Flipz

"Damn it, damn it, damn it." Arthur's Actions: >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Assassin: >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Assassin: OR >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Warden (Back): >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Assassin: OR >Arthur casts Blindness on Syndicate Elite Assassin: >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Assassin: Or >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Warden (back):

Ugh, I just saw the complete lyrics for Michael Buble's "It's A Beautiful Day". Way to waste a perfect opportunity to throw in a Buble song, IM3! To be fair, Tony Stark IS well known for having a large non-Iron Man presence in SHIELD in the comics--I saw an interview the other day that talked about how there was a series of SHIELD comics a few years back that heavily featured Tony without really bringing up the fact that he was Iron Man; the writers said something along the lines of "if you didn't already know, you could very possibly read through the entirety of our run without knowing that Tony Stark had any sort of presence beyond being an official in SHIELD". I'm wondering if that's what they'll try for with RDJ's future films--whether they'll bring up the suit at all, or if they'll just make cryptic references to it. Also, fun fact, it feels really weird saying that

Eh, if he forgets to down an Ether Core before he has any of them attack, they all go away immediately. So if he just repeats his Battle order, he's toast. ...whoops.

OOC: You forced my hand with those specials, really. We can't have Arnulf OR Em attacking the Warden and waking him up, which means all attacks against the Warden have to go BEFORE Arthur Sleeps him. We can't have the Warden drawing our strikes until at least one enemy is dead, though, so that affects who Arnulf attacks. However, we can't risk Arnulf or Karie triggering Octavyn's special without at least SOME attempt at Arthur Sealing him, so they have to go AFTER Arthur. Thus, Arnulf's position in the order depends on Em's action, and since Arnulf's name is so easy to confuse with Arthur's, a color-coded order was necessary for clarity. All this could have been avoided if Octavyn didn't have a randomized Special. "Careful, Karie. Twice the speed also means twice the chances to get hit. It's the dark side of Smelling Salts." "All right, then, Arnulf, make sure you attack Octavyn, NOT the Warden." Updated Battle Summary: >Boomingham VS Syndicate Elite Assassin (back): >Em VS Syndicate Elite Warden (back): >Arthur uses Remedy on Boomingham >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep, >Arthur casts Sealing on Syndicate Admin Octavyn: >Arnulf VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back): >Karie uses Smelling Salts >Karie VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back):

Yeah, Hunter is definitely the way to go for Alexander, if it's a choice between Warden and Hunter. Hunter can still be a lesser tank (thanks to the number of decent SP-granting Artifacts that are suitable for Barbarians), but it's invaluable as an offensive powerhouse.

Hey, Endgame, your favorite... @67: Wow, an enemy with 3221105 health?! That's nuts!

OOC: Unfortunately, Sleep kicks in immediately, which means that Em's attack woke him up, which means Boomers should be down 12 health. On the plus side, I'm pretty sure the Sorcerer should be Badly Poisoned instead of Octavyn, since Tripleshot starts with the enemy targeted and moves down the enemy BO. "Gahk. Right then, Lord Boomingham, let's get you Remedied up, that Assassin can't harm you now." Arthur's Actions: >Arthur uses Remedy on Boomingham >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep, >Arthur casts Sealing on Syndicate Admin Octavyn: Suggested Battle Order and Actions: >Boomingham (Frozen Saber) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): Unfortunately we can't risk you rolling Special Damage against any of the enemies, and since you have to go first in the B.O. to Counterstrike... Alternatively, you could heal yourself, I just figured that a Stunned Sorcerer would be a good thing, and it's an extra chance to roll Guardian Angel. >Em VS Syndicate Elite Warden (back): IF Special Damage rolled against Warden, switch to Battle Order B, otherwise: >Arnulf VS Syndicate Elite Warden (back): >Arthur uses Remedy on Boomingham >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep, >Arthur casts Sealing on Syndicate Admin Octavyn: >Karie VS Syndicate Elite Octavyn (back): Battle Order B: >Arthur uses Remedy on Boomingham >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep, >Arthur casts Sealing on Syndicate Admin Octavyn: >Karie VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back): >Arnulf VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back):

(Hopefully this isn't too dead of a topic, seeing as it's a general subject and it's only been a couple of weeks since the last post.) So I just got back from seeing Iron Man 3 (yes, yes, I know--life got in the way). I have one response: Ahem. Well. With that rant out of the way, I do have to say I really enjoyed the post-credits scene. I mean, I'm sad it's going to be a while before we see that character again, but still, loved him in Avengers, and it was fun to see him here even if it was completely irrelevant to future films.

Assuming same Battle Order? I've made one minor alteration of putting Arnulf before Karie out of obvious necessity; it'd be great if that could stand. Zeph, care to confirm for me? Battle Summary >Boomingham heals Em (back): >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep >Arthur casts Blindness on Syndicate Elite Assassin: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep >Arthur (Unlucky Horseshoe) VS Syndicate Elite Assassin (back): >Arnulf uses Potion on Karie (back): >Karie VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back): >Em VS Syndicate Elite Assassin (back):

"Karie!" Arthur calls out. "Arnulf, heal Karie; Lord Boomingham, if you could do the same for Em? Em, I know it's risky, but I need you to take the Assassin--we desperately need him Deadly Poisoned. Octavyn too, if you can get him--but not until the Assassin is poisoned. HE can be tanked, unlike this masked jerk over here." Arthur aims a kick at the warden, despite the latter being well out of range. Arthur's Actions: >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep >Arthur casts Blindness on Syndicate Elite Assassin: >Arthur casts Sleep on Syndicate Elite Warden: OR if already Asleep >Arthur (Unlucky Horseshoe) VS Syndicate Elite Assassin (back):

Realizing the flaw in his judgement, Arthur quickly switches actions to cover the Warden. Damn Lust special. Battle Summary >Boomingham VS Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur retrieves Unlucky Horseshoe >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: OR if already Fragile, >Arthur casts Sealing on Cipher Syndicate Admin Octavyn: >Arthur (Darkness) VS Syndicate Elite Warden (back): >Karie VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back): >Arnulf VS Syndicate Admin Octavyn (back): >Em VS Syndicate Elite Assassin (back):

"All right, no one touch the Warden--Boomingham can tank his attacks from the Back Row, we'll Counterstrike and Deadly Poison him to death. Lord Boomingham, if you could join my assault against this Sorcerer from the Back Row I'd be much obliged--I know it's against your nature to fight from the back, but in this case it's the best tactical choice. Arnulf, I leave it to you whether you join Em against the Assassin or else Karie against Octavyn." Arthur's Actions: >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur retrieves Unlucky Horseshoe >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: OR if already Fragile, >Arthur casts Sealing on Cypher Syndicate Admin Octavyn: >Arthur (Darkness) vs. Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): OOC: Awesome, we all thought of the same thing at the same time. Also, no one got the reference in my battle action?

"Yes, take the Assassin next. Good hit, Karie, keep it up!" Own actions in a moment.

Immune to Magic - The target does not take damage from elemental attacks or attacks that consume Ether. To be fair, elemental attacks are relatively uncommon as well--in fact, I think non-elemental Ether-using attacks are a lot more common than elemental ones (see Quests 48 and 53, for example).

I'm fine with that as well. Though I do think it should be directly noted on the helmet itself--I DON'T like the idea of enemies being unaffected by healing--if some inexperienced QM slaps "immune to Magic" on an undead, they'd instantly create an unbeatable enemy.

Hey, we're finally going to see a Creeper mob in action that's NOT Scared away by Docken!

Arthur refused to answer, but he hadn't dodged the question--nor its pain. He merely allowed his intellect for battle strategy to belay the damage it was doing to him. What do I owe my life to? I took an oath for this city...why? Because it was the 'right' thing to do? Fat lot of good that's done me--no great deeds to show for it, and I'm as hated as ever. He would never admit it to a living soul, but as much came from him as did from all others combined. Even when I win, I lose. Can I really trust that good comes through time? Yes, another part of him said. Because if it doesn't come there, it doesn't come at all.

*Cough*Amy Pond*cough*

"All right, then. Em, Arnulf I'd like you to target the Warden from the Back Row--if we can get him Badly Poisoned, we can hold him off with Counterstrikes as long as Lord Boomingham sticks to the Back Row. Lord Boomingham, if you'd care to dance with the Assassin? Barty should be able to help you dodge his damage effects."

No, no, it's quite simple (note that I'm still missing a couple of key episodes, so there may be some holes, but): Incidentally, I also have an explanation of how time itself works in Doctor Who, and why some things can be changed but others can't (see, for example, why The Doctor ends up having to find new companions after the Ponds): each person has their own, individual time line. You can alter other peoples' time lines, but not your own. The complicated bit is, these time lines don't exist in a vacuum, they're all twisted around each other in complex, inscrutable ways--thus, certain alterations to other peoples' time lines is impossible because altering them would correspondingly alter your own. Now technically, you CAN alter your own time line, but...well, imagine a ball of string. Yarn, really, but string's easier to say. And there are billions upon billions of pieces of string in the ball. Now, these strings are all wrapped around each other, and it's all moving, all wibbbly-wobbly. And this one string decides, "I'm going to go back and wrap around myself," and when it does that it makes a knot. And the ball doesn't like that, 'cause now it can't move. And it keeps trying, and trying, until eventually either the string changes its mind and comes loose or else a whole bunch of strings snap, and now the wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey ball isn't holding itself together anymore, and it all comes undone in one huge spectacular mess. How do stable time loops work in this system? Well, for the most part, the strings line up pretty orderly-like--yeah, they wrap around each other and all, but mostly it's going in the same direction. Time travelers' strings, though, are like what happens when you tell a five-year-old on a sugar high to wind up the ball (assuming he doesn't just chuck it at you and throw a tantrum to begin with)--it gets real messy, weaving in and out and back and forth in different directions. And when the time traveler string gets mixed up with other strings, they either get carried along with it for a bit and then dropped off later, or else they sort of touch briefly and diverge at a sharp angle. A stable time loop occurs when those strings touch like that an even number of times--in the beginning, it's the time-traveler string that makes the normal (or, in some cases, normal-er) string diverge, while at the end of the loop, it's the normal(-er) string that makes the time-traveler string diverge, specifically in the direction that sends the time-traveler string to divert the normal(-er) string. And in any event, "beginning" and "end" are only determined in relation to the normal(-er) string--causality is less of an issue for the time-traveler string, since it can go pretty much anywhere in the ball it wants without consequence--there's some effect, of course, but as long as it doesn't directly attempt to alter or avoid the strings it's already touched (from it's own perspective), it won't be touching something that's directly touching it and altering its own time stream. Or to put it another way: there's a beginning and end to each string's perspective, but from a non-linear non-subjective point of view they exist independently of each other even though they affect each other. ...it's possible that I may have Time Lord DNA. I had some comment on how this affects Quest 72, but then I realized that 72 doesn't work the same way, unfortunately.

"Karie, I agree, you're best on Octavyn, I think. Give me a moment to read my Scrolls and I'll get to work on my counterpart." "I chatted with the Stealer about the good he could have done last night as well, tried to show him he was doing the wrong thing for the right reasons." Boy, does that sound familiar--best not bring it up to Karie, though--not yet. "There's only one problem with what the Stealer did to you, Octavyn: he robbed you of the chance to find your own redemption. You owe him your life, rather than owing yourself." As soon as he said it, the words rang in his ears, seeming to hang in the air. Ignoring it, he pretends to cast his Scrolls on the Sorcerer whenever casting on Karie's target. He knew the illusion would not fool the enemies, but he hoped it would at least keep Karie or Boomingham from noticing what he's doing. Arthur's actions: >Arthur casts Sealing on Cypher Syndicate Admin Octavyn: >Arthur (Unlucky Horseshoe) vs. Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): >Arthur casts Sealing on Cypher Syndicate Admin Octavyn: OR if already Sealed, >Arthur casts Frailty on Syndicate Elite Sorcerer: >Arthur (Unlucky Horseshoe) vs. Syndicate Elite Sorcerer (back): OR >Arthur retrieves Unlucky Horseshoe (back)

Holy crap Flower of Sibyl sap is Time Travel Serum. Arthur's been carrying seeds of a living time machine all this time! Also, I'm going to go add "Set Right What Once Went Wrong" to the TV Tropes page now.