochimaru summons three demonic gates from the ground to block an incoming attack. The gate was able to heavily reduce the damage of a four tails naruto's bijuu dama to the point where it Orochimaru wasn't disintegrated by the bomb but instead knocked to the ground.

1. Summoning: Edo Tensei

RESTRICTED
Snake summons: Orochimaru has many different giant snake summons, one even having three heads, but the most notable being Manda which is said to be the strongest colossal serpent. Manda is extremely large and powerful, he was also skilled in combat taking on both Gamabunta and one-tenth of Katsuyu simultaneously almost killing them both. He was agile enough to dodge Katsuyu's acid spit and durable enough to remain intact even after tanking Deidara's suicide jutsu, though he did die as a result. Manda also has superb regeneration claiming that he will only take a weak to heal a hole caused by Gamabunta's sword. He could shed his skin to evade attack and quickly burrow and move underground with his wicked gong mouth technique. He is intelligent enough to deceive Gamabunta by distracting him with his tail to leave him open for a bite.
Senjutsu:
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Orochimaru utilises senjutsu in combat through the form of curse marks. He can give a curse opponents curse marks by biting them, usually on the neck. He can give various curse marks but the most suitable one for combat is the one he gave Guru Guru which paralysed him for a couple seconds. This is impressive as Guru Guru was holding off the entire Kurama enhanced shinobi alliance along with the five kage and edo Hiruzen.
Other Notable facts:
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Orochimaru still has some abilities which don't really fit into any category. For one he can absorb someone's chakra by simply touching them. Orochimaru can also enter his true form which is a massive white snake made of smaller white snake and attacks with said smaller white snakes by extending the smaller white snakes to strike foes. Snake. The most notable feature of this form is that it's blood will evaporate into the air creating an undetectable numbing neurotoxin that paralyses anyone who breathes it. Even Sasuke who possessed the sharingan and a pseudo sage mode with his curse mark was unable to detect until he was already paralysed by the toxins. To add on, Orochimaru is also vastly intelligent being an excellent scientist and has a vast array of knowledge. With this he scored a 5 in intelligence according to the third databook. Much like Jiraiya, Orochimaru is also highly experienced in combat having completed the second highest amount of missions in the hidden lead with the total count of 1,468 missions with 108 being S-rank missions. Finally, Orochimaru might be able to test opponents through the air like a snake or use his snake taste them for him since Sasuke warned Itachi about that when they fought Kabuto claiming that he had to research that before taking on Orochimaru.
And that sums up the abilities of Orochimaru the Snake Sannin.

Simulation

That was longer than I expected but now we can finally move on to the simulated battle. In case you forgot, these are the conditions:

1. Healthy pre-reaper death seal Orochimaru (not war arc)
2. Shippuden Jiraiya
3. Both start in base
4. Edo tensei restricted (otherwise it would turn into a stomp since Jiraiya doesn't have a lot of sealing jutsus)
5. Location: The grassy area where the three way deadlock battle happen in the search for Tsunade arc
6. Starting distance 20m
7. Victory by killing or subduing the opponent

Note that in the battle whenever anyone uses a named jutsu I will have a "(insert jutsu name)!" to make it clear on what their doing. Since I am running out of character limit, I'll write the battle in the comments:
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edit: The simulation is posted in 3 parts since I ran out of character space. Note that it ends with a

KO!

Give me your best balancing hot takes. None of that "less items should have pen, mitigation cap bad, tanks feel bad, nerf aura items", that shit's cold, it's boring, no one cares. Only hot takes here.
I have 3 for your consideration:

• Pendulum of Ages should have 10% CDR instead of 20%
• Prophetic Cloak should only have the aura or the mitigation, but not both
• Breastplate of Regrowth should be nerfed until it is not balanced, but weak

Explanations below

Pendulum of Ages should have 10% CDR instead of 20%

Currently, Pendulum is the most popular mage starter item by far, for a few reasons. First, Sands of Time is a very good starter, so people will naturally upgrade into Pendulum, since Alternate Timeline is very niche. Secondly, it gives 190 power, which is a ridiculous amount, only matched by something like a Book of Thoth or Rod of Tahuti passive. Thirdly, it gives 20% CDR, which makes reaching the CDR cap trivial. With Spear of Deso being so meta, all other items that give CDR (Soul Gem, Myrddin, Pythags, Chronos Pendant) become significantly worse. I think Pendant having 20% CDR contributes a lot towards mage builds being so boring. If you want CDR, you should have to work for it. Either build 3 items that give 10%, or build Chronos Pendant because you really want that CDR. And if you don't want or need CDR, you shouldn't reach the cap, compared to now where you can reach it by accident.

Prophetic Cloak should only have the aura or the mitigation, but not both

Let's compare Evolved Prophetic to Sovereignty and Heartward combined:

• 70 phys prots vs 55 phys prots, 70 mag prots vs 75 mag prots
• 150 hp vs 500 hp
• 30 of each prots (aura) vs 15 phys and 20 mag (aura)
• 10% CDR and 15% mitigation vs 25 HP5 (aura) and 30 MP5 (aura)
• must stack for like 10 minutes vs instantly gaining benefits
• 2350 gold vs 4200 gold
• 1 item slot vs 2 item slots
• no glyphs vs glyph that gives you infinite magic prots or some weird silence on autos effect

The fact that 1 item is comparable and even somewhat close to 2 items is ridiculous. Prophetic is incredibly bloated and should never be allowed to give this many stats. I understand that we are very far from a tank meta so this item probably shouldn't be nerfed, but this is just not healthy for the game. Prophetic should not be bought on every support ever, it should only be bought on supports who are able to quickly stack it and work well with it. It should not be the best personal defense item and the best aura item at the same time, a support's viability should not be defined by their ability to stack this item. It's just too good, and as soon as we get the game back into a reasonable state with penetration vs protections, it should be nerfed.

Breastplate of Regrowth should be nerfed until it is not balanced, but weak

The main problem is that movement speed items are not fun to play against. By now everyone has probably played against a Hercules with regrowth who just runs at your backline, dodges everything because he's so fast, he runs past your carry, then pushes them towards his team because the carry can't outrun him. This is fundamentally unfun to play against, primarily because it's just difficult to deal with. You need a coordinated effort to pour cc onto them so they can't move and will either be blown up or taken out of the fight, because if you don't, they just run you down.
How do you normally balanced movement speed? Well, you just make the stats really, really bad. But even when the item is "balanced", it still isn't fun to play against.
Historically, Hirez has struggled with this. Bumba's Mask used to give 35% movement in exchange for dealing 15% less damage and taking 15% more. By the time it was removed, it was basically never bought, because the downsides were so severe, but even when it was "balanced", it still made the game miserable for anyone playing against it because whoever bought it got 35% movement speed. Hastened Fatalis was bad on 95% of gods up until when it was buffed in Season 4, where it was then nerfed and eventually removed. Even after being "balanced", Hirez decided that the haste effect doesn't belong on hunters and removed it, along with the haste on Sol 3, Chronos 2, and others I'm probably forgetting. It wasn't that Fatalis specifically was OP at the time or that Sol or Chronos were OP, it just wasn't healthy for the game. There's even the unrelated strategy of invading at level 1 which Hirez has made incredibly bad with the invader's curse. It may have been "balanced", or bad, but Hirez decided (correctly) that it was so incredibly unfun to play against that it should never be even remotely viable. There are even gods like old Loki who were kept being very weak because he was so unfun to play against.
There are also modern examples of slowing items, aka Frostbound and Gem of Iso. If those items were bought with any sort of frequency, people would quit en masse. No one enjoys not being able to move, no one enjoys being run down by an Osiris while permanently slowed for 20 seconds until you die, no one enjoys being slowed by 50% for 5 seconds from a single Zhong Kui card. These items have to be bad because they are unfun to play against, so if they were seen as any more than a super niche meme item, people would riot. Although right now they are just awful, so maybe a tiny buff would be fine.
I give these examples to show that balanced =/= fun, and sometime certain items should be kept as weak so that the unfun-ness doesn't ruin the game. I believe that Breastplate of Regrowth should be nerfed to the same level as old Shield of Regrowth (mostly a meme item), because it should be kept as a bad item, similar to Frostbound/Gem of Iso, Mystical Mail, Bauble, and all the other unfun/unhealthy items.