Orishas summoning powder
[HF] The Gift, Part 1.
2024.05.15 20:47 JC_Writing [HF] The Gift, Part 1.
The golden rays of early morning shone into the shelter, landing on the boy’s eyes. This stirred him from sleep and through instinct, he immediately clutched at his chest, making sure it was still there. A small pouch tied to a cord draped around his neck, the reason he embarked on this journey. He crawled from the hovel of branches and dead leaves into the forest. The trees were beginning to shed, and the ground was damp. The dense woods turning light brown. The boy set out to look for food.
Silent and slow, the boy explored the forested basin, bow in hand. There were no signs of anything larger than himself there. No trails, no droppings, nothing that might provide the boy with a meal that would last longer than a few days. Birds would do. So, the boy continued, his gaze focused on the forest canopy. While terrain, weather and people might have changed throughout his journey, hunger was the only certainty.
Some time later, the boy managed to shoot down two scrawny cranes and had them tied around his waist. He spied a swan resting at the banks of the river. It was far, but his father taught him to shoot well. The boy focused, drew in a breath, and loosed the arrow. It grazed the swan’s neck, and struck a rock behind it, flint tip shattering. The swan began twitching on the gravel bank, the indirect strike broke its neck. Before the boy approached the dying bird, he noticed a rustling in the bushes next to it. He stopped and waited. A wild dog emerged, just as cautious as the boy, and slowly padded towards the swan. The boy could see its ribs clearly through the dogs matted fur, its shoulder blades threatening to break through its skin. He let the dog take his kill.
It was raining heavily. The boy decided to make camp inside a deadfall at the banks of the river. The boy sat soaked and shivering next to his fire. As he dried, he dreamt of warmer lands, and of the place he received his gift.
The sun steadily grew warmer. The lands changing from a lush green to dry grass and eventually to dust and cracked rock. The people also changed. They spoke in a language strange to the boy, guiding him with vague gestures and garbled tongues. He stumbled through the desert, trailing behind his guides, accumulating other ragged followers as they went. Then he saw it. Just along the shimmering horizon was a blot of green atop a hill. A beacon in the desert calling out to lost pilgrims seeking to gain its knowledge.
As the weary group approached the high perched temple, the dry winds carried the stench of rotting flesh. Bodies lay strewn on the sand, swarmed by countless vultures. Their decaying flesh being ripped from the bone by great hooked beaks, their bones to be returned in time to that sacred place atop the hill. Like the wilderness surrounding it, the temple’s rites embodied all aspects of life; With death being a necessity for birth and growth.
The boy plunged his face into the natural spring at the gates of the temple, wetting his parched throat and blistered face. A plant grew around the spring, and it grew like no other plant the boy had ever seen. Lines were dug into the earth, allowing water to flow through impossibly straight rows of tall grass. He knew that this was the reason he was sent here.
The days grew longer and longer, with more and more travellers arriving at the oasis. The boy was sitting in the large camp of strangers and the sun had reached its highest point of the year when they were summoned into the temple.
The boy surveyed the cavernous hall, perplexed. A juxtaposition of the natural and artificial. The large room was composed of straight lines and sharp angles, yet etched into the stone was lifelike depictions of the desert fauna; Foxes chasing rabbits, herds of wild horses running along the walls of the room, and in the centre a mighty pillar carrying the image of a large vulture, its magnificent wings spread, scythe beak turned to the side on full display.
The ceremony began with the beating of drums echoing off the high walls. A large stone basin was brought before the audience. With elegant movements, the temple’s residents poured soil into the basin. A human bone was ground up, the bleached white powder scattered onto the soil. They produced seeds from small pouches hung around their necks and buried it in the basin’s loose mixture. Next, they poured that life giving water from the spring onto the soil and began to dance around the room. The boy’s eyes traced their swirling and noticed the moon carvings on the walls. Waxing and waning stone circles. This dance was the passage of time. Each lap of the hall representing months. All while the seed waited in damp soil.
The boy and his fellow travellers were ushered out of the hall and were led to the spring with the strange grass. The grass was cut from the ground and beaten against a flat rock releasing its grain, the stalks being cast aside. The grain was ground down, mixed with water, and baked over a fire. The audience feasted on this new food, along with all manner of desert beasts and a thick liquid that made the boy feel dizzy. The boy hadn’t feasted so much in his entire life. But food wasn’t the gift he had come all this way to receive, at least not in this form. When it was time for them to leave the temple, each group of travellers were presented with a small pouch much like those the dancers wore. The families rejoiced at receiving this benevolent gift, the boy received his gift alone.
The land was dusted with frost, cold winds funnelled through the mountain pass biting at the boy’s skin. Occasionally he would glance behind him, spotting the same wild dog watching from behind a rock or quickly running out of sight. It had been trailing behind him ever since he had shot down that swan.
The boy paused for a moment, then quickly ducked down behind a mound of loose stone. There was a clearing in the woods below, and noises. Speech. A group began to enter the clearing. A band of young men, around the boys age, carrying spears and clubs, wearing the skins of great beasts. He had heard of such people from some of the pilgrims in the desert. Boys sent out into the wilderness, tasked with killing a creature stronger than them, wearing its skin, and returning as men. The boy could hear them from far up the mountain ridge. No doubt the animals in that forest did too. The rear of the line finally emerged into the clearing. They were dragging along women bound at the wrist. Stripped bare, some younger than the boy, some with hair beginning to grey. Most had distended bellies hanging from skeletal frames wholly unsuited for the burden of pregnancy. The boy waited; Still frozen in place long after the party had disappeared back into the treeline. When he could only hear the natural sounds of the forest once more, he rose to his feet and looked up at a path further up the mountain. The wide eyes of the dog stared back at him, waiting for the boy to move ahead so that it too could stand up and continue its journey.
As time passed, the land grew a thick coating of snow. Food was even harder to come by now, yet with each kill he would leave a small pile of refuse some way away from his camp. It would always be gone by the next morning. He didn’t see the dog much. It was a careful companion, and rightfully so. The boy had noticed the dog’s belly swelling over time; It would have pups any day now.
Amongst the snowcapped trees the boy found a glacial lake. Shimmering blue reflecting the cloudless winter sky above it. He would be able to fish here, possibly enough to last him the remainder of the journey. He didn’t know how close he was. He thought he recognised the land surrounding him, yet the drifting snow made him uncertain. He made camp in a small cove along the lakeshore, weaving basket shaped traps and leaving a pile of slightly damp wood for a fire later.
The boy paced along the water, dropping traps where forest streams fed the lake. While he waited, he chipped at the edges of his knife, dull stone flaking off to reveal a hidden sharp edge. The traps hadn’t caught as many as he’d hoped, but it’d keep him fed, and that was enough. After gutting the fish with his newly renovated knife and draping them over the smoky fire to dry, he walked a little bit further down the shore and left a pile of offal. He placed a whole fish at the top, for the pups.
Back at the camp he stripped down, leaving the small pouch tucked in a crevice for safekeeping. It was a while since he bathed, but it wasn’t raining now, and he had a fire to dry off next to. He made his way back to the edge of the water and looked down, gazing at his reflection in the water. It revealed someone unrecognisable to the boy, pale goose pimpled skin stretched over a wiry frame, more bone than muscle. Hair also began to sprout on his upper lip, this journey had changed him.
He tread the freezing water until his feet began to go numb and the sun began to set. As he emerged from the lake, he noticed that the pile of guts was left untouched. No matter, it would be gone by tomorrow. With shaky steps he went back to the camp, barricading the entrance with stones and fallen branches to keep the heat in. He sat next to the fire clutching the gift around his neck, hoping he would see his family again soon.
A sharp gust of wind entered the cove, waking the boy up. Through sleep blurred eyes he saw figures standing over him. He shot up, spun to the entrance, and saw them clearly. The pelt hunters. The eldest stood before him, a cloak of thick sandy coloured fur slung over his shoulder, grinning with teeth that were beginning to brown. An unseen blow struck the side of the boy's head, and he went back to sleep.
submitted by JC_Writing to shortstories [link] [comments]
Silent and slow, the boy explored the forested basin, bow in hand. There were no signs of anything larger than himself there. No trails, no droppings, nothing that might provide the boy with a meal that would last longer than a few days. Birds would do. So, the boy continued, his gaze focused on the forest canopy. While terrain, weather and people might have changed throughout his journey, hunger was the only certainty.
Some time later, the boy managed to shoot down two scrawny cranes and had them tied around his waist. He spied a swan resting at the banks of the river. It was far, but his father taught him to shoot well. The boy focused, drew in a breath, and loosed the arrow. It grazed the swan’s neck, and struck a rock behind it, flint tip shattering. The swan began twitching on the gravel bank, the indirect strike broke its neck. Before the boy approached the dying bird, he noticed a rustling in the bushes next to it. He stopped and waited. A wild dog emerged, just as cautious as the boy, and slowly padded towards the swan. The boy could see its ribs clearly through the dogs matted fur, its shoulder blades threatening to break through its skin. He let the dog take his kill.
It was raining heavily. The boy decided to make camp inside a deadfall at the banks of the river. The boy sat soaked and shivering next to his fire. As he dried, he dreamt of warmer lands, and of the place he received his gift.
The sun steadily grew warmer. The lands changing from a lush green to dry grass and eventually to dust and cracked rock. The people also changed. They spoke in a language strange to the boy, guiding him with vague gestures and garbled tongues. He stumbled through the desert, trailing behind his guides, accumulating other ragged followers as they went. Then he saw it. Just along the shimmering horizon was a blot of green atop a hill. A beacon in the desert calling out to lost pilgrims seeking to gain its knowledge.
As the weary group approached the high perched temple, the dry winds carried the stench of rotting flesh. Bodies lay strewn on the sand, swarmed by countless vultures. Their decaying flesh being ripped from the bone by great hooked beaks, their bones to be returned in time to that sacred place atop the hill. Like the wilderness surrounding it, the temple’s rites embodied all aspects of life; With death being a necessity for birth and growth.
The boy plunged his face into the natural spring at the gates of the temple, wetting his parched throat and blistered face. A plant grew around the spring, and it grew like no other plant the boy had ever seen. Lines were dug into the earth, allowing water to flow through impossibly straight rows of tall grass. He knew that this was the reason he was sent here.
The days grew longer and longer, with more and more travellers arriving at the oasis. The boy was sitting in the large camp of strangers and the sun had reached its highest point of the year when they were summoned into the temple.
The boy surveyed the cavernous hall, perplexed. A juxtaposition of the natural and artificial. The large room was composed of straight lines and sharp angles, yet etched into the stone was lifelike depictions of the desert fauna; Foxes chasing rabbits, herds of wild horses running along the walls of the room, and in the centre a mighty pillar carrying the image of a large vulture, its magnificent wings spread, scythe beak turned to the side on full display.
The ceremony began with the beating of drums echoing off the high walls. A large stone basin was brought before the audience. With elegant movements, the temple’s residents poured soil into the basin. A human bone was ground up, the bleached white powder scattered onto the soil. They produced seeds from small pouches hung around their necks and buried it in the basin’s loose mixture. Next, they poured that life giving water from the spring onto the soil and began to dance around the room. The boy’s eyes traced their swirling and noticed the moon carvings on the walls. Waxing and waning stone circles. This dance was the passage of time. Each lap of the hall representing months. All while the seed waited in damp soil.
The boy and his fellow travellers were ushered out of the hall and were led to the spring with the strange grass. The grass was cut from the ground and beaten against a flat rock releasing its grain, the stalks being cast aside. The grain was ground down, mixed with water, and baked over a fire. The audience feasted on this new food, along with all manner of desert beasts and a thick liquid that made the boy feel dizzy. The boy hadn’t feasted so much in his entire life. But food wasn’t the gift he had come all this way to receive, at least not in this form. When it was time for them to leave the temple, each group of travellers were presented with a small pouch much like those the dancers wore. The families rejoiced at receiving this benevolent gift, the boy received his gift alone.
The land was dusted with frost, cold winds funnelled through the mountain pass biting at the boy’s skin. Occasionally he would glance behind him, spotting the same wild dog watching from behind a rock or quickly running out of sight. It had been trailing behind him ever since he had shot down that swan.
The boy paused for a moment, then quickly ducked down behind a mound of loose stone. There was a clearing in the woods below, and noises. Speech. A group began to enter the clearing. A band of young men, around the boys age, carrying spears and clubs, wearing the skins of great beasts. He had heard of such people from some of the pilgrims in the desert. Boys sent out into the wilderness, tasked with killing a creature stronger than them, wearing its skin, and returning as men. The boy could hear them from far up the mountain ridge. No doubt the animals in that forest did too. The rear of the line finally emerged into the clearing. They were dragging along women bound at the wrist. Stripped bare, some younger than the boy, some with hair beginning to grey. Most had distended bellies hanging from skeletal frames wholly unsuited for the burden of pregnancy. The boy waited; Still frozen in place long after the party had disappeared back into the treeline. When he could only hear the natural sounds of the forest once more, he rose to his feet and looked up at a path further up the mountain. The wide eyes of the dog stared back at him, waiting for the boy to move ahead so that it too could stand up and continue its journey.
As time passed, the land grew a thick coating of snow. Food was even harder to come by now, yet with each kill he would leave a small pile of refuse some way away from his camp. It would always be gone by the next morning. He didn’t see the dog much. It was a careful companion, and rightfully so. The boy had noticed the dog’s belly swelling over time; It would have pups any day now.
Amongst the snowcapped trees the boy found a glacial lake. Shimmering blue reflecting the cloudless winter sky above it. He would be able to fish here, possibly enough to last him the remainder of the journey. He didn’t know how close he was. He thought he recognised the land surrounding him, yet the drifting snow made him uncertain. He made camp in a small cove along the lakeshore, weaving basket shaped traps and leaving a pile of slightly damp wood for a fire later.
The boy paced along the water, dropping traps where forest streams fed the lake. While he waited, he chipped at the edges of his knife, dull stone flaking off to reveal a hidden sharp edge. The traps hadn’t caught as many as he’d hoped, but it’d keep him fed, and that was enough. After gutting the fish with his newly renovated knife and draping them over the smoky fire to dry, he walked a little bit further down the shore and left a pile of offal. He placed a whole fish at the top, for the pups.
Back at the camp he stripped down, leaving the small pouch tucked in a crevice for safekeeping. It was a while since he bathed, but it wasn’t raining now, and he had a fire to dry off next to. He made his way back to the edge of the water and looked down, gazing at his reflection in the water. It revealed someone unrecognisable to the boy, pale goose pimpled skin stretched over a wiry frame, more bone than muscle. Hair also began to sprout on his upper lip, this journey had changed him.
He tread the freezing water until his feet began to go numb and the sun began to set. As he emerged from the lake, he noticed that the pile of guts was left untouched. No matter, it would be gone by tomorrow. With shaky steps he went back to the camp, barricading the entrance with stones and fallen branches to keep the heat in. He sat next to the fire clutching the gift around his neck, hoping he would see his family again soon.
A sharp gust of wind entered the cove, waking the boy up. Through sleep blurred eyes he saw figures standing over him. He shot up, spun to the entrance, and saw them clearly. The pelt hunters. The eldest stood before him, a cloak of thick sandy coloured fur slung over his shoulder, grinning with teeth that were beginning to brown. An unseen blow struck the side of the boy's head, and he went back to sleep.
2024.05.14 21:14 Joshh170 Valheim Releases New Ashlands Update
 | Valheim has finally released the eagerly awaited Ashlands update, one of the biggest content expansions the survival game has received until now. This new Valheim update adds a new biome for endgame players, new weapons, building options, and more. submitted by Joshh170 to GameGeeks [link] [comments] Valheim was originally released in early access in 2021, quickly becoming a huge hit. Created by Iron Gate Studio, the Norse-inspired survival game sold over 12 million copies on Steam. In 2023, Valheim was added to Xbox Game Pass, reaching even more players. Since its initial launch, the title has released regular updates as it moves towards a yet unannounced 1.0 release. Now, Iron Gate Studio has officially released the new Ashlands update, bringing a new endgame biome to Valheim. This update comes on the heels of Valheim’s public test build which was unveiled last week. According to the patch notes, the new update works as a big content expansion, as it adds over 30 weapons, three armor sets, two capes, over 70 buildable items, over 30 crafting materials, new music, events, mechanics, and more. The update also fixes several small issues, standardizes texts through the game, and solves problems with Mead materials. The highlight of the free expansion is clearly Valheim’s new Ashlands biome. Set in the southern parts of the game’s map, the new biome is a hellscape area filled with lava, huge fortresses, and dangerous undead creatures known as the Charred. As expected, the new area comes with a variety of enemies, such as the Fallen Valkyrie, four varieties of Charred enemies, Morgen, Askvin Calf, Lava Blob, and others, including a new boss called Fader. Valheim’s new content also includes a few new mechanics tied to the new region, including two new Siege Machines, new plantable Ashvines, and the ability to combine Flametal weapons with gems to gain upgrades. Other interesting changes include the introduction of boiling hot waters near the Ashlands, which may require a sturdy ship to cross, and cinder rain while traveling in the new biome. Gamers who like to create amazing bases in Valheim will not be disappointed with the Ashlands update due to the introduction of several new building pieces and furniture, which will greatly expand the base-building options they previously had. The update also includes more new materials such as the Askvin Hide, Vulture Eggs, Bell Shards, Charred Skulls, Jade, Bloodstone, and new weapons like the Dyrnwyn sword, the Brutal Slayer, or the Flametal Mace. Valheim's Ashlands Update Official Patch Notes New Mechanics
|
2024.05.14 15:25 OrganizationGreat248 Unlucky Isekai Life (Part 2 of 6)
Ruby groaned as the alarm went off signaling that one of her charges had arrived back from their mission. While troublesome in its own right, what really got under her skin was that she only had one charge at the moment, and that edge lord piece of shit wasn’t supposed to complete his task for AT LEAST another 4 deca-cycles according to the prediction algorithm. Grumbling to herself, she rolled out of bed and poured herself a glass of water to offset the hangover she was trying to recover from.
A few moments later she was gliding down the hall to the meeting room. She knew Jason was going to pitch a fit that she had left him waiting, the self-entitled brat always did think the world revolved around him; but perhaps he should have thought about that before freaking dying so early. If he wanted her to be there to meet him upon death, he could at least have the decency to not die the morning after one of her binges.
Other staff members gave her a wide berth, even if it was a hollow title, she was still technically far above basically anyone else in the pecking order, at least those who had a physical presence within the Agency. She knew they all mocked her behind her back, even divine beings were sadly prone towards gossip. She put the anger at her subordinates/coworkers out of her mind for now; even if she didn’t particularly LIKE Jason, he still didn’t deserve her coming in with baggage.
Lost in her thoughts, she hadn’t noticed that she’d arrived in front of the conference room door. She had been mulling over her thoughts, just staring into nothingness, for several minutes before she finally snapped back to the present. With a soft rap on the door, she opened it and floated inside. Jason was lounging, sprawled out on the regally padded chair throne he so fancied.
They exchanged pleasantries before she sat down to go over the mission summary. Upon seeing the cause of death, she had regrettably lost her composure and started to laugh uncontrollably. Her mighty subordinate had been felled by a goblin?! The mighty Jason Alexander Coyle, “mercenary extraordinaire”, had gotten his shit kicked in by a lowly goblin using what looked like a shiny butter knife. Oh, it was just too rich to not laugh at the absurdity.
It took her much longer than she would like to admit, to stop laughing. Jason of course wore a sour look through the entire endeavor. She shrugged it off, she had little doubt that if the same thing had happened to someone else, he would have been right beside her doubled over in laughter. Hell, once he was in a less pissy mood, she might even be able to get him to laugh about it later.
As luck would have it, it appeared that Jason’s actions had been enough to alter the tides of the war. The kingdom, and its divinity, would still lose many to the battles ahead, but Jason had done enough that the Agency could still bill the client for services rendered. As she spoke, she could see the disdain the man had for her, he always complained that she was drunk and reeked of liquor. Sure, that was often true, but he didn’t need to be such a stick in the mud about it all.
She went ahead and authorized the transfer of credits to Jason’s account. As soon as she did so, he opened up the store page and tuned her out. She watched him open up the back-channel site and purchase something, a small part of her wondered who was going to get roasted over the coals this time for allowing their admin privileges to be hacked. She toyed with the idea of bringing up his illegal actions, but truth be told she didn’t really give a shit. The other divinities were far too lax with their security, it had been child's play for one of her previous wards to hack into the Agency’s system and build the black site.
She’d ask him once about the whole thing, didn’t really grasp as much as she would have liked, but basically it functioned by spoofing a handler's credentials. This allowed the user to gain access to encrypted parts of the network, specifically access to certain privileged services that handlers enjoyed and most importantly, access to the mission assignment database. Users could buy and sell restricted or banned goods, and a part of the profits would be siphoned off to her ward’s personal account.
With Jason’s attention otherwise occupied, Ruby went ahead and reviewed the logs for his previous mission. Something about it was nagging at her. She couldn’t put it into words; however, the whole series of events just didn’t feel like ‘bad luck’. Using her divine authority, she rewound events, watching Jason’s lungs unfill with blood and refill with air.
The goblin skulked back to its den of corpses, resheathing the dagger at its hips, and reburied itself underneath the bodies. She let it rewind another few moments before stopping the feed and letting it run at normal time. She watched the goblin, slowly shifting the bodies out of the way, making sure they made no noise when it moved them. Slowly, carefully, it began to creep towards Jason’s exposed back. It drew the blade, again slowly and quietly. It closed the distance making sure to never let Jason see it or to give him any reason to think someone was behind him. Then in a flash of movement it leapt, burying the dagger right into a joint in Jason’s armor. The placement was perfect, no resistance, so the blade sank to the hilt. Allowing it to puncture Jason’s right lung.
Ruby rewound the log once more. This was wrong, very wrong. The goblin was way too good to just be some random grunt. Its movements were too smooth, its aim too precise. No, she was sure of it now, this was not a normal goblin. She focused her attention on the thing, aiming to scan the goblin for abnormalities, the dust covering it offering a surprising level of resistance to her scan. Not enough to stop her from doing what she wanted, but more resistance than she felt was reasonable for the anti-magic powder.
When she finally gained access to the monster’s stat block, her suspicions were proven correct. That was no normal goblin, that was a Redcap, a Redcap assassin no less. What in the dozen hells was a Redcap assassin doing in the middle of a freaking battlefield?! Such a valuable unit wouldn’t be used on the front lines, their skill set was terribly suited for the chaos that was an active battle. No, something was very wrong here and Ruby was going to figure out what.
As her mind raced trying to puzzle out what the actual fuck was going on, something else about the goblin flagged in her mind. It had come out of the corpse pile with the dagger already in its possession. She highlighted the various bodies that had made up the goblin's hidey hole, and then rewound the scene back. Every time one of the highlighted bodies met their fate, she froze the moment and pulled the scene into a separate window. It took a few minutes, but she eventually had all of the corpses frozen in the heartbeat before their deaths. She went through and scanned every single individual. Not a single one had been equipped with a magic disruptor blade. “So, where the fuck did the Redcap get a kingdom issued disruptor?”
Looking up, she saw that Jason was still fiddling with whatever it was that he bought. She tried to make idle conversation with the man, but he had gone full auto pilot, giving curt one-to-two word answers when asked a question or having to respond to a comment. She rolled her eyes, as much as she and him butted heads, she did have to admit that she did kind of like the guy. He had been going a little too hard into the whole dark and brooding edge lord thing recently, but that was hardly his fault. The human soul was ill suited to withstand the trauma of death, much less multiple deaths. The Agency usually did a memory scrub every couple missions, to prevent that kind of issue, but Jason had been dodging the screenings. For a moment she considered just letting sleeping dogs lie. Jason was dead and the mission was over regardless of what she might find, but the whole thing just rubbed her the wrong way.
Taking a little nip from her pocket flask, she once more focuses her attention on the Redcap. After scrubbing through the last several months of the creature’s life, she finally finds what she was looking for. The blade had come from one of Jason’s personal guards.
Ruby did a deep dive on the guard, and what came back made her blood run cold. The man had recently lost his lover. Jason had ordered a company to mop up a fleeing enemy force, before it could regroup and cause more issues. The entire thing had been a ruse and the company had been slaughtered to the last. The guard's lover had been part of that company. The loss had hit the man hard, driving him to the only rock left in his life. His deep belief in the kingdom’s divinity.
And wouldn’t you know it, apparently the kingdom’s divinity had some issues with Jason that it couldn’t be bothered to address through the proper channels. So instead of letting Ruby handle the trainwreck that was Jason’s social skills, this little scum lord of a God, had taken upon themself to deal with the issue. Several months of holy visions were enough to convince the grieving widow to betray everyone and everything he had ever known.
Once the guard had been properly brainwashed into turning his coat, it had been a simple matter to worm his way on to all of Jason’s post-fight surveys of the battlefield. The magic scanners that were exclusive to Jason’s retinue, had allowed him to see that Jason’s inhuman ability to avoid taking damage was really just a creative use of high-level magic. High-level magic that could have easily been used to save many of the kingdom’s soldiers. But of course, Jason believed himself too good to give the common man a means to protect themselves and those they loved. All this knowledge was of course worthless to the guard, he was nowhere near skilled enough to actually challenge Jason. But wouldn’t you know it, the divinity had thought of that too.
The podunk worm had brokered a secret deal with the enemy he’d contracted the Agency to deal with. In exchange for getting rid of a thorn in the God’s side, it would use its powers to scale back the war. Instead of facing a war of eradication, the enemy would be allowed to keep some of the land it had conquered.
At the urging of his God, the guard held a series of clandestine meetings with the Redcap. Imparting all the information he had learned in the months of shadowing Jason. He also gave the beast two gifts, the first was a Disruptor blade the guard had swiped from a fellow honor guard; when Jason’s corpse was found the blade would be traced back to the unfortunate guard instead of the traitor. The second was a satchel of Grarothian powder that had been blessed by the divinity, to ensure that Jason wouldn’t see the attack coming. It had worked of course; Jason hadn’t even known he was in danger till the blade was already buried in his lung. Oh, she was going to have the wannabe God’s head on a pike after this.
It pained her to admit it, but Jason deserved the final say in how this was all going to go down. She attempted to grab his attention, but the man was lost in his own little world. She tried waving her hands, ignored. She tried snapping her fingers in his ears, ignored. She even went so far as to beat her wings, blasting his face with the wind force of just under a category 1 hurricane; again ignored. Her rage was starting to reach fever pitch. So, she defaulted to the most tried and true method of stress reduction she had in her arsenal. She decided the only way for herself and Jason, once he knew the truth, to calm down would be to relax with a drink of the finest Earth treats.
With a heavy heart she opened up her most beloved extra planer storage space. This place was used for the only two things Ruby really cared about anymore. It was where she kept her most prized and coveted liquor, and where she kept the last few mementos, she possessed of her fallen wards. Her eyes scanned the room, she needed to pick the right apology gift. As she carefully made her way towards the back, she saw it. Tucked in about two thirds of the way to the back wall, stood a single hogshead of ancient scotch whiskey. The second to last gift she had received from one of her dearest friends, all those years ago.
Yes, this was the correct one. She felt it deep within her chest, a proper atonement requires a proper level of sacrifice. With a heavy heart she lifted the barrel over her head and began to stride out of the extra dimensional space. As she neared the opening, the soft clink of something falling and a flash of gold caught her eye. Sitting on a tiny end table was a small pouch of coins, one of which had somehow gotten loose and tumbled face up onto the polished table face.
For a moment she hesitated, she knew exactly what those coins were; and knew how much trouble she would get into if upper management found out she had them. That said, she also knew a sign when she saw one. The artifacts that she held within this place were the last remnants of those she had failed most of all. She pondered the meaning behind the fact that two of her previous charges seemed to have taken a shine to Jason, offering up to him their most precious of gifts. With a heavy heart and a plea to those long lost, she grabbed the coin before closing the pocket dimension.
With a loud *CLUNK* She set the hogshead down. Apparently, the sound of the barrel had finally made enough noise to draw Jason’s attention away from his screen. From a much smaller storage pocket she produced two crystal glasses. Pouring a hefty serving into each glass, she set one down in front of herself and the other in front of Jason. Locking eyes with the man, she said a single word.
“Drink”
The man twisted his face up in disgust at the sight of the liquor.
“Thanks, but no thanks, I’m not inclined to degr...”
“I said, DRINK!” Ruby growl bellows, casting the Command spell on the last word. Jason, despite his best efforts to ignore the compulsion, is forced to do as he is told, and takes a hearty swig of his hundred-year-old Scotch. With a smile on her lips, Ruby takes the opportunity to sip the illustrious gift. The hours melt away as they both sip and savor the deep complex flavors of this legendary brew.
As the drink flows her recollection of events becomes just a tad bit hazy. She can’t really remember how long it takes, but she does eventually come clean about the reason for this impromptu bout of drinking. It comes as little shock that Jason is... less than pleased to learn about the events that led to his death. He downs the rest of his drink in a single gulp, a waste of grand booze in Ruby’s opinion, and demands she fill his next one to the brim. For the first time in FAR too long, Ruby gets to see the Jason she had known all those years ago was still in there.
As the festivities carried on, she would occasionally catch him fiddling with the token he had bought. Curiosity finally getting the better of her, she decided to ask him about it, deciding to NOT mention that she knew it was illicitly purchased. He was cagey about it at first, but eventually loosened up and told her the truth.
He had grown bored with the usual missions that he had been assigned. He was sick of always having to play support, always cleaning up someone else’s messes, always laying the groundwork for someone else’s story. So, he had decided to cash in his points, and finally make use of the vacation time he had accrued. He had picked out what looked to be a pretty basic Isekai mission. Ruby suggested not mentioning his luck to anyone else, even she was aware how rare and coveted those missions were.
As the night wound to a close, they said their goodbyes. Before taking her leave, Ruby remembered the other present she had for Jason. A sharp whistle was the only warning she gave him before flicking the coin at his head. Even drunk, the man’s senses were still a thing to marvel at as he caught it in midair .
“The fuck is this?”
“Think of it as a gift.” She snorts.
“Oh, how generous of you. A whole gold coin, whatever will I spend it on.” Jason responds as he jangles the large coin pouch at his hip.
“Oh, fuck off. I’ll take it back if you’re going to be a brat about it.”
Jason drops the coin into his wallet and shakes it again for good measure. “Oops, too late now. Guess you’ll just have to let me keep it.” He gives her a smug grin.
She scoffed before turning around and making for the door. She could hear him activate the token as she closed the door behind her. As she wandered down the hallways back to her room, she pondered the events of the day. The rogue client would need to be dealt with, but she still wasn’t sure if burying him in legal paperwork for the next millennia or two, or just giving him a good old fashion human curb stomping, was the better punishment for his actions.
The choices bounced around in her head till she finally reached her residence. Having made no real progress in deciding her actions, she elected to just table the decision till she woke up next. The God was small time, so it wasn’t like it was going anywhere.
She took her time getting ready to sleep. Being a divine being herself, she didn’t actually NEED to sleep, but she did so enjoy the human customs surrounding the whole process. She took a long hot bath to unwind, before summoning a pair of adorable pajamas. Her body clean, and her mind at peace she laid down in her oversized excessively fluffy bed.
She had barely closed her eyes and began to drift off to blissful sleep, before she was awoken once again by the sound of her alarm going off.
“You have got to be shitting me. HOW?!?!”
submitted by OrganizationGreat248 to HFY [link] [comments]
A few moments later she was gliding down the hall to the meeting room. She knew Jason was going to pitch a fit that she had left him waiting, the self-entitled brat always did think the world revolved around him; but perhaps he should have thought about that before freaking dying so early. If he wanted her to be there to meet him upon death, he could at least have the decency to not die the morning after one of her binges.
Other staff members gave her a wide berth, even if it was a hollow title, she was still technically far above basically anyone else in the pecking order, at least those who had a physical presence within the Agency. She knew they all mocked her behind her back, even divine beings were sadly prone towards gossip. She put the anger at her subordinates/coworkers out of her mind for now; even if she didn’t particularly LIKE Jason, he still didn’t deserve her coming in with baggage.
Lost in her thoughts, she hadn’t noticed that she’d arrived in front of the conference room door. She had been mulling over her thoughts, just staring into nothingness, for several minutes before she finally snapped back to the present. With a soft rap on the door, she opened it and floated inside. Jason was lounging, sprawled out on the regally padded chair throne he so fancied.
They exchanged pleasantries before she sat down to go over the mission summary. Upon seeing the cause of death, she had regrettably lost her composure and started to laugh uncontrollably. Her mighty subordinate had been felled by a goblin?! The mighty Jason Alexander Coyle, “mercenary extraordinaire”, had gotten his shit kicked in by a lowly goblin using what looked like a shiny butter knife. Oh, it was just too rich to not laugh at the absurdity.
It took her much longer than she would like to admit, to stop laughing. Jason of course wore a sour look through the entire endeavor. She shrugged it off, she had little doubt that if the same thing had happened to someone else, he would have been right beside her doubled over in laughter. Hell, once he was in a less pissy mood, she might even be able to get him to laugh about it later.
As luck would have it, it appeared that Jason’s actions had been enough to alter the tides of the war. The kingdom, and its divinity, would still lose many to the battles ahead, but Jason had done enough that the Agency could still bill the client for services rendered. As she spoke, she could see the disdain the man had for her, he always complained that she was drunk and reeked of liquor. Sure, that was often true, but he didn’t need to be such a stick in the mud about it all.
She went ahead and authorized the transfer of credits to Jason’s account. As soon as she did so, he opened up the store page and tuned her out. She watched him open up the back-channel site and purchase something, a small part of her wondered who was going to get roasted over the coals this time for allowing their admin privileges to be hacked. She toyed with the idea of bringing up his illegal actions, but truth be told she didn’t really give a shit. The other divinities were far too lax with their security, it had been child's play for one of her previous wards to hack into the Agency’s system and build the black site.
She’d ask him once about the whole thing, didn’t really grasp as much as she would have liked, but basically it functioned by spoofing a handler's credentials. This allowed the user to gain access to encrypted parts of the network, specifically access to certain privileged services that handlers enjoyed and most importantly, access to the mission assignment database. Users could buy and sell restricted or banned goods, and a part of the profits would be siphoned off to her ward’s personal account.
With Jason’s attention otherwise occupied, Ruby went ahead and reviewed the logs for his previous mission. Something about it was nagging at her. She couldn’t put it into words; however, the whole series of events just didn’t feel like ‘bad luck’. Using her divine authority, she rewound events, watching Jason’s lungs unfill with blood and refill with air.
The goblin skulked back to its den of corpses, resheathing the dagger at its hips, and reburied itself underneath the bodies. She let it rewind another few moments before stopping the feed and letting it run at normal time. She watched the goblin, slowly shifting the bodies out of the way, making sure they made no noise when it moved them. Slowly, carefully, it began to creep towards Jason’s exposed back. It drew the blade, again slowly and quietly. It closed the distance making sure to never let Jason see it or to give him any reason to think someone was behind him. Then in a flash of movement it leapt, burying the dagger right into a joint in Jason’s armor. The placement was perfect, no resistance, so the blade sank to the hilt. Allowing it to puncture Jason’s right lung.
Ruby rewound the log once more. This was wrong, very wrong. The goblin was way too good to just be some random grunt. Its movements were too smooth, its aim too precise. No, she was sure of it now, this was not a normal goblin. She focused her attention on the thing, aiming to scan the goblin for abnormalities, the dust covering it offering a surprising level of resistance to her scan. Not enough to stop her from doing what she wanted, but more resistance than she felt was reasonable for the anti-magic powder.
When she finally gained access to the monster’s stat block, her suspicions were proven correct. That was no normal goblin, that was a Redcap, a Redcap assassin no less. What in the dozen hells was a Redcap assassin doing in the middle of a freaking battlefield?! Such a valuable unit wouldn’t be used on the front lines, their skill set was terribly suited for the chaos that was an active battle. No, something was very wrong here and Ruby was going to figure out what.
As her mind raced trying to puzzle out what the actual fuck was going on, something else about the goblin flagged in her mind. It had come out of the corpse pile with the dagger already in its possession. She highlighted the various bodies that had made up the goblin's hidey hole, and then rewound the scene back. Every time one of the highlighted bodies met their fate, she froze the moment and pulled the scene into a separate window. It took a few minutes, but she eventually had all of the corpses frozen in the heartbeat before their deaths. She went through and scanned every single individual. Not a single one had been equipped with a magic disruptor blade. “So, where the fuck did the Redcap get a kingdom issued disruptor?”
Looking up, she saw that Jason was still fiddling with whatever it was that he bought. She tried to make idle conversation with the man, but he had gone full auto pilot, giving curt one-to-two word answers when asked a question or having to respond to a comment. She rolled her eyes, as much as she and him butted heads, she did have to admit that she did kind of like the guy. He had been going a little too hard into the whole dark and brooding edge lord thing recently, but that was hardly his fault. The human soul was ill suited to withstand the trauma of death, much less multiple deaths. The Agency usually did a memory scrub every couple missions, to prevent that kind of issue, but Jason had been dodging the screenings. For a moment she considered just letting sleeping dogs lie. Jason was dead and the mission was over regardless of what she might find, but the whole thing just rubbed her the wrong way.
Taking a little nip from her pocket flask, she once more focuses her attention on the Redcap. After scrubbing through the last several months of the creature’s life, she finally finds what she was looking for. The blade had come from one of Jason’s personal guards.
Ruby did a deep dive on the guard, and what came back made her blood run cold. The man had recently lost his lover. Jason had ordered a company to mop up a fleeing enemy force, before it could regroup and cause more issues. The entire thing had been a ruse and the company had been slaughtered to the last. The guard's lover had been part of that company. The loss had hit the man hard, driving him to the only rock left in his life. His deep belief in the kingdom’s divinity.
And wouldn’t you know it, apparently the kingdom’s divinity had some issues with Jason that it couldn’t be bothered to address through the proper channels. So instead of letting Ruby handle the trainwreck that was Jason’s social skills, this little scum lord of a God, had taken upon themself to deal with the issue. Several months of holy visions were enough to convince the grieving widow to betray everyone and everything he had ever known.
Once the guard had been properly brainwashed into turning his coat, it had been a simple matter to worm his way on to all of Jason’s post-fight surveys of the battlefield. The magic scanners that were exclusive to Jason’s retinue, had allowed him to see that Jason’s inhuman ability to avoid taking damage was really just a creative use of high-level magic. High-level magic that could have easily been used to save many of the kingdom’s soldiers. But of course, Jason believed himself too good to give the common man a means to protect themselves and those they loved. All this knowledge was of course worthless to the guard, he was nowhere near skilled enough to actually challenge Jason. But wouldn’t you know it, the divinity had thought of that too.
The podunk worm had brokered a secret deal with the enemy he’d contracted the Agency to deal with. In exchange for getting rid of a thorn in the God’s side, it would use its powers to scale back the war. Instead of facing a war of eradication, the enemy would be allowed to keep some of the land it had conquered.
At the urging of his God, the guard held a series of clandestine meetings with the Redcap. Imparting all the information he had learned in the months of shadowing Jason. He also gave the beast two gifts, the first was a Disruptor blade the guard had swiped from a fellow honor guard; when Jason’s corpse was found the blade would be traced back to the unfortunate guard instead of the traitor. The second was a satchel of Grarothian powder that had been blessed by the divinity, to ensure that Jason wouldn’t see the attack coming. It had worked of course; Jason hadn’t even known he was in danger till the blade was already buried in his lung. Oh, she was going to have the wannabe God’s head on a pike after this.
It pained her to admit it, but Jason deserved the final say in how this was all going to go down. She attempted to grab his attention, but the man was lost in his own little world. She tried waving her hands, ignored. She tried snapping her fingers in his ears, ignored. She even went so far as to beat her wings, blasting his face with the wind force of just under a category 1 hurricane; again ignored. Her rage was starting to reach fever pitch. So, she defaulted to the most tried and true method of stress reduction she had in her arsenal. She decided the only way for herself and Jason, once he knew the truth, to calm down would be to relax with a drink of the finest Earth treats.
With a heavy heart she opened up her most beloved extra planer storage space. This place was used for the only two things Ruby really cared about anymore. It was where she kept her most prized and coveted liquor, and where she kept the last few mementos, she possessed of her fallen wards. Her eyes scanned the room, she needed to pick the right apology gift. As she carefully made her way towards the back, she saw it. Tucked in about two thirds of the way to the back wall, stood a single hogshead of ancient scotch whiskey. The second to last gift she had received from one of her dearest friends, all those years ago.
Yes, this was the correct one. She felt it deep within her chest, a proper atonement requires a proper level of sacrifice. With a heavy heart she lifted the barrel over her head and began to stride out of the extra dimensional space. As she neared the opening, the soft clink of something falling and a flash of gold caught her eye. Sitting on a tiny end table was a small pouch of coins, one of which had somehow gotten loose and tumbled face up onto the polished table face.
For a moment she hesitated, she knew exactly what those coins were; and knew how much trouble she would get into if upper management found out she had them. That said, she also knew a sign when she saw one. The artifacts that she held within this place were the last remnants of those she had failed most of all. She pondered the meaning behind the fact that two of her previous charges seemed to have taken a shine to Jason, offering up to him their most precious of gifts. With a heavy heart and a plea to those long lost, she grabbed the coin before closing the pocket dimension.
With a loud *CLUNK* She set the hogshead down. Apparently, the sound of the barrel had finally made enough noise to draw Jason’s attention away from his screen. From a much smaller storage pocket she produced two crystal glasses. Pouring a hefty serving into each glass, she set one down in front of herself and the other in front of Jason. Locking eyes with the man, she said a single word.
“Drink”
The man twisted his face up in disgust at the sight of the liquor.
“Thanks, but no thanks, I’m not inclined to degr...”
“I said, DRINK!” Ruby growl bellows, casting the Command spell on the last word. Jason, despite his best efforts to ignore the compulsion, is forced to do as he is told, and takes a hearty swig of his hundred-year-old Scotch. With a smile on her lips, Ruby takes the opportunity to sip the illustrious gift. The hours melt away as they both sip and savor the deep complex flavors of this legendary brew.
As the drink flows her recollection of events becomes just a tad bit hazy. She can’t really remember how long it takes, but she does eventually come clean about the reason for this impromptu bout of drinking. It comes as little shock that Jason is... less than pleased to learn about the events that led to his death. He downs the rest of his drink in a single gulp, a waste of grand booze in Ruby’s opinion, and demands she fill his next one to the brim. For the first time in FAR too long, Ruby gets to see the Jason she had known all those years ago was still in there.
As the festivities carried on, she would occasionally catch him fiddling with the token he had bought. Curiosity finally getting the better of her, she decided to ask him about it, deciding to NOT mention that she knew it was illicitly purchased. He was cagey about it at first, but eventually loosened up and told her the truth.
He had grown bored with the usual missions that he had been assigned. He was sick of always having to play support, always cleaning up someone else’s messes, always laying the groundwork for someone else’s story. So, he had decided to cash in his points, and finally make use of the vacation time he had accrued. He had picked out what looked to be a pretty basic Isekai mission. Ruby suggested not mentioning his luck to anyone else, even she was aware how rare and coveted those missions were.
As the night wound to a close, they said their goodbyes. Before taking her leave, Ruby remembered the other present she had for Jason. A sharp whistle was the only warning she gave him before flicking the coin at his head. Even drunk, the man’s senses were still a thing to marvel at as he caught it in midair .
“The fuck is this?”
“Think of it as a gift.” She snorts.
“Oh, how generous of you. A whole gold coin, whatever will I spend it on.” Jason responds as he jangles the large coin pouch at his hip.
“Oh, fuck off. I’ll take it back if you’re going to be a brat about it.”
Jason drops the coin into his wallet and shakes it again for good measure. “Oops, too late now. Guess you’ll just have to let me keep it.” He gives her a smug grin.
She scoffed before turning around and making for the door. She could hear him activate the token as she closed the door behind her. As she wandered down the hallways back to her room, she pondered the events of the day. The rogue client would need to be dealt with, but she still wasn’t sure if burying him in legal paperwork for the next millennia or two, or just giving him a good old fashion human curb stomping, was the better punishment for his actions.
The choices bounced around in her head till she finally reached her residence. Having made no real progress in deciding her actions, she elected to just table the decision till she woke up next. The God was small time, so it wasn’t like it was going anywhere.
She took her time getting ready to sleep. Being a divine being herself, she didn’t actually NEED to sleep, but she did so enjoy the human customs surrounding the whole process. She took a long hot bath to unwind, before summoning a pair of adorable pajamas. Her body clean, and her mind at peace she laid down in her oversized excessively fluffy bed.
She had barely closed her eyes and began to drift off to blissful sleep, before she was awoken once again by the sound of her alarm going off.
“You have got to be shitting me. HOW?!?!”
2024.05.14 02:29 Ok_Coconut_2560 Noodles
My family has always been of great minds. I hated it. Growing up and having to study day and night to try and live up to them was extremely exhausting when I couldn't care how things worked as long as I was happy. I gave up but somehow everything kept turning out to be true.
Over my lifetime I have become the Gorden Ramsey of the science world. Known for my temper and also for huge things like curing world hunger using play-doe and cancer with baby powder I got in a back street ally while drunk.
To get my family off my back I started making random ideas so they could see me as a failure and leave me alone but...they keep working. And soon people started to praise me. Fame has left me with nothing but more and more attention. So today I plan to make sure that everyone can just think I'm insane and leave me alone and not some king.
I chuckled like a kid who was opening a Christmas present as I heard the crowd of people chatting and talking loudly as I hid behind my stage in a grey tight suit that my sister had picked out. I sighed and was ready to walk out and make a fool out of myself but my brother stopped me.
" Jack... I just want you to know how proud I am of you. Dad would have loved to see you right now. "
I thought it was ironic because last night while chilling on the couch watching TV and eating chips I made this theory up. He dusted off my shoulders held them tight and looked me in the eyes taking in the moment.
" go give them hell man. "
He had a goofy smile just like Dad but spoke with confidence.
" you got it, man. "
I heard my name being called onto the stage and the uproar startled me for a second but I collected myself and headed out after giving him a nod just to entertain him.
The lights were blinding as I grabbed the mic and looked at the table in front of me with a small box with the ingredients I needed and a chalkboard behind me.
After I stood still for a minute the crowd died down. I had not told anyone what I was presenting so the whole world was watching without a clue of what I was doing this time.
"Hello everyone. Today I believe I have my most important presentation yet..."
The crowd grew silent and hung on every word. And I heard my voice around the room through the speakers.
" Today I have with me a box...and inside is spaghetti I had for breakfast. "
The crowd laughed thinking it was a joke
" shut up "
The crowd grew silent once more
"Behind me is a chalkboard and I will now present my new findings to all of you...I have found out how to make portals to other worlds. "
A man in the far back of the audience yelled bullshit in a heavy Indian accent but he was so far it was a faint sound for me. I smiled at that thinking I had finally found something that would make me lose my title and I could go ahead and live a life without people making me feel like an evil man for not helping others.
I opened the box got a handful of the noodles and threw them at the chalkboard. I then grabbed a paper towel on standby to clean myself.
The noodles hit the board and slowly moved and rested on a spot on the board. I made eye contact with my brother backstage and he had a look on his face showing he believed in me.
I spun the board dropping the noodles to the ground I then grabbed the chalk and drew around the sauce and noodles that stuck to the board then drew my attention to the others that had fallen on the floor and drew an outline of that.
After it finished I threw the chalk in the crowd violently hitting an old lady in the face.
" Quickly I want a show of hands who thinks I'm a crazy guy "
Everyone raised their hands and I laughed to myself
I then went behind the board and laid it horizontally. I grabbed a small knife in my pocket and poked my finger with it. The crimson blood fell and hit the chalk and then as more and more blood hit the chalk it started glowing.
" you have got to be joking. "
I said out loud as it started to spark an orange glow and it slowly grew color to the rest of the chalk in orange sparks.
Once the symbol was fully sparking with orange the sauce began to swell and move around in a counterclockwise manner. I stepped away from it in shock as small parts of the blood in my finger began to float to the parts where it fell on the floor I drew my outlines on and started sparking those as well.
It started to smoke and hiss as if lightning could whisper and the orange began to take shape and the sauce made a doorway. The parts that were not on the board began to grow ice around them and started to make designs on the floor circling me and the board. Suddenly it grew in size and a large booming voice was heard through the portal as I felt panic of people start to set in.
A huge claw came out and scrapped the sides of my table trying to crawl out from the world it had been trapped in. Cold winds hit me as they cut my skin and threw around my clothes. As I saw the table was now melting from its touch.
A slimy green claw with mucus like a face-hugger egg from the movie Alien carved through the floor and pulled the rest of its body out slowly. A beast stood at 12 feet tall adjusting to our world as goop grew and shaped its body as people screamed, ran, and stood frozen in fear.
As it looked around it locked its spider-like eyes and swerled around coming out from the portal and twisting and turning around the body as it made its way to its head finding a place to rest. It then locked its eyes with me and its jaw twisted slowly from an ant-like maw to mine and slowly shrunk and it soon took the shape of me and knelt on the floor and spoke to me.
" master. "
I stood in shock as everyone seemed to calm down and watched to see what I would do.
"...umm "My family has always been of great minds. I hated it. Growing up and having to study day and night to try and live up to them was extremely exhausting when I couldn't care how things worked as long as I was happy. I gave up but somehow everything kept turning out to be true.
Over my lifetime I have become the Gorden Ramsey of the science world. Known for my temper and also for huge things like curing world hunger using play-doe and cancer with baby powder I got in a back street ally while drunk.
To get my family off my back I started making random ideas so they could see me as a failure and leave me alone but...they keep working. And soon people started to praise me. Fame has left me with nothing but more and more attention. So today I plan to make sure that everyone can just think I'm insane and leave me alone and not some king.
I chuckled like a kid who was opening a Christmas present as I heard the crowd of people chatting and talking loudly as I hid behind my stage in a grey tight suit that my sister had picked out. I sighed and was ready to walk out and make a fool out of myself but my brother stopped me.
" Jack... I just want you to know how proud I am of you. Dad would have loved to see you right now. "
I thought it was ironic because last night while chilling on the couch watching TV and eating chips I made this theory up. He dusted off my shoulders held them tight and looked me in the eyes taking in the moment.
" go give them hell man. "
He had a goofy smile just like Dad but spoke with confidence.
" you got it, man. "
I heard my name being called onto the stage and the uproar startled me for a second but I collected myself and headed out after giving him a nod just to entertain him.
The lights were blinding as I grabbed the mic and looked at the table in front of me with a small box with the ingredients I needed and a chalkboard behind me.
After I stood still for a minute the crowd died down. I had not told anyone what I was presenting so the whole world was watching without a clue of what I was doing this time.
"Hello everyone. Today I believe I have my most important presentation yet..."
The crowd grew silent and hung on every word. And I heard my voice around the room through the speakers.
" Today I have with me a box...and inside is spaghetti I had breakfast. "
The crowd laughed thinking it was a joke
" shut up "
The crowd grew silent once more
"Behind me is a chalkboard and I will now present my new findings to all of you...I have found out how to make portals to other worlds. "
A man in the far back of the audience yelled bullshit in a heavy Indian accent but he was so far it was a faint sound for me. I smiled at that thinking I had finally found something that would make me lose my title and I could go ahead and live a life without people making me feel like an evil man for not helping others.
I opened the box got a handful of the noodles and threw them at the chalkboard. I then grabbed a paper towel on standby to clean myself.
The noodles hit the board and slowly moved and rested on a spot on the board. I made eye contact with my brother backstage and he had a look on his face showing he believed in me.
I spun the board dropping the noodles to the ground I then grabbed the chalk and drew around the sauce and noodles that stuck to the board then drew my attention to the others that had fallen on the floor and drew an outline of that.
After it finished I threw the chalk in the crowd violently hitting an old lady in the face.
" Quickly I want a show of hands who thinks I'm a crazy guy "
Everyone raised their hands and I laughed to myself
I then went behind the board and laid it horizontally. I grabbed a small knife in my pocket and poked my finger with it. The crimson blood fell and hit the chalk and then as more and more blood hit the chalk it started glowing.
" you have got to be joking. "
I said out loud as it started to spark an orange glow and it slowly grew color to the rest of the chalk in orange sparks.
Once the symbol was fully sparking with orange the sauce began to swell and move around in a counterclockwise manner. I stepped away from it in shock as small parts of the blood in my finger began to float to the parts where it fell on the floor I drew my outlines on and started sparking those as well.
It started to smoke and hiss as if lightning could whisper and the orange began to take shape and the sauce made a doorway. The parts that were not on the board began to grow ice around them and started to make designs on the floor circling me and the board. Suddenly it grew in size and a large booming voice was heard through the portal as I felt panic of people start to set in.
A huge claw came out and scrapped the sides of my table trying to crawl out from the world it had been trapped in. Cold winds hit me as they cut my skin and threw around my clothes. As I saw the table was now melting from its touch.
A slimy green claw with mucus like a face-hugger egg from the movie Alien carved through the floor and pulled the rest of its body out slowly. A beast stood at 12 feet tall adjusting to our world as goop grew and shaped its body as people screamed, ran, and stood frozen in fear.
As it looked around it locked its spider-like eyes and swerled around coming out from the portal and twisting and turning around the body as it made its way to its head finding a place to rest. It then locked its eyes with me and its jaw twisted slowly from an ant-like maw to mine and slowly shrunk and it soon took the shape of me and knelt on the floor and spoke to me.
" master. "
I stood in shock as everyone seemed to calm down and watched to see what I would do.
Now that this creature knelt before me I realized that the room I was in was so terrible quietly you could hear everyone's ass get tight in anticipation of what would happen next.
" ...what...are you. "
I spoke carefully to the being that had taken the shape of myself. It still took my breath away and my throat was dry.
The beast was a deep green. The color mixed with shades of grey streaming from it. The longer I looked at it I could see it getting closer to what I looked like shaping itself.
From small flowing green tendrils to an arm they grew as they twisted and made bone then muscle and finally skin.
It locked eyes with me and it smiled deeply at me. As it formed the face finally.
" Your vassle. "
My eyes had not moved to the crowd at all but even though the lights hit the stage so hard it was enveloped in smoke.
The creature's eyes glowed as it answered brightly, not figuratively. This thing's eyes were glowing.
"To serve you, We are bound by blood magic. I am a reflection of your desires, Master, " it said, its voice now a whisper in my mind.
It began to stand up as my grey suit began to form on it and by the time it stood fully up it had copied what I looked like.
" let me explain everything. "
My body frozen in fear woke up with adrenaline as I blinked and a flash of green smoke covered my vision as he teleported right to me face to face.
Its body turned to smoke and went into the slits of my eyes. I felt visions follow me in my peripheral vision but surprisingly no pain followed power filled me and it felt like one hell of a drug.
My body and mind altered.
I was now in a very dark place with no walls or light except my reflection on the floor which waved like water.
I took a step back looking around and back to the reflection of me on the ground.
Soon the water rippled and my reflection fell through the floor like gravity was inverted. he flew upright and water fell off of him as he looked at me as he now stood straight ahead of me. He was just reflecting in the water but now eyed me down.
Collecting my nerves.
I begin to speak.
" what do you want..."
He was still in my form and stood perfectly straight. Now with water dripping from his...my hair.
Slight stubble with hair that hung down and my hazel eyes were not present within him but I was greeted with a swelling acidic green that doubled the size of my pupil.
" to serve you. "
He made no other movement than putting his hands behind his back like a soldier at ease.
I could not tell if it was lying or not.
" ...is that it? "
" I am the embodiment of your fear desires and brilliance. You have shaped me. Your desire for solitude birthed me. I will aid you in shaping the world how you see fit. Your reality becomes mine. "
There was a slight echo in the room as he spoke.
" wait...where are we "
I questioned haphazardly
" your mind. "
An awkward silence was in the air until I spoke
" so...am I just standing on the stage not making a sound? "
He gave me a concerned look.
" no...time has frozen outside for you. You may sleep here without having to in the real world so to others you look as if you never rest and you may think and plan what to do in battle here. For them, it will be about two seconds...Do...do you not have any knowledge of what I am? "
Suddenly I felt bad like I had encountered someone famous and I had no idea who they were. A slap in the face like a popular kid meeting someone who had never heard of them. Ego shattered.
" ok sorry no. I...don't go around reading about...monsters?"
I felt like was I saying the n-word of the demon realm not knowing if that word was offensive.
He folded his arms a little upset.
"Are you not a warrior? "
" well...no I...just watch TV and cook here and there- "
The demon cut me off
" weak. "
" excuse me? "
" look. I am an immortal being and after a while you get bored. So I'm sorry if I may be a little upset after being bonded with some nobody. "
I got quiet and I was a little annoyed that I was being roasted by some demon that I just met.
Its form wavers and eyes begin to open on its skin. Cheeks forhead etc.
"After being a god for so long it's fun to play with limitations. Makes things extremely exciting. "
" what do you mean by that? "
" look. You can only be so entertained by the same things. Life gets boring and now...you are going to help me with this. I get to have pure entertainment while you get every wish you could ever want. A mutual bond no? "
He then closed his eyes annoyed and the other eyes meshed back to his skin.
" though... the TV is not that interesting...life is what gets the blood pumping"
I felt the need to quickly change the topic
"Are there others like you? "
The room began to take shape very slowly as the water floor turned to wood and walls went around us.
" of course. You may meet them one day "
Confused and curious I pressed.
"Meet them? "
" yes. Summoning one of us is considered a threat to them. "
He spoke while opening and closing his newly found hand except backward.
" hm...no that don't look right "
I quickly responded
" Wait! How is doing that a threat! "
"Well, one doesn't just accidentally Summon one of us to suddenly get powers beyond human control. "
I thought back to how I summoned him by accident with some food I made.
" well...funny story but I summoned you using my breakfast..."
I had never regretted speaking so much as in that moment.
" What... "
Acid dripped from his words. Literally. His pupils split in half and his bottom jaw ripped open like an ant and curved giving sharpness to the bone.
"Please don't kill me. "
The room began to look like a cozy cabin with a fireplace and he slowly went back to normal.
" I would if I could. I've never felt so disrespected. We are bonded by your blood. If you die...I die. "
Suddenly I felt at ease by this new information.
Then a thought came to my mind
" ...God's can die? "
" you did hear me, right? "
The SAS from this guy was unneeded and I was starting to miss him being on his knees as weird as that sounds.
" so...all that power gone.... in an instant... "
" well...no actually God's powers don't just disappear they transfer to whoever killed them...wait...hold up."
He suddenly had an epiphany.
A smile grew on his face and he grabbed my shoulders
" you! You are going to help me kill the other gods! "
He sounded proud but I let him down.
" ha! No. "
" oh come on! Don't be like that. "
He did a pout.
"Look, man. I'm not killing gods for you. Just because you are bored. "
" hey...they might send people to kill you because you bonded with me. "
"What did I ever do to them? "
"They have a system to this stuff. They like to build and watch things play out. You're a problem. That can mess it up. So...they kill ya...to be honest, I don't know any other way to explain it, man. You know people normally just use my power to kill people and become a king and know this already. "
"This is outrageous. "
" bro. Look if you do this I will be able to get their powers and you will be able to do so much more than what I offer "
I tilted my head
" what can you do? Know what never mind. I will just talk to them and figure things out. "
He groaned and his form melted down sagging and it shot back up reforming
"Is there not anything that you want? Anything in the world? Gods don't put themselves in physical forms. They give people power and can make beings to hunt you. And if they care enough to come down themself. Ha, good luck."
I stopped and thought about it trying to weigh the options of pissing off higher beings.
Suddenly. I found something.
"Can you bring back the dead..."
He stopped confused.
" well...no "
" then I don't want anything "
" wait! "
He threw his arms out pleading
"I don't...but another God does..."
He crosses his arms smiling. He had left the question hanging letting me reconsider his offer.
I stopped and thought for a while before looking back up to him.
I let out a sigh and looked him in the eyes
" ok...you are going to help me get my father back. "
The demon smirked.
submitted by Ok_Coconut_2560 to dontmindthis9 [link] [comments]
Over my lifetime I have become the Gorden Ramsey of the science world. Known for my temper and also for huge things like curing world hunger using play-doe and cancer with baby powder I got in a back street ally while drunk.
To get my family off my back I started making random ideas so they could see me as a failure and leave me alone but...they keep working. And soon people started to praise me. Fame has left me with nothing but more and more attention. So today I plan to make sure that everyone can just think I'm insane and leave me alone and not some king.
I chuckled like a kid who was opening a Christmas present as I heard the crowd of people chatting and talking loudly as I hid behind my stage in a grey tight suit that my sister had picked out. I sighed and was ready to walk out and make a fool out of myself but my brother stopped me.
" Jack... I just want you to know how proud I am of you. Dad would have loved to see you right now. "
I thought it was ironic because last night while chilling on the couch watching TV and eating chips I made this theory up. He dusted off my shoulders held them tight and looked me in the eyes taking in the moment.
" go give them hell man. "
He had a goofy smile just like Dad but spoke with confidence.
" you got it, man. "
I heard my name being called onto the stage and the uproar startled me for a second but I collected myself and headed out after giving him a nod just to entertain him.
The lights were blinding as I grabbed the mic and looked at the table in front of me with a small box with the ingredients I needed and a chalkboard behind me.
After I stood still for a minute the crowd died down. I had not told anyone what I was presenting so the whole world was watching without a clue of what I was doing this time.
"Hello everyone. Today I believe I have my most important presentation yet..."
The crowd grew silent and hung on every word. And I heard my voice around the room through the speakers.
" Today I have with me a box...and inside is spaghetti I had for breakfast. "
The crowd laughed thinking it was a joke
" shut up "
The crowd grew silent once more
"Behind me is a chalkboard and I will now present my new findings to all of you...I have found out how to make portals to other worlds. "
A man in the far back of the audience yelled bullshit in a heavy Indian accent but he was so far it was a faint sound for me. I smiled at that thinking I had finally found something that would make me lose my title and I could go ahead and live a life without people making me feel like an evil man for not helping others.
I opened the box got a handful of the noodles and threw them at the chalkboard. I then grabbed a paper towel on standby to clean myself.
The noodles hit the board and slowly moved and rested on a spot on the board. I made eye contact with my brother backstage and he had a look on his face showing he believed in me.
I spun the board dropping the noodles to the ground I then grabbed the chalk and drew around the sauce and noodles that stuck to the board then drew my attention to the others that had fallen on the floor and drew an outline of that.
After it finished I threw the chalk in the crowd violently hitting an old lady in the face.
" Quickly I want a show of hands who thinks I'm a crazy guy "
Everyone raised their hands and I laughed to myself
I then went behind the board and laid it horizontally. I grabbed a small knife in my pocket and poked my finger with it. The crimson blood fell and hit the chalk and then as more and more blood hit the chalk it started glowing.
" you have got to be joking. "
I said out loud as it started to spark an orange glow and it slowly grew color to the rest of the chalk in orange sparks.
Once the symbol was fully sparking with orange the sauce began to swell and move around in a counterclockwise manner. I stepped away from it in shock as small parts of the blood in my finger began to float to the parts where it fell on the floor I drew my outlines on and started sparking those as well.
It started to smoke and hiss as if lightning could whisper and the orange began to take shape and the sauce made a doorway. The parts that were not on the board began to grow ice around them and started to make designs on the floor circling me and the board. Suddenly it grew in size and a large booming voice was heard through the portal as I felt panic of people start to set in.
A huge claw came out and scrapped the sides of my table trying to crawl out from the world it had been trapped in. Cold winds hit me as they cut my skin and threw around my clothes. As I saw the table was now melting from its touch.
A slimy green claw with mucus like a face-hugger egg from the movie Alien carved through the floor and pulled the rest of its body out slowly. A beast stood at 12 feet tall adjusting to our world as goop grew and shaped its body as people screamed, ran, and stood frozen in fear.
As it looked around it locked its spider-like eyes and swerled around coming out from the portal and twisting and turning around the body as it made its way to its head finding a place to rest. It then locked its eyes with me and its jaw twisted slowly from an ant-like maw to mine and slowly shrunk and it soon took the shape of me and knelt on the floor and spoke to me.
" master. "
I stood in shock as everyone seemed to calm down and watched to see what I would do.
"...umm "My family has always been of great minds. I hated it. Growing up and having to study day and night to try and live up to them was extremely exhausting when I couldn't care how things worked as long as I was happy. I gave up but somehow everything kept turning out to be true.
Over my lifetime I have become the Gorden Ramsey of the science world. Known for my temper and also for huge things like curing world hunger using play-doe and cancer with baby powder I got in a back street ally while drunk.
To get my family off my back I started making random ideas so they could see me as a failure and leave me alone but...they keep working. And soon people started to praise me. Fame has left me with nothing but more and more attention. So today I plan to make sure that everyone can just think I'm insane and leave me alone and not some king.
I chuckled like a kid who was opening a Christmas present as I heard the crowd of people chatting and talking loudly as I hid behind my stage in a grey tight suit that my sister had picked out. I sighed and was ready to walk out and make a fool out of myself but my brother stopped me.
" Jack... I just want you to know how proud I am of you. Dad would have loved to see you right now. "
I thought it was ironic because last night while chilling on the couch watching TV and eating chips I made this theory up. He dusted off my shoulders held them tight and looked me in the eyes taking in the moment.
" go give them hell man. "
He had a goofy smile just like Dad but spoke with confidence.
" you got it, man. "
I heard my name being called onto the stage and the uproar startled me for a second but I collected myself and headed out after giving him a nod just to entertain him.
The lights were blinding as I grabbed the mic and looked at the table in front of me with a small box with the ingredients I needed and a chalkboard behind me.
After I stood still for a minute the crowd died down. I had not told anyone what I was presenting so the whole world was watching without a clue of what I was doing this time.
"Hello everyone. Today I believe I have my most important presentation yet..."
The crowd grew silent and hung on every word. And I heard my voice around the room through the speakers.
" Today I have with me a box...and inside is spaghetti I had breakfast. "
The crowd laughed thinking it was a joke
" shut up "
The crowd grew silent once more
"Behind me is a chalkboard and I will now present my new findings to all of you...I have found out how to make portals to other worlds. "
A man in the far back of the audience yelled bullshit in a heavy Indian accent but he was so far it was a faint sound for me. I smiled at that thinking I had finally found something that would make me lose my title and I could go ahead and live a life without people making me feel like an evil man for not helping others.
I opened the box got a handful of the noodles and threw them at the chalkboard. I then grabbed a paper towel on standby to clean myself.
The noodles hit the board and slowly moved and rested on a spot on the board. I made eye contact with my brother backstage and he had a look on his face showing he believed in me.
I spun the board dropping the noodles to the ground I then grabbed the chalk and drew around the sauce and noodles that stuck to the board then drew my attention to the others that had fallen on the floor and drew an outline of that.
After it finished I threw the chalk in the crowd violently hitting an old lady in the face.
" Quickly I want a show of hands who thinks I'm a crazy guy "
Everyone raised their hands and I laughed to myself
I then went behind the board and laid it horizontally. I grabbed a small knife in my pocket and poked my finger with it. The crimson blood fell and hit the chalk and then as more and more blood hit the chalk it started glowing.
" you have got to be joking. "
I said out loud as it started to spark an orange glow and it slowly grew color to the rest of the chalk in orange sparks.
Once the symbol was fully sparking with orange the sauce began to swell and move around in a counterclockwise manner. I stepped away from it in shock as small parts of the blood in my finger began to float to the parts where it fell on the floor I drew my outlines on and started sparking those as well.
It started to smoke and hiss as if lightning could whisper and the orange began to take shape and the sauce made a doorway. The parts that were not on the board began to grow ice around them and started to make designs on the floor circling me and the board. Suddenly it grew in size and a large booming voice was heard through the portal as I felt panic of people start to set in.
A huge claw came out and scrapped the sides of my table trying to crawl out from the world it had been trapped in. Cold winds hit me as they cut my skin and threw around my clothes. As I saw the table was now melting from its touch.
A slimy green claw with mucus like a face-hugger egg from the movie Alien carved through the floor and pulled the rest of its body out slowly. A beast stood at 12 feet tall adjusting to our world as goop grew and shaped its body as people screamed, ran, and stood frozen in fear.
As it looked around it locked its spider-like eyes and swerled around coming out from the portal and twisting and turning around the body as it made its way to its head finding a place to rest. It then locked its eyes with me and its jaw twisted slowly from an ant-like maw to mine and slowly shrunk and it soon took the shape of me and knelt on the floor and spoke to me.
" master. "
I stood in shock as everyone seemed to calm down and watched to see what I would do.
"...umm "
Part two of the noodle demon.Now that this creature knelt before me I realized that the room I was in was so terrible quietly you could hear everyone's ass get tight in anticipation of what would happen next.
" ...what...are you. "
I spoke carefully to the being that had taken the shape of myself. It still took my breath away and my throat was dry.
The beast was a deep green. The color mixed with shades of grey streaming from it. The longer I looked at it I could see it getting closer to what I looked like shaping itself.
From small flowing green tendrils to an arm they grew as they twisted and made bone then muscle and finally skin.
It locked eyes with me and it smiled deeply at me. As it formed the face finally.
" Your vassle. "
My eyes had not moved to the crowd at all but even though the lights hit the stage so hard it was enveloped in smoke.
The creature's eyes glowed as it answered brightly, not figuratively. This thing's eyes were glowing.
"To serve you, We are bound by blood magic. I am a reflection of your desires, Master, " it said, its voice now a whisper in my mind.
It began to stand up as my grey suit began to form on it and by the time it stood fully up it had copied what I looked like.
" let me explain everything. "
My body frozen in fear woke up with adrenaline as I blinked and a flash of green smoke covered my vision as he teleported right to me face to face.
Its body turned to smoke and went into the slits of my eyes. I felt visions follow me in my peripheral vision but surprisingly no pain followed power filled me and it felt like one hell of a drug.
My body and mind altered.
I was now in a very dark place with no walls or light except my reflection on the floor which waved like water.
I took a step back looking around and back to the reflection of me on the ground.
Soon the water rippled and my reflection fell through the floor like gravity was inverted. he flew upright and water fell off of him as he looked at me as he now stood straight ahead of me. He was just reflecting in the water but now eyed me down.
Collecting my nerves.
I begin to speak.
" what do you want..."
He was still in my form and stood perfectly straight. Now with water dripping from his...my hair.
Slight stubble with hair that hung down and my hazel eyes were not present within him but I was greeted with a swelling acidic green that doubled the size of my pupil.
" to serve you. "
He made no other movement than putting his hands behind his back like a soldier at ease.
I could not tell if it was lying or not.
" ...is that it? "
" I am the embodiment of your fear desires and brilliance. You have shaped me. Your desire for solitude birthed me. I will aid you in shaping the world how you see fit. Your reality becomes mine. "
There was a slight echo in the room as he spoke.
" wait...where are we "
I questioned haphazardly
" your mind. "
An awkward silence was in the air until I spoke
" so...am I just standing on the stage not making a sound? "
He gave me a concerned look.
" no...time has frozen outside for you. You may sleep here without having to in the real world so to others you look as if you never rest and you may think and plan what to do in battle here. For them, it will be about two seconds...Do...do you not have any knowledge of what I am? "
Suddenly I felt bad like I had encountered someone famous and I had no idea who they were. A slap in the face like a popular kid meeting someone who had never heard of them. Ego shattered.
" ok sorry no. I...don't go around reading about...monsters?"
I felt like was I saying the n-word of the demon realm not knowing if that word was offensive.
He folded his arms a little upset.
"Are you not a warrior? "
" well...no I...just watch TV and cook here and there- "
The demon cut me off
" weak. "
" excuse me? "
" look. I am an immortal being and after a while you get bored. So I'm sorry if I may be a little upset after being bonded with some nobody. "
I got quiet and I was a little annoyed that I was being roasted by some demon that I just met.
Its form wavers and eyes begin to open on its skin. Cheeks forhead etc.
"After being a god for so long it's fun to play with limitations. Makes things extremely exciting. "
" what do you mean by that? "
" look. You can only be so entertained by the same things. Life gets boring and now...you are going to help me with this. I get to have pure entertainment while you get every wish you could ever want. A mutual bond no? "
He then closed his eyes annoyed and the other eyes meshed back to his skin.
" though... the TV is not that interesting...life is what gets the blood pumping"
I felt the need to quickly change the topic
"Are there others like you? "
The room began to take shape very slowly as the water floor turned to wood and walls went around us.
" of course. You may meet them one day "
Confused and curious I pressed.
"Meet them? "
" yes. Summoning one of us is considered a threat to them. "
He spoke while opening and closing his newly found hand except backward.
" hm...no that don't look right "
I quickly responded
" Wait! How is doing that a threat! "
"Well, one doesn't just accidentally Summon one of us to suddenly get powers beyond human control. "
I thought back to how I summoned him by accident with some food I made.
" well...funny story but I summoned you using my breakfast..."
I had never regretted speaking so much as in that moment.
" What... "
Acid dripped from his words. Literally. His pupils split in half and his bottom jaw ripped open like an ant and curved giving sharpness to the bone.
"Please don't kill me. "
The room began to look like a cozy cabin with a fireplace and he slowly went back to normal.
" I would if I could. I've never felt so disrespected. We are bonded by your blood. If you die...I die. "
Suddenly I felt at ease by this new information.
Then a thought came to my mind
" ...God's can die? "
" you did hear me, right? "
The SAS from this guy was unneeded and I was starting to miss him being on his knees as weird as that sounds.
" so...all that power gone.... in an instant... "
" well...no actually God's powers don't just disappear they transfer to whoever killed them...wait...hold up."
He suddenly had an epiphany.
A smile grew on his face and he grabbed my shoulders
" you! You are going to help me kill the other gods! "
He sounded proud but I let him down.
" ha! No. "
" oh come on! Don't be like that. "
He did a pout.
"Look, man. I'm not killing gods for you. Just because you are bored. "
" hey...they might send people to kill you because you bonded with me. "
"What did I ever do to them? "
"They have a system to this stuff. They like to build and watch things play out. You're a problem. That can mess it up. So...they kill ya...to be honest, I don't know any other way to explain it, man. You know people normally just use my power to kill people and become a king and know this already. "
"This is outrageous. "
" bro. Look if you do this I will be able to get their powers and you will be able to do so much more than what I offer "
I tilted my head
" what can you do? Know what never mind. I will just talk to them and figure things out. "
He groaned and his form melted down sagging and it shot back up reforming
"Is there not anything that you want? Anything in the world? Gods don't put themselves in physical forms. They give people power and can make beings to hunt you. And if they care enough to come down themself. Ha, good luck."
I stopped and thought about it trying to weigh the options of pissing off higher beings.
Suddenly. I found something.
"Can you bring back the dead..."
He stopped confused.
" well...no "
" then I don't want anything "
" wait! "
He threw his arms out pleading
"I don't...but another God does..."
He crosses his arms smiling. He had left the question hanging letting me reconsider his offer.
I stopped and thought for a while before looking back up to him.
I let out a sigh and looked him in the eyes
" ok...you are going to help me get my father back. "
The demon smirked.
2024.05.13 22:44 C3PH4L0SP0R1N "A Shadow on the Soul"
This is an expansion of a recent post and also incorporates some ideas from this theory (by u/ndependent-Design17). Throughout the series the reader is repeatedly reminded that "only death can pay for life" — that magic, especially powerful magic, comes at great cost.
This phrase or variations of this phrase are repeated by Melisandre, Mirri, etc. at various points throughout the series. That which follows is a highly speculative theory on the nature of the cost of magic in the series. Specifically, that souls are central to the exercise of magic and can be used as magic currency.
What happens after we die? Is there some part of us that lives on or do we simply cease to exist. These are fundamental questions that are essentially unanswerable in life but not in ASOIAF. The reader is given a point-of-view account of death in the prologue of ADWD. After unsuccessfully attempting to steal the body of Thistle, a wildling spearwife, Varamyr dies and briefly becomes a disembodied consciousness:
Afterward his "spirit," or soul, is eventually transferred into a body of wolf and he begins his second life. This event, and the process of skin-changing more generally, appears to involve projection or transfer of a soul from one body into another. The process of projecting or transferring souls to either animal vessels or the weirwoods is central to the magic of the Children of the Forest.
After death a "shadow on the soul" of the Singers remain in the crows. The soul of Orell is also described as living on in the body of his eagle after his death.
This process appears to take two forms: the soul can be temporarily projected from one body into another (e.g., as happens when Bran skin-changes into Hodor) or can be permanently transferred as is described in the separate examples above.
These transferred souls merge with their recipient, at least to some degree, and may decay over time:
Bran is provided with similar warnings about the danger of spending too much time in Summer's skin by Jojen.
To answer this let us examine one of the most concrete example of magic in the series, the use or exchange of Stannis Baratheon's "life-fire" in order for Melisandre to manifest the shadows used to kill Renly Baratheon and Courtney Penrose.
According to this explanation, the cost of producing these shadow appears to have been part of his "life-fire," or soul. The shadow is specifically described as having the shape Stannis supporting this. Whether this applies to other types of magic — specifically blood magic or fire magic — is less clear but shadow magic very much appears to require the use of souls.
This type of exchange is also directly referenced in the story of the Night's King provided by Old Nan:
Stannis is described by Davos afterward as follows:
Asha later describes Stannis as appearing life a "man with one foot in the grave."
These descriptions seem appropriate for a character that has lost part of their "life-fire" or soul.
Throughout the series Stannis is forced to make a series of increasingly difficult decisions. The most significant of these decisions regards the fate of his nephew, Eric Storm. Melisandre repeatedly urges him to "give [her] the boy," presumably to be burned, but is rebuffed by Stannis.
Is the life of this bastard boy worth the lives of millions that would die if the Others break through the Wall? Making a deal with the devil and literally selling his soul in pursuit of some greater good seems very appropriate for his character, thematically. The description of his flesh turning to ash in this vision is representative also supports this interpretation.
Following this ritual all of the mentioned individuals do die but do so as the part of separate conspiracies (e.g., Robb Stark is betrayed by the Freys and Boltons, Joffrey Baratheon by Littlefinger and the Tyrells, etc.) which were already in place. It is left intentionally ambiguous by the author but it does not appear that the ritual meaningfully contributed to their deaths.
The creation of the shadows is said by Melisandre to have required part of Stannis' "life-fire" or soul. Could it be that the leech burning ritual was unsuccessful because blood alone is not sufficient as a sacrifice?
These forms of magic are frequently described in the community as "shadow magic" and "blood magic." These concepts — "fire and blood" and "flame and shadow" — are highly associated with one another in the text:
I speculate that these are different expressions of the same concept; that all of these fall under the general umbrella of fire magic and share common principles. "Fire consumes and in the end there's nothing left."
The introduction of shadow magic in the series is provided above with Mirri Max Duur. Following this ritual Drogo is described as a lifeless husk:
It has previously been speculated that Mirri "reverse skin-changed" Drogo (e.g., "strength of the mount go into the rider, strength of the beast go into the man."). The description provided is less consistent with a horse soul inhabiting a human body than it is with the complete or near-complete absence of a soul. It appears more likely in retrospect that Mirri sacrificed part of Drogo's soul to summon the shadows and likely as a means to kill Daenerys' unborn child.
There is a paucity of information on the reanimation of the dead in the series. The resurrection of Beric Dondarrion, for example, appears to be different in fundamental ways from that of the wights or Cold Hands. (We are potentially given a point-of-view account of this process if you accept that Victarion died in ADWD.)
Thoros is also described as appearing very different after performing this ritual several times in a way that is not entirely dissimilar to the changes in Stannis’ appearance referenced above.
Thoros attributes these changes to his renewed devotion to the Red God and spending "a year in the wild" as above although he is not exactly forthcoming with Arya about the resurrection process. It is also likely that he does not entirely understand what specifically is being exchanged here.
Later he describes Beric giving the "kiss of life" to the corpse of Catelyn Stark:
Notably, this process produces a reanimated Catelyn (a.k.a. Lady Stoneheart). The soul of Beric, or at least whatever is left of his soul at this point in the series, is consumed in order to resurrect Catelyn and not transferred.
This is again highly speculative but it seems reasonable to consider that these cold shadows are not "ice demons" or "ice zombies" but are in fact ghosts, the spirits or souls of men that are bound to the earth through magic by the Children of the Forest. (The textual evidence of the creation of the Others by the Children has previously been discussed at length in the community in separate posts.) "Fire consumes, but cold preserves."
This would explain several of the unusual characteristics of the Others described by Tormund:
A reasonable interpretation of this information is that the Others are present during the day, at least in some capacity, and are only able to assume corporeal form at night.
The Others are also described as "going lightly upon the snow" which would also supports the idea that they are ghosts:
EDIT: edited several times to address formatting issues
submitted by C3PH4L0SP0R1N to pureasoiaf [link] [comments]
"Only death can pay for life, my lord. A great gift requires a great sacrifice.”Davos, ASOS
This phrase or variations of this phrase are repeated by Melisandre, Mirri, etc. at various points throughout the series. That which follows is a highly speculative theory on the nature of the cost of magic in the series. Specifically, that souls are central to the exercise of magic and can be used as magic currency.
1. establishing the concept of the soul
Oh, to be sure, there is much we do not understand. The years pass in their hundreds and their thousands, and what does any man see of life but a few summers, a few winters? We look at mountains and call them eternal, and so they seem… but in the course of time, mountains rise and fall, rivers change their courses, stars fall from the sky, and great cities sink beneath the sea. Even gods die, we think. Everything changes.Bran, AGOT
What happens after we die? Is there some part of us that lives on or do we simply cease to exist. These are fundamental questions that are essentially unanswerable in life but not in ASOIAF. The reader is given a point-of-view account of death in the prologue of ADWD. After unsuccessfully attempting to steal the body of Thistle, a wildling spearwife, Varamyr dies and briefly becomes a disembodied consciousness:
The white world turned and fell away. For a moment it was as if he were inside the weirwood, gazing out through carved red eyes as a dying man twitched feebly on the ground and a madwoman danced blind and bloody underneath the moon, weeping red tears and ripping at her clothes. Then both were gone and he was rising, melting, his spirit borne on some cold wind. He was in the snow and in the clouds, he was a sparrow, a squirrel, an oak. A horned owl flew silently between his trees, hunting a hare; Varamyr was inside the owl, inside the hare, inside the trees. Deep below the frozen ground, earthworms burrowed blindly in the dark, and he was them as well. I am the wood, and everything that’s in it, he thought, exulting.Prologue, ADWD
Afterward his "spirit," or soul, is eventually transferred into a body of wolf and he begins his second life. This event, and the process of skin-changing more generally, appears to involve projection or transfer of a soul from one body into another. The process of projecting or transferring souls to either animal vessels or the weirwoods is central to the magic of the Children of the Forest.
“Someone else was in the raven,” he told Lord Brynden, once he had returned to his own skin. “Some girl. I felt her.”Bran, ADWD
“A woman, of those who sing the song of earth,” his teacher said. “Long dead, yet a part of her remains, just as a part of you would remain in Summer if your boy’s flesh were to die upon the morrow. A shadow on the soul. She will not harm you.”
"Do all the birds have singers in them?"
“All,” Lord Brynden said.
After death a "shadow on the soul" of the Singers remain in the crows. The soul of Orell is also described as living on in the body of his eagle after his death.
This process appears to take two forms: the soul can be temporarily projected from one body into another (e.g., as happens when Bran skin-changes into Hodor) or can be permanently transferred as is described in the separate examples above.
These transferred souls merge with their recipient, at least to some degree, and may decay over time:
"The wolf is part of you from that day on, and you’re part of him. Both of you will change.”Prologue, ADWD
Other beasts were best left alone, the hunter had declared. Cats were vain and cruel, always ready to turn on you. Elk and deer were prey; wear their skins too long, and even the bravest man became a coward. Bears, boars, badgers, weasels … Haggon did not hold with such. “Some skins you never want to wear, boy. You won’t like what you’d become.” Birds were the worst, to hear him tell it. “Men were not meant to leave the earth. Spend too much time in the clouds and you never want to come back down again.
...
"They say you forget," Haggon had told him, a few weeks before his own death.
"When the man's flesh dies, his spirit lives on inside the beast, but every day his memory fades, and the beast becomes a little less a warg, a little more a wolf, until nothing of the man is left and only the beast remains."
Bran is provided with similar warnings about the danger of spending too much time in Summer's skin by Jojen.
2. shadow magic requires souls
As above the reader is repeatedly reminded throughout the series that "only death can pay for life." What is specifically being sacrificed, though? Is the magic being fueled by the blood of the sacrificed or by something else?To answer this let us examine one of the most concrete example of magic in the series, the use or exchange of Stannis Baratheon's "life-fire" in order for Melisandre to manifest the shadows used to kill Renly Baratheon and Courtney Penrose.
Shadows only live when given birth by light, and the king's fires burn so low I dare not draw off any more to make another son. It might well kill him."Davos, ASOS
Melisandre moved closer.
"With another man, though... a man whose flames still burn hot and high... if you truly wish to serve your king's cause, come to my chamber one night. I could give you pleasure such as you have never known, and with your life-fire I could make..."
According to this explanation, the cost of producing these shadow appears to have been part of his "life-fire," or soul. The shadow is specifically described as having the shape Stannis supporting this. Whether this applies to other types of magic — specifically blood magic or fire magic — is less clear but shadow magic very much appears to require the use of souls.
This type of exchange is also directly referenced in the story of the Night's King provided by Old Nan:
A woman was his downfall; a woman glimpsed from atop the Wall, with skin as white as the moon and eyes like blue stars. Fearing nothing, he chased her and caught her and loved her, though her skin was cold as ice, and when he gave his seed to her he gave his soul as well. (Credit to u/DigLost5791 for this reference.)Bran, ASOS
Stannis is described by Davos afterward as follows:
The look of him was a shock. He seemed ten years older than the man that Davos had left at Storm’s End when he set sail for the Blackwater and the battle that would be their undoing. The king’s close-cropped beard was spiderwebbed with grey hairs, and he had dropped two stone or more of weight. He had never been a fleshy man, but now the bones moved beneath his skin like spears, fighting to cut free. Even his crown seemed too large for his head. His eyes were blue pits lost in deep hollows, and the shape of a skull could be seen beneath his face.Davos, ASOS
Asha later describes Stannis as appearing life a "man with one foot in the grave."
What little flesh he’d carried on his tall, spare frame at Deepwood Motte had melted away during the march. The shape of his skull could be seen under his skin, and his jaw was clenched so hard Asha feared his teeth might shatter.Asha, ADWD
These descriptions seem appropriate for a character that has lost part of their "life-fire" or soul.
Throughout the series Stannis is forced to make a series of increasingly difficult decisions. The most significant of these decisions regards the fate of his nephew, Eric Storm. Melisandre repeatedly urges him to "give [her] the boy," presumably to be burned, but is rebuffed by Stannis.
“I know the cost! Last night, gazing into that hearth, I saw things in the flames as well. I saw a king, a crown of fire on his brows, burning… burning, Davos. His own crown consumed his flesh and turned him into ash. Do you think I need Melisandre to tell me what that means? Or you?” The king moved, so his shadow fell upon King’s Landing.Davos, ASOS
"…what is the life of one bastard boy against a kingdom?”
“Everything,” said Davos, softly.
Is the life of this bastard boy worth the lives of millions that would die if the Others break through the Wall? Making a deal with the devil and literally selling his soul in pursuit of some greater good seems very appropriate for his character, thematically. The description of his flesh turning to ash in this vision is representative also supports this interpretation.
3. blood and fire magic
As opposed to the creation of the shadows described above, we are also provided an example of so-called blood magic in the leech burning ritual.“Give me the boy, Your Grace. It is the surer way. The better way. Give me the boy and I shall wake the stone dragon.”Davos, ASOS
...
Melisandre bowed her head stiffly, and said, “As my king commands.” Reaching up her left sleeve with her right hand, she flung a handful of powder into the brazier. The coals roared. As pale flames writhed atop them, the red woman retrieved the silver dish and brought it to the king. Davos watched her lift the lid. Beneath were three large black leeches, fat with blood. The boy’s blood, Davos knew. A king’s blood. Stannis stretched forth a hand, and his fingers closed around one of the leeches.
“Say the name,” Melisandre commanded.
Following this ritual all of the mentioned individuals do die but do so as the part of separate conspiracies (e.g., Robb Stark is betrayed by the Freys and Boltons, Joffrey Baratheon by Littlefinger and the Tyrells, etc.) which were already in place. It is left intentionally ambiguous by the author but it does not appear that the ritual meaningfully contributed to their deaths.
The creation of the shadows is said by Melisandre to have required part of Stannis' "life-fire" or soul. Could it be that the leech burning ritual was unsuccessful because blood alone is not sufficient as a sacrifice?
These forms of magic are frequently described in the community as "shadow magic" and "blood magic." These concepts — "fire and blood" and "flame and shadow" — are highly associated with one another in the text:
“Shadow?" Davos felt his flesh prickling. "A shadow is a thing of darkness."Davos, ACOK
”You are more ignorant than a child, ser knight. There are no shadows in the dark. Shadows are the servants of light, the children of fire. The brightest flame casts the darkest shadows."
I speculate that these are different expressions of the same concept; that all of these fall under the general umbrella of fire magic and share common principles. "Fire consumes and in the end there's nothing left."
4. dancing shadows
The tent was aglow with the light of braziers within. Through the blood-spattered sandsilk, she glimpsed shadows moving.Daenerys, AGOT
Mirri Maz Duur was dancing, and not alone.
...
No, Dany wanted to say, no, not that, you mustn’t, but when she opened her mouth, a long wail of pain escaped, and the sweat broke over her skin. What was wrong with them, couldn’t they see?
Inside the tent the shapes were dancing, circling the brazier and the bloody bath, dark against the sandsilk, and some did not look human. She glimpsed the shadow of a great wolf, and another like a man wreathed in flames.
“The Lamb Woman knows the secrets of the birthing bed,” Irri said. “She said so, I heard her.”
“Yes,” Doreah agreed, “I heard her too.”
No, she shouted, or perhaps she only thought it, for no whisper of sound escaped her lips. She was being carried. Her eyes opened to gaze up at a flat dead sky, black and bleak and starless. Please, no. The sound of Mirri Maz Duur’s voice grew louder, until it filled the world. The shapes! She screamed. The dancers!
Ser Jorah carried her inside the tent.
The introduction of shadow magic in the series is provided above with Mirri Max Duur. Following this ritual Drogo is described as a lifeless husk:
"He seems to like the warmth, Princess," Ser Jorah said. "His eyes follow the sun, though he does not see it. He can walk after a fashion. He will go where you lead him, but no farther. He will eat if you put food in his mouth, drink if you dribble water on his lips."Daenerys, AGOT
It has previously been speculated that Mirri "reverse skin-changed" Drogo (e.g., "strength of the mount go into the rider, strength of the beast go into the man."). The description provided is less consistent with a horse soul inhabiting a human body than it is with the complete or near-complete absence of a soul. It appears more likely in retrospect that Mirri sacrificed part of Drogo's soul to summon the shadows and likely as a means to kill Daenerys' unborn child.
“The stallion who mounts the world will burn no cities now. His khalasar shall trample no nations into dust."Daenerys, AGOT
5. reanimation
If "only death can pay for life" and souls are used as a form of magical currency how does one explain the reanimation or resurrection process?There is a paucity of information on the reanimation of the dead in the series. The resurrection of Beric Dondarrion, for example, appears to be different in fundamental ways from that of the wights or Cold Hands. (We are potentially given a point-of-view account of this process if you accept that Victarion died in ADWD.)
“Thoros, how many times have you brought me back now?”There is no immediately identifiable magical cost for these "kisses of life," at least at first glance. Thoros later tells us that he breathed part of his "flames" or soul into Beric:
The red priest bowed his head. “It is R’hllor who brings you back, my lord. The Lord of Light. I am only his instrument.”
“How many times?” Lord Beric insisted.
“Six,” Thoros said reluctantly.
“And each time is harder. You have grown reckless, my lord. Is death so very sweet?”
Arya, ASOS
“That first time, his lordship had a hole right through him and blood in his mouth, I knew there was no hope. So when his poor torn chest stopped moving, I gave him the good god's own kiss to send him on his way. I filled my mouth with fire and breathed the flames inside him, down his throat to lungs and heart and soul. The last kiss it is called, and many a time I saw the old priests bestow it on the Lord's servants as they died." (Credit to u/watchersontheweb for providing this quote in the initial thread.)Arya, ASOS
Thoros is also described as appearing very different after performing this ritual several times in a way that is not entirely dissimilar to the changes in Stannis’ appearance referenced above.
“Here’s the wizard, skinny squirrel. You’ll get your answers now.”Arya, ASOS
He pointed toward the fire, where Tom Sevenstrings stood talking to a tall thin man with oddments of old armor buckled on over his ratty pink robes. That can’t be Thoros of Myr. Arya remembered the red priest as fat, with a smooth face and a shiny bald head. This man had a droopy face and a full head of shaggy grey hair.
...
“Thoros of Myr. You used to shave your head.”
“To betoken a humble heart, but in truth my heart was vain. Besides, I lost my razor in the woods.” The priest slapped his belly. “I am less than I was, but more. A year in the wild will melt the flesh off a man. Would that I could find a tailor to take in my skin. I might look young again, and pretty maids would shower me with kisses.”
Thoros attributes these changes to his renewed devotion to the Red God and spending "a year in the wild" as above although he is not exactly forthcoming with Arya about the resurrection process. It is also likely that he does not entirely understand what specifically is being exchanged here.
Later he describes Beric giving the "kiss of life" to the corpse of Catelyn Stark:
“The Freys slashed her throat from ear to ear. When we found her by the river she was three days dead. Harwin begged me to give her the kiss of life, but it had been too long. I would not do it, so Lord Beric put his lips to hers instead, and the flame of life passed from him to her. And… she rose. May the Lord of Light protect us. She rose.”Brienne, AFFC
Notably, this process produces a reanimated Catelyn (a.k.a. Lady Stoneheart). The soul of Beric, or at least whatever is left of his soul at this point in the series, is consumed in order to resurrect Catelyn and not transferred.
6. cold shadows (wild speculation)
The terms "white shadows," "pale shadows," and "cold shadows" are repeated used to describe the Others. The Others are also highly associated with ghosts — the spirits or souls of the dead bound to the earth. (The forrest in which they are introduced is literally called the Haunted Forrest.)The Others made no sound.Prologue, AGOT
Will saw movement from the corner of his eye. Pale shapes gliding through the wood. He turned his head, glimpsed a white shadow in the darkness. Then it was gone. Branches stirred gently in the wind, scratching at one another with wooden fingers. Will opened his mouth to call down a warning, and the words seemed to freeze in his throat. Perhaps he was wrong. Perhaps it had only been a bird, a reflection on the snow, some trick of the moonlight. What had he seen, after all?
“Will, where are you?” Ser Waymar called up. “Can you see anything?” He was turning in a slow circle, suddenly wary, his sword in hand. He must have felt them, as Will felt them. There was nothing to see. “Answer me! Why is it so cold?” It was cold.
Shivering, Will clung more tightly to his perch. His face pressed hard against the trunk of the sentinel. He could feel the sweet, sticky sap on his cheek. A shadow emerged from the dark of the wood. It stood in front of Royce. Tall, it was, and gaunt and hard as old bones, with flesh pale as milk. Its armor seemed to change color as it moved; here it was white as new-fallen snow, there black as shadow, everywhere dappled with the deep grey-green of the trees. The patterns ran like moonlight on water with every step it took. Will heard the breath go out of Ser Waymar Royce in a long hiss. ...
The Other slid forward on silent feet. In its hand was a longsword like none that Will had ever seen. No human metal had gone into the forging of that blade. It was alive with moonlight, translucent, a shard of crystal so thin that it seemed almost to vanish when seen edge-on. There was a faint blue shimmer to the thing, a ghost-light that played around its edges, and somehow Will knew it was sharper than any razor.
This is again highly speculative but it seems reasonable to consider that these cold shadows are not "ice demons" or "ice zombies" but are in fact ghosts, the spirits or souls of men that are bound to the earth through magic by the Children of the Forest. (The textual evidence of the creation of the Others by the Children has previously been discussed at length in the community in separate posts.) "Fire consumes, but cold preserves."
This would explain several of the unusual characteristics of the Others described by Tormund:
“Tormund,” Jon said, as they watched four old women pull a cartful of children toward the gate, “tell me of our foe. I would know all there is to know of the Others.”Jon, ADWD
The wildling rubbed his mouth. “Not here,” he mumbled, “not this side o’ your Wall.” The old man glanced uneasily toward the trees in their white mantles. “They’re never far, you know. They won’t come out by day, not when that old sun’s shining, but don’t think that means they went away. Shadows never go away. Might be you don’t see them, but they’re always clinging to your heels.”
...
Tormund turned back.
"You know nothing. You killed a dead man, aye, I heard. Mance killed a hundred. A man can fight the dead, but when their masters come, when the white mists rise up… how do you fight a mist, crow? Shadows with teeth … air so cold it hurts to breathe, like a knife inside your chest … you do not know, you cannot know … can your sword cut cold?"
A reasonable interpretation of this information is that the Others are present during the day, at least in some capacity, and are only able to assume corporeal form at night.
The Others are also described as "going lightly upon the snow" which would also supports the idea that they are ghosts:
“The white walkers go lightly on the snow,” the ranger said. “You’ll find no prints to mark their passage.”Samwell, ASOS
7. conclusions
This highly speculative theory attempts to reconcile several seemingly disparate concepts in the series related to magic, namely the actual nature of magical sacrifice ("only death can pay for life") and shadows or shadow magic. More specifically, I suggest that souls are the primary magical currency and can be consumed using fire magic to summon shadows, create glamours, etc. I also speculate that similar processes took place during Mirri Maz Duur's shadow-binding ritual in AGOT and during the repeated resurrections of Berric Dondarrion in ASOS. I further suggest that the Others are ghosts, the spirits or souls of the dead bound to the earth.EDIT: edited several times to address formatting issues
2024.05.13 22:37 C3PH4L0SP0R1N (spoilers extended) "A Shadow on the Soul"
This is an expansion of a recent post and also incorporates some ideas from this theory (by u/ndependent-Design17). Throughout the series the reader is repeatedly reminded that "only death can pay for life" — that magic, especially powerful magic, comes at great cost.
This phrase or variations of this phrase are repeated by Melisandre, Mirri, etc. at various points throughout the series. That which follows is a highly speculative theory on the nature of the cost of magic in the series. Specifically, that souls are central to the exercise of magic and can be used as magic currency.
What happens after we die? Is there some part of us that lives on or do we simply cease to exist. These are fundamental questions that are essentially unanswerable in life but not in ASOIAF. The reader is given a point-of-view account of death in the prologue of ADWD. After unsuccessfully attempting to steal the body of Thistle, a wildling spearwife, Varamyr dies and briefly becomes a disembodied consciousness:
Afterward his "spirit," or soul, is eventually transferred into a body of wolf and he begins his second life. This event, and the process of skin-changing more generally, appears to involve projection or transfer of a soul from one body into another. The process of projecting or transferring souls to either animal vessels or the weirwoods is central to the magic of the Children of the Forest.
After death a "shadow on the soul" of the Singers remain in the crows. The soul of Orell is also described as living on in the body of his eagle after his death.
This process appears to take two forms: the soul can be temporarily projected from one body into another (e.g., as happens when Bran skin-changes into Hodor) or can be permanently transferred as is described in the separate examples above.
These transferred souls merge with their recipient, at least to some degree, and may decay over time:
Bran is provided with similar warnings about the danger of spending too much time in Summer's skin by Jojen.
To answer this let us examine one of the most concrete example of magic in the series, the use or exchange of Stannis Baratheon's "life-fire" in order for Melisandre to manifest the shadows used to kill Renly Baratheon and Courtney Penrose.
According to this explanation, the cost of producing these shadow appears to have been part of his "life-fire," or soul. The shadow is specifically described as having the shape Stannis supporting this. Whether this applies to other types of magic — specifically blood magic or fire magic — is less clear but shadow magic very much appears to require the use of souls.
This type of exchange is also directly referenced in the story of the Night's King provided by Old Nan:
Stannis is described by Davos afterward as follows:
Asha later describes Stannis as appearing life a "man with one foot in the grave."
These descriptions seem appropriate for a character that has lost part of their "life-fire" or soul.
Throughout the series Stannis is forced to make a series of increasingly difficult decisions. The most significant of these decisions regards the fate of his nephew, Eric Storm. Melisandre repeatedly urges him to "give [her] the boy," presumably to be burned, but is rebuffed by Stannis.
Is the life of this bastard boy worth the lives of millions that would die if the Others break through the Wall? Making a deal with the devil and literally selling his soul in pursuit of some greater good seems very appropriate for his character, thematically. The description of his flesh turning to ash in this vision is representative also supports this interpretation.
Following this ritual all of the mentioned individuals do die but do so as the part of separate conspiracies (e.g., Robb Stark is betrayed by the Freys and Boltons, Joffrey Baratheon by Littlefinger and the Tyrells, etc.) which were already in place. It is left intentionally ambiguous by the author but it does not appear that the ritual meaningfully contributed to their deaths.
The creation of the shadows is said by Melisandre to have required part of Stannis' "life-fire" or soul. Could it be that the leech burning ritual was unsuccessful because blood alone is not sufficient as a sacrifice?
These forms of magic are frequently described in the community as "shadow magic" and "blood magic." These concepts — "fire and blood" and "flame and shadow" — are highly associated with one another in the text:
I speculate that these are different expressions of the same concept; that all of these fall under the general umbrella of fire magic and share common principles. "Fire consumes and in the end there's nothing left."
The introduction of shadow magic in the series is provided above with Mirri Max Duur. Following this ritual Drogo is described as a lifeless husk:
It has previously been speculated that Mirri "reverse skin-changed" Drogo (e.g., "strength of the mount go into the rider, strength of the beast go into the man."). The description provided is less consistent with a horse soul inhabiting a human body than it is with the complete or near-complete absence of a soul. It appears more likely in retrospect that Mirri sacrificed part of Drogo's soul to summon the shadows and likely as a means to kill Daenerys' unborn child.
There is a paucity of information on the reanimation of the dead in the series. The resurrection of Beric Dondarrion, for example, appears to be different in fundamental ways from that of the wights or Cold Hands. (We are potentially given a point-of-view account of this process if you accept that Victarion died in ADWD.)
Thoros is also described as appearing very different after performing this ritual several times in a way that is not entirely dissimilar to the changes in Stannis’ appearance referenced above.
Thoros attributes these changes to his renewed devotion to the Red God and spending "a year in the wild" as above although he is not exactly forthcoming with Arya about the resurrection process. It is also likely that he does not entirely understand what specifically is being exchanged here.
Later he describes Beric giving the "kiss of life" to the corpse of Catelyn Stark:
Notably, this process produces a reanimated Catelyn (a.k.a. Lady Stoneheart). The soul of Beric, or at least whatever is left of his soul at this point in the series, is consumed in order to resurrect Catelyn and not transferred.
This is again highly speculative but it seems reasonable to consider that these cold shadows are not "ice demons" or "ice zombies" but are in fact ghosts, the spirits or souls of men that are bound to the earth through magic by the Children of the Forest. (The textual evidence of the creation of the Others by the Children is linked in a separate post here.) "Fire consumes, but cold preserves."
This would explain several of the unusual characteristics of the Others described by Tormund:
A reasonable interpretation of this information is that the Others are present during the day, at least in some capacity, and are only able to assume corporeal form at night.
The Others are also described as "going lightly upon the snow" which would also supports the idea that they are ghosts:
EDIT: edited several times to address formatting issues
submitted by C3PH4L0SP0R1N to asoiaf [link] [comments]
"Only death can pay for life, my lord. A great gift requires a great sacrifice.”Davos, ASOS
This phrase or variations of this phrase are repeated by Melisandre, Mirri, etc. at various points throughout the series. That which follows is a highly speculative theory on the nature of the cost of magic in the series. Specifically, that souls are central to the exercise of magic and can be used as magic currency.
1. establishing the concept of the soul
Oh, to be sure, there is much we do not understand. The years pass in their hundreds and their thousands, and what does any man see of life but a few summers, a few winters? We look at mountains and call them eternal, and so they seem… but in the course of time, mountains rise and fall, rivers change their courses, stars fall from the sky, and great cities sink beneath the sea. Even gods die, we think. Everything changes.Bran, AGOT
What happens after we die? Is there some part of us that lives on or do we simply cease to exist. These are fundamental questions that are essentially unanswerable in life but not in ASOIAF. The reader is given a point-of-view account of death in the prologue of ADWD. After unsuccessfully attempting to steal the body of Thistle, a wildling spearwife, Varamyr dies and briefly becomes a disembodied consciousness:
The white world turned and fell away. For a moment it was as if he were inside the weirwood, gazing out through carved red eyes as a dying man twitched feebly on the ground and a madwoman danced blind and bloody underneath the moon, weeping red tears and ripping at her clothes. Then both were gone and he was rising, melting, his spirit borne on some cold wind. He was in the snow and in the clouds, he was a sparrow, a squirrel, an oak. A horned owl flew silently between his trees, hunting a hare; Varamyr was inside the owl, inside the hare, inside the trees. Deep below the frozen ground, earthworms burrowed blindly in the dark, and he was them as well. I am the wood, and everything that’s in it, he thought, exulting.Prologue, ADWD
Afterward his "spirit," or soul, is eventually transferred into a body of wolf and he begins his second life. This event, and the process of skin-changing more generally, appears to involve projection or transfer of a soul from one body into another. The process of projecting or transferring souls to either animal vessels or the weirwoods is central to the magic of the Children of the Forest.
“Someone else was in the raven,” he told Lord Brynden, once he had returned to his own skin. “Some girl. I felt her.”Bran, ADWD
“A woman, of those who sing the song of earth,” his teacher said. “Long dead, yet a part of her remains, just as a part of you would remain in Summer if your boy’s flesh were to die upon the morrow. A shadow on the soul. She will not harm you.”
"Do all the birds have singers in them?"
“All,” Lord Brynden said.
After death a "shadow on the soul" of the Singers remain in the crows. The soul of Orell is also described as living on in the body of his eagle after his death.
This process appears to take two forms: the soul can be temporarily projected from one body into another (e.g., as happens when Bran skin-changes into Hodor) or can be permanently transferred as is described in the separate examples above.
These transferred souls merge with their recipient, at least to some degree, and may decay over time:
"The wolf is part of you from that day on, and you’re part of him. Both of you will change.”Prologue, ADWD
Other beasts were best left alone, the hunter had declared. Cats were vain and cruel, always ready to turn on you. Elk and deer were prey; wear their skins too long, and even the bravest man became a coward. Bears, boars, badgers, weasels … Haggon did not hold with such. “Some skins you never want to wear, boy. You won’t like what you’d become.” Birds were the worst, to hear him tell it. “Men were not meant to leave the earth. Spend too much time in the clouds and you never want to come back down again.
...
"They say you forget," Haggon had told him, a few weeks before his own death.
"When the man's flesh dies, his spirit lives on inside the beast, but every day his memory fades, and the beast becomes a little less a warg, a little more a wolf, until nothing of the man is left and only the beast remains."
Bran is provided with similar warnings about the danger of spending too much time in Summer's skin by Jojen.
2. shadow magic requires souls
As above the reader is repeatedly reminded throughout the series that "only death can pay for life." What is specifically being sacrificed, though? Is the magic being fueled by the blood of the sacrificed or by something else?To answer this let us examine one of the most concrete example of magic in the series, the use or exchange of Stannis Baratheon's "life-fire" in order for Melisandre to manifest the shadows used to kill Renly Baratheon and Courtney Penrose.
Shadows only live when given birth by light, and the king's fires burn so low I dare not draw off any more to make another son. It might well kill him."Davos, ASOS
Melisandre moved closer.
"With another man, though... a man whose flames still burn hot and high... if you truly wish to serve your king's cause, come to my chamber one night. I could give you pleasure such as you have never known, and with your life-fire I could make..."
According to this explanation, the cost of producing these shadow appears to have been part of his "life-fire," or soul. The shadow is specifically described as having the shape Stannis supporting this. Whether this applies to other types of magic — specifically blood magic or fire magic — is less clear but shadow magic very much appears to require the use of souls.
This type of exchange is also directly referenced in the story of the Night's King provided by Old Nan:
A woman was his downfall; a woman glimpsed from atop the Wall, with skin as white as the moon and eyes like blue stars. Fearing nothing, he chased her and caught her and loved her, though her skin was cold as ice, and when he gave his seed to her he gave his soul as well. (Credit to u/DigLost5791 for this reference.)Bran, ASOS
Stannis is described by Davos afterward as follows:
The look of him was a shock. He seemed ten years older than the man that Davos had left at Storm’s End when he set sail for the Blackwater and the battle that would be their undoing. The king’s close-cropped beard was spiderwebbed with grey hairs, and he had dropped two stone or more of weight. He had never been a fleshy man, but now the bones moved beneath his skin like spears, fighting to cut free. Even his crown seemed too large for his head. His eyes were blue pits lost in deep hollows, and the shape of a skull could be seen beneath his face.Davos, ASOS
Asha later describes Stannis as appearing life a "man with one foot in the grave."
What little flesh he’d carried on his tall, spare frame at Deepwood Motte had melted away during the march. The shape of his skull could be seen under his skin, and his jaw was clenched so hard Asha feared his teeth might shatter.Asha, ADWD
These descriptions seem appropriate for a character that has lost part of their "life-fire" or soul.
Throughout the series Stannis is forced to make a series of increasingly difficult decisions. The most significant of these decisions regards the fate of his nephew, Eric Storm. Melisandre repeatedly urges him to "give [her] the boy," presumably to be burned, but is rebuffed by Stannis.
“I know the cost! Last night, gazing into that hearth, I saw things in the flames as well. I saw a king, a crown of fire on his brows, burning… burning, Davos. His own crown consumed his flesh and turned him into ash. Do you think I need Melisandre to tell me what that means? Or you?” The king moved, so his shadow fell upon King’s Landing.Davos, ASOS
"…what is the life of one bastard boy against a kingdom?”
“Everything,” said Davos, softly.
Is the life of this bastard boy worth the lives of millions that would die if the Others break through the Wall? Making a deal with the devil and literally selling his soul in pursuit of some greater good seems very appropriate for his character, thematically. The description of his flesh turning to ash in this vision is representative also supports this interpretation.
3. blood and fire magic
As opposed to the creation of the shadows described above, we are also provided an example of so-called blood magic in the leech burning ritual.“Give me the boy, Your Grace. It is the surer way. The better way. Give me the boy and I shall wake the stone dragon.”Davos, ASOS
...
Melisandre bowed her head stiffly, and said, “As my king commands.” Reaching up her left sleeve with her right hand, she flung a handful of powder into the brazier. The coals roared. As pale flames writhed atop them, the red woman retrieved the silver dish and brought it to the king. Davos watched her lift the lid. Beneath were three large black leeches, fat with blood. The boy’s blood, Davos knew. A king’s blood. Stannis stretched forth a hand, and his fingers closed around one of the leeches.
“Say the name,” Melisandre commanded.
Following this ritual all of the mentioned individuals do die but do so as the part of separate conspiracies (e.g., Robb Stark is betrayed by the Freys and Boltons, Joffrey Baratheon by Littlefinger and the Tyrells, etc.) which were already in place. It is left intentionally ambiguous by the author but it does not appear that the ritual meaningfully contributed to their deaths.
The creation of the shadows is said by Melisandre to have required part of Stannis' "life-fire" or soul. Could it be that the leech burning ritual was unsuccessful because blood alone is not sufficient as a sacrifice?
These forms of magic are frequently described in the community as "shadow magic" and "blood magic." These concepts — "fire and blood" and "flame and shadow" — are highly associated with one another in the text:
“Shadow?" Davos felt his flesh prickling. "A shadow is a thing of darkness."Davos, ACOK
”You are more ignorant than a child, ser knight. There are no shadows in the dark. Shadows are the servants of light, the children of fire. The brightest flame casts the darkest shadows."
I speculate that these are different expressions of the same concept; that all of these fall under the general umbrella of fire magic and share common principles. "Fire consumes and in the end there's nothing left."
4. dancing shadows
The tent was aglow with the light of braziers within. Through the blood-spattered sandsilk, she glimpsed shadows moving.Daenerys, AGOT
Mirri Maz Duur was dancing, and not alone.
...
No, Dany wanted to say, no, not that, you mustn’t, but when she opened her mouth, a long wail of pain escaped, and the sweat broke over her skin. What was wrong with them, couldn’t they see?
Inside the tent the shapes were dancing, circling the brazier and the bloody bath, dark against the sandsilk, and some did not look human. She glimpsed the shadow of a great wolf, and another like a man wreathed in flames.
“The Lamb Woman knows the secrets of the birthing bed,” Irri said. “She said so, I heard her.”
“Yes,” Doreah agreed, “I heard her too.”
No, she shouted, or perhaps she only thought it, for no whisper of sound escaped her lips. She was being carried. Her eyes opened to gaze up at a flat dead sky, black and bleak and starless. Please, no. The sound of Mirri Maz Duur’s voice grew louder, until it filled the world. The shapes! She screamed. The dancers!
Ser Jorah carried her inside the tent.
The introduction of shadow magic in the series is provided above with Mirri Max Duur. Following this ritual Drogo is described as a lifeless husk:
"He seems to like the warmth, Princess," Ser Jorah said. "His eyes follow the sun, though he does not see it. He can walk after a fashion. He will go where you lead him, but no farther. He will eat if you put food in his mouth, drink if you dribble water on his lips."Daenerys, AGOT
It has previously been speculated that Mirri "reverse skin-changed" Drogo (e.g., "strength of the mount go into the rider, strength of the beast go into the man."). The description provided is less consistent with a horse soul inhabiting a human body than it is with the complete or near-complete absence of a soul. It appears more likely in retrospect that Mirri sacrificed part of Drogo's soul to summon the shadows and likely as a means to kill Daenerys' unborn child.
“The stallion who mounts the world will burn no cities now. His khalasar shall trample no nations into dust."Daenerys, AGOT
5. reanimation
If "only death can pay for life" and souls are used as a form of magical currency how does one explain the reanimation or resurrection process?There is a paucity of information on the reanimation of the dead in the series. The resurrection of Beric Dondarrion, for example, appears to be different in fundamental ways from that of the wights or Cold Hands. (We are potentially given a point-of-view account of this process if you accept that Victarion died in ADWD.)
“Thoros, how many times have you brought me back now?”There is no immediately identifiable magical cost for these "kisses of life," at least at first glance. Thoros later tells us that he breathed part of his "flames" or soul into Beric:
The red priest bowed his head. “It is R’hllor who brings you back, my lord. The Lord of Light. I am only his instrument.”
“How many times?” Lord Beric insisted.
“Six,” Thoros said reluctantly.
“And each time is harder. You have grown reckless, my lord. Is death so very sweet?”
Arya, ASOS
“That first time, his lordship had a hole right through him and blood in his mouth, I knew there was no hope. So when his poor torn chest stopped moving, I gave him the good god's own kiss to send him on his way. I filled my mouth with fire and breathed the flames inside him, down his throat to lungs and heart and soul. The last kiss it is called, and many a time I saw the old priests bestow it on the Lord's servants as they died." (Credit to u/watchersontheweb for providing this quote in the initial thread.)Arya, ASOS
Thoros is also described as appearing very different after performing this ritual several times in a way that is not entirely dissimilar to the changes in Stannis’ appearance referenced above.
“Here’s the wizard, skinny squirrel. You’ll get your answers now.”Arya, ASOS
He pointed toward the fire, where Tom Sevenstrings stood talking to a tall thin man with oddments of old armor buckled on over his ratty pink robes. That can’t be Thoros of Myr. Arya remembered the red priest as fat, with a smooth face and a shiny bald head. This man had a droopy face and a full head of shaggy grey hair.
...
“Thoros of Myr. You used to shave your head.”
“To betoken a humble heart, but in truth my heart was vain. Besides, I lost my razor in the woods.” The priest slapped his belly. “I am less than I was, but more. A year in the wild will melt the flesh off a man. Would that I could find a tailor to take in my skin. I might look young again, and pretty maids would shower me with kisses.”
Thoros attributes these changes to his renewed devotion to the Red God and spending "a year in the wild" as above although he is not exactly forthcoming with Arya about the resurrection process. It is also likely that he does not entirely understand what specifically is being exchanged here.
Later he describes Beric giving the "kiss of life" to the corpse of Catelyn Stark:
“The Freys slashed her throat from ear to ear. When we found her by the river she was three days dead. Harwin begged me to give her the kiss of life, but it had been too long. I would not do it, so Lord Beric put his lips to hers instead, and the flame of life passed from him to her. And… she rose. May the Lord of Light protect us. She rose.”Brienne, AFFC
Notably, this process produces a reanimated Catelyn (a.k.a. Lady Stoneheart). The soul of Beric, or at least whatever is left of his soul at this point in the series, is consumed in order to resurrect Catelyn and not transferred.
6. cold shadows (wild speculation)
The terms "white shadows," "pale shadows," and "cold shadows" are repeated used to describe the Others. The Others are also highly associated with ghosts — the spirits or souls of the dead bound to the earth. (The forrest in which they are introduced is literally called the Haunted Forrest.)The Others made no sound.Prologue, AGOT
Will saw movement from the corner of his eye. Pale shapes gliding through the wood. He turned his head, glimpsed a white shadow in the darkness. Then it was gone. Branches stirred gently in the wind, scratching at one another with wooden fingers. Will opened his mouth to call down a warning, and the words seemed to freeze in his throat. Perhaps he was wrong. Perhaps it had only been a bird, a reflection on the snow, some trick of the moonlight. What had he seen, after all?
“Will, where are you?” Ser Waymar called up. “Can you see anything?” He was turning in a slow circle, suddenly wary, his sword in hand. He must have felt them, as Will felt them. There was nothing to see. “Answer me! Why is it so cold?” It was cold.
Shivering, Will clung more tightly to his perch. His face pressed hard against the trunk of the sentinel. He could feel the sweet, sticky sap on his cheek. A shadow emerged from the dark of the wood. It stood in front of Royce. Tall, it was, and gaunt and hard as old bones, with flesh pale as milk. Its armor seemed to change color as it moved; here it was white as new-fallen snow, there black as shadow, everywhere dappled with the deep grey-green of the trees. The patterns ran like moonlight on water with every step it took. Will heard the breath go out of Ser Waymar Royce in a long hiss. ...
The Other slid forward on silent feet. In its hand was a longsword like none that Will had ever seen. No human metal had gone into the forging of that blade. It was alive with moonlight, translucent, a shard of crystal so thin that it seemed almost to vanish when seen edge-on. There was a faint blue shimmer to the thing, a ghost-light that played around its edges, and somehow Will knew it was sharper than any razor.
This is again highly speculative but it seems reasonable to consider that these cold shadows are not "ice demons" or "ice zombies" but are in fact ghosts, the spirits or souls of men that are bound to the earth through magic by the Children of the Forest. (The textual evidence of the creation of the Others by the Children is linked in a separate post here.) "Fire consumes, but cold preserves."
This would explain several of the unusual characteristics of the Others described by Tormund:
“Tormund,” Jon said, as they watched four old women pull a cartful of children toward the gate, “tell me of our foe. I would know all there is to know of the Others.”Jon, ADWD
The wildling rubbed his mouth. “Not here,” he mumbled, “not this side o’ your Wall.” The old man glanced uneasily toward the trees in their white mantles. “They’re never far, you know. They won’t come out by day, not when that old sun’s shining, but don’t think that means they went away. Shadows never go away. Might be you don’t see them, but they’re always clinging to your heels.”
...
Tormund turned back.
"You know nothing. You killed a dead man, aye, I heard. Mance killed a hundred. A man can fight the dead, but when their masters come, when the white mists rise up… how do you fight a mist, crow? Shadows with teeth … air so cold it hurts to breathe, like a knife inside your chest … you do not know, you cannot know … can your sword cut cold?"
A reasonable interpretation of this information is that the Others are present during the day, at least in some capacity, and are only able to assume corporeal form at night.
The Others are also described as "going lightly upon the snow" which would also supports the idea that they are ghosts:
“The white walkers go lightly on the snow,” the ranger said. “You’ll find no prints to mark their passage.”Samwell, ASOS
7. conclusions
This highly speculative theory attempts to reconcile several seemingly disparate concepts in the series related to magic, namely the actual nature of magical sacrifice ("only death can pay for life") and shadows or shadow magic. More specifically, I suggest that souls are the primary magical currency and can be consumed using fire magic to summon shadows, create glamours, etc. I also speculate that similar processes took place during Mirri Maz Duur's shadow-binding ritual in AGOT and during the repeated resurrections of Berric Dondarrion in ASOS. I further suggest that the Others are ghosts, the spirits or souls of the dead bound to the earth.EDIT: edited several times to address formatting issues
2024.05.13 19:06 DTG_Bot [D2] Daily Reset Thread [2024-05-13]
Daily Modifiers
Vanguard Ops
- Heavyweight: Power weapons deal more damage, and more ammo is available.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Void Threat: 25% increase to incoming Void damage.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
Dares of Eternity
- Daodan Surge: Melee abilities deal more damage and recharge much faster.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Onslaught: Playlist
- Onslaught Rules: Defend and repair the ADU against waves of combatants. There are 10 waves to a set. ADU: If the ADU is destroyed, the activity ends. Scraps: An in-activity currency. They are earned by scoring and used to purchase and upgrade defenses at the start of every set and after waves 3 and 6. Rewards: Paid out after every set upon defeating the boss wave. Subsequent sets pay out better rewards. Legend increases rewards. Bonus Objectives: Rewards resources, vendor reputation, and armaments.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
- Void Threat: 25% increase to incoming Void damage.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Riven's Lair
- Mettle: Power Level: All combatants in this activity will be at least 5 points over the player's current Power level.
- Void Threat: 25% increase to incoming Void damage.
- Blackout: Enemy melee attacks are significantly more powerful, and radar is disabled.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Solar Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Solar damage.
The Coil
- The Coil Rules: Successfully complete four pathways inside Riven's Lair. Escalating Difficulty: Player's Power levels are fixed. Starting at 0 each subsequent pathway increases all combatants' Power level over the player's by 5. Wishing Glass: Wishing Glass is an in-activity currency. They drop from combatants, Glass Collectors, and pots. Wishing Glass comes in multiple rarities equating to their worth. Wishing Glass is used to purchase Dragon's Gifts from Riven. Dragon's Gifts: A set of buffs are randomly chosen, once per run. Between pathways, players can purchase buffs from Riven via Wishing Glass. Buffs are separated into three price point tiers. Rewards: After each pathway, players will return to Riven for their rewards. Subsequent pathways pay out better rewards. Breaking through score thresholds unlock secret chests. Finishing The Coil with a platinum score rewards players with access to the lustrous and lucrative Chamber of Wishes.
- Multiplicity: Combatant difficulty scales with fireteam size.
- Limited Revives: Limited fireteam revives. Purchase additional revives from Riven with Wishing Glass. Small chance to drop from destroying pots.
- Full Extinguish: If all your fireteam members fall with 0 Revive Tokens, everyone is returned to orbit.
- Famine: All ammunition drops are significantly reduced.
- Galvanized: Combatants have more health and are more difficult to stun.
- The Pathways: Riven's wish magic stirs. The following are the pathways and their order in The Coil: -Divining Hall -First Steps (Temple of the Queen's Wrath) -Sensorium (Reaver's Orison) -First Steps (Cell of the Sycophant)
- Arc Threat: 25% increase to incoming Arc damage.
- Denial: Taken Vandals summon their shields significantly more often.
- Overcharged Trace Rifle: 25% bonus to Trace Rifle damage.
- Overcharged Rocket Launcher: 25% bonus to Rocket Launcher damage.
Seasonal
Legend/Master Lost Sector
Exotic armor drop (if solo): ArmsChamber of Starlight: Legend
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Solar] Solar
- Shields: [Solar] Solar, [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Epitaph
Chamber of Starlight: Master
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Solar] Solar
- Shields: [Solar] Solar, [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Epitaph
Misc
- Terminal Overload: Límíng Harbor Weapon: Synchronic Roulette (Submachine Gun)
- The Wellspring: Defend Weapon: Father's Sins (Sniper Rifle)
- Altars of Sorrow Weapon: Heretic (Rocket Launcher)
Guns & Materials
Banshee's Featured Weapons
| Name | Type | Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 | Masterwork |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whispering Slab | Kinetic Combat Bow | Tactile String // Natural String | Helical Fletching // Straight Fletching | Quickdraw | Unrelenting | Tier 2: Draw Time |
| Iota Draconis | Energy Fusion Rifle | Fluted Barrel // Hammer-Forged Rifling | Ionized Battery // Projection Fuse | Ensemble | Adagio | Tier 2: Range |
| Vulpecula | Kinetic Hand Cannon | Full Bore // Polygonal Rifling | Extended Mag // Alloy Magazine | Ensemble | Explosive Payload | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
| Piece of Mind | Kinetic Pulse Rifle | Extended Barrel // Fluted Barrel | Ricochet Rounds // Light Mag | Auto-Loading Holster | Vorpal Weapon | Tier 2: Range |
| Bump in the Night | Heavy Rocket Launcher | Volatile Launch // Hard Launch | Alloy Casing // Black Powder | Stats for All | Chain Reaction |
Master Rahool's Material Exchange
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Legendary Shards)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Dark Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Phantasmal Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 25 Herealways Piece)
- Enhancement Prism (1 for 10 Enhancement Core & 10000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Shard (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Alloy (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
Bounties
Commander Zavala, Vanguard| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horseshoes and Hand Grenades | Defeat combatants with grenades. Defeating them in Vanguard playlists grants additional progress. | 20 [Grenade] Grenade | XP+ |
| Fast and True | Defeat combatants with Primary ammo. Bow final blows in Vanguard playlists grant additional progress. | 75 [Bow] Bow | XP+ |
| Finish Them | Defeat combatants with your finisher in Vanguard playlists. | 5 Finisher | XP+ |
| Most Meticulous | Complete Vanguard playlists. | 2 Vanguard Ops | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparring Grounds | Complete matches in any Crucible playlist. | 2 Crucible matches | XP+ |
| Scorched Earth | Defeat opponents with Solar scorch damage. | 6 [Solar] Solar scorch | XP+ |
| On the Mark | Defeat opponents with precision final blows. | 3 [Headshot] Precision | XP+ |
| Scorcher | In Scorched, defeat opponents using the Scorch Cannon. | 7 Scorch Cannon | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blockade | Send Blockers; medium and large Blockers contribute more progress. | 30 Blockers | XP+ |
| Envoy While It Lasts | Defeat Primeval envoys during Gambit matches. | 2 Envoys | XP+ |
| Sweltering Heat | Use Solar scorch to defeat targets in Gambit. Defeating Guardians grants more progress. | 30 [Solar] Solar scorch | XP+ |
| Like Kindling | Use Solar ignition to defeat targets in Gambit. Defeating Guardians grants more progress. | 10 [Solar] Solar ignition | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Rifle Calibration | Calibrate Auto Rifles against any target. Earn bonus progress with precision final blows and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Auto Rifle] Auto Rifle | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Hand Cannon Calibration | Calibrate Hand Cannons against any target. Earn bonus progress with precision and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Hand Cannon] Hand Cannon | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Rocket Launcher Calibration | Calibrate Rocket Launchers against any target. Earn bonus progress against opposing Guardians and for additional targets defeated with each shot. | 100 [Rocket Launcher] Rocket Launcher | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Stasis Calibration | Calibrate Stasis weapons against any target. Earn bonus progress against opposing Guardians. | 80 [Stasis] Stasis weapon | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Old Standby | In Neomuna, defeat combatants. Vex combatants grant additional progress. | 90 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Cryogenic Hardening | In Neomuna, defeat combatants affected by Stasis. Vex combatants grant additional progress. | 60 [Stasis] Stasis | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Distant Doom | In a single life, defeat combatants in Neomuna using Sniper Rifles, Linear Fusion Rifles, Scout Rifles, or Rocket Launchers. | 20 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Terminal Rewards | Open chests after completing Terminal Overload. | 3 Chests opened | 1 Terminal Overload Key & 50 Neomuna Rank & XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onslaught Defender | Deploy and upgrade defenses in Onslaught. | 30 Defenses completed | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Spire Looter | Open a Witch's Chest in Savathûn's Spire using a Witch's Key. | 1 Chests opened | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Close Quarters | Defeat targets with melee abilities. Combatants in Onslaught and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Melee] Melee | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Big Shocker | Defeat targets with Arc weapons and abilities. | 100 [Arc] Arc | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Will of the People | Complete public events in the Dreaming City. Heroic completions are worth more. | 6 Public events | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Rapid Lair Defense | Rapidly defeat combatants. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil are worth more. | 60 Rapidly defeated | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragon's Fang | Defeat targets with Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, or Trace Rifles. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 30 [Auto Rifle], [Pulse Rifle], or [Trace Rifle] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragonthread | Defeat targets with Solar or Strand damage. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Solar] or [Strand] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
2024.05.13 19:06 DTG_Bot [D2] Daily Reset Thread [2024-05-13]
Daily Modifiers
Vanguard Ops
- Heavyweight: Power weapons deal more damage, and more ammo is available.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Void Threat: 25% increase to incoming Void damage.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
Dares of Eternity
- Daodan Surge: Melee abilities deal more damage and recharge much faster.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Onslaught: Playlist
- Onslaught Rules: Defend and repair the ADU against waves of combatants. There are 10 waves to a set. ADU: If the ADU is destroyed, the activity ends. Scraps: An in-activity currency. They are earned by scoring and used to purchase and upgrade defenses at the start of every set and after waves 3 and 6. Rewards: Paid out after every set upon defeating the boss wave. Subsequent sets pay out better rewards. Legend increases rewards. Bonus Objectives: Rewards resources, vendor reputation, and armaments.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
- Void Threat: 25% increase to incoming Void damage.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Riven's Lair
- Mettle: Power Level: All combatants in this activity will be at least 5 points over the player's current Power level.
- Void Threat: 25% increase to incoming Void damage.
- Blackout: Enemy melee attacks are significantly more powerful, and radar is disabled.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Solar Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Solar damage.
The Coil
- The Coil Rules: Successfully complete four pathways inside Riven's Lair. Escalating Difficulty: Player's Power levels are fixed. Starting at 0 each subsequent pathway increases all combatants' Power level over the player's by 5. Wishing Glass: Wishing Glass is an in-activity currency. They drop from combatants, Glass Collectors, and pots. Wishing Glass comes in multiple rarities equating to their worth. Wishing Glass is used to purchase Dragon's Gifts from Riven. Dragon's Gifts: A set of buffs are randomly chosen, once per run. Between pathways, players can purchase buffs from Riven via Wishing Glass. Buffs are separated into three price point tiers. Rewards: After each pathway, players will return to Riven for their rewards. Subsequent pathways pay out better rewards. Breaking through score thresholds unlock secret chests. Finishing The Coil with a platinum score rewards players with access to the lustrous and lucrative Chamber of Wishes.
- Multiplicity: Combatant difficulty scales with fireteam size.
- Limited Revives: Limited fireteam revives. Purchase additional revives from Riven with Wishing Glass. Small chance to drop from destroying pots.
- Full Extinguish: If all your fireteam members fall with 0 Revive Tokens, everyone is returned to orbit.
- Famine: All ammunition drops are significantly reduced.
- Galvanized: Combatants have more health and are more difficult to stun.
- The Pathways: Riven's wish magic stirs. The following are the pathways and their order in The Coil: -Divining Hall -First Steps (Temple of the Queen's Wrath) -Sensorium (Reaver's Orison) -First Steps (Cell of the Sycophant)
- Arc Threat: 25% increase to incoming Arc damage.
- Denial: Taken Vandals summon their shields significantly more often.
- Overcharged Trace Rifle: 25% bonus to Trace Rifle damage.
- Overcharged Rocket Launcher: 25% bonus to Rocket Launcher damage.
Seasonal
Legend/Master Lost Sector
Exotic armor drop (if solo): ArmsChamber of Starlight: Legend
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Solar] Solar
- Shields: [Solar] Solar, [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Epitaph
Chamber of Starlight: Master
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Solar] Solar
- Shields: [Solar] Solar, [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Epitaph
Misc
- Terminal Overload: Límíng Harbor Weapon: Synchronic Roulette (Submachine Gun)
- The Wellspring: Defend Weapon: Father's Sins (Sniper Rifle)
- Altars of Sorrow Weapon: Heretic (Rocket Launcher)
Guns & Materials
Banshee's Featured Weapons
| Name | Type | Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 | Masterwork |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whispering Slab | Kinetic Combat Bow | Tactile String // Natural String | Helical Fletching // Straight Fletching | Quickdraw | Unrelenting | Tier 2: Draw Time |
| Iota Draconis | Energy Fusion Rifle | Fluted Barrel // Hammer-Forged Rifling | Ionized Battery // Projection Fuse | Ensemble | Adagio | Tier 2: Range |
| Vulpecula | Kinetic Hand Cannon | Full Bore // Polygonal Rifling | Extended Mag // Alloy Magazine | Ensemble | Explosive Payload | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
| Piece of Mind | Kinetic Pulse Rifle | Extended Barrel // Fluted Barrel | Ricochet Rounds // Light Mag | Auto-Loading Holster | Vorpal Weapon | Tier 2: Range |
| Bump in the Night | Heavy Rocket Launcher | Volatile Launch // Hard Launch | Alloy Casing // Black Powder | Stats for All | Chain Reaction |
Master Rahool's Material Exchange
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Legendary Shards)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Dark Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Phantasmal Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 25 Herealways Piece)
- Enhancement Prism (1 for 10 Enhancement Core & 10000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Shard (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Alloy (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
Bounties
Commander Zavala, Vanguard| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horseshoes and Hand Grenades | Defeat combatants with grenades. Defeating them in Vanguard playlists grants additional progress. | 20 [Grenade] Grenade | XP+ |
| Fast and True | Defeat combatants with Primary ammo. Bow final blows in Vanguard playlists grant additional progress. | 75 [Bow] Bow | XP+ |
| Finish Them | Defeat combatants with your finisher in Vanguard playlists. | 5 Finisher | XP+ |
| Most Meticulous | Complete Vanguard playlists. | 2 Vanguard Ops | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparring Grounds | Complete matches in any Crucible playlist. | 2 Crucible matches | XP+ |
| Scorched Earth | Defeat opponents with Solar scorch damage. | 6 [Solar] Solar scorch | XP+ |
| On the Mark | Defeat opponents with precision final blows. | 3 [Headshot] Precision | XP+ |
| Scorcher | In Scorched, defeat opponents using the Scorch Cannon. | 7 Scorch Cannon | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blockade | Send Blockers; medium and large Blockers contribute more progress. | 30 Blockers | XP+ |
| Envoy While It Lasts | Defeat Primeval envoys during Gambit matches. | 2 Envoys | XP+ |
| Sweltering Heat | Use Solar scorch to defeat targets in Gambit. Defeating Guardians grants more progress. | 30 [Solar] Solar scorch | XP+ |
| Like Kindling | Use Solar ignition to defeat targets in Gambit. Defeating Guardians grants more progress. | 10 [Solar] Solar ignition | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Rifle Calibration | Calibrate Auto Rifles against any target. Earn bonus progress with precision final blows and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Auto Rifle] Auto Rifle | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Hand Cannon Calibration | Calibrate Hand Cannons against any target. Earn bonus progress with precision and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Hand Cannon] Hand Cannon | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Rocket Launcher Calibration | Calibrate Rocket Launchers against any target. Earn bonus progress against opposing Guardians and for additional targets defeated with each shot. | 100 [Rocket Launcher] Rocket Launcher | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Stasis Calibration | Calibrate Stasis weapons against any target. Earn bonus progress against opposing Guardians. | 80 [Stasis] Stasis weapon | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Old Standby | In Neomuna, defeat combatants. Vex combatants grant additional progress. | 90 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Cryogenic Hardening | In Neomuna, defeat combatants affected by Stasis. Vex combatants grant additional progress. | 60 [Stasis] Stasis | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Distant Doom | In a single life, defeat combatants in Neomuna using Sniper Rifles, Linear Fusion Rifles, Scout Rifles, or Rocket Launchers. | 20 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Terminal Rewards | Open chests after completing Terminal Overload. | 3 Chests opened | 1 Terminal Overload Key & 50 Neomuna Rank & XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onslaught Defender | Deploy and upgrade defenses in Onslaught. | 30 Defenses completed | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Spire Looter | Open a Witch's Chest in Savathûn's Spire using a Witch's Key. | 1 Chests opened | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Close Quarters | Defeat targets with melee abilities. Combatants in Onslaught and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Melee] Melee | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Big Shocker | Defeat targets with Arc weapons and abilities. | 100 [Arc] Arc | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Will of the People | Complete public events in the Dreaming City. Heroic completions are worth more. | 6 Public events | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Rapid Lair Defense | Rapidly defeat combatants. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil are worth more. | 60 Rapidly defeated | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragon's Fang | Defeat targets with Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, or Trace Rifles. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 30 [Auto Rifle], [Pulse Rifle], or [Trace Rifle] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragonthread | Defeat targets with Solar or Strand damage. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Solar] or [Strand] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
2024.05.13 14:29 FleshCosmicWater Choose 1 Pill or I will revive your uncle to diddly-kiddly doodle you, curse you to always stub your toes 69 times a day, tell everyone that you unironically watch Brainrot Skibidi Video and leak your entire porn history to your parents.
 | submitted by FleshCosmicWater to makeyourchoice [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 13:27 ImpossibleEvan Pick a pill: ultimate edition
 | submitted by ImpossibleEvan to YuB [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 13:26 ImpossibleEvan Pick a pill: ultimate edition
 | submitted by ImpossibleEvan to FreshBeans [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 13:19 ImpossibleEvan Clammy pills: ultimate edition
 | submitted by ImpossibleEvan to Clamworks [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 13:18 ImpossibleEvan Pick a pill: ultimate edition
 | submitted by ImpossibleEvan to doodoofard [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 13:17 ImpossibleEvan Pill chart I made: ultimate edition
 | submitted by ImpossibleEvan to repost [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 03:08 EthanWTyrion528 You can only choose two pills
 | submitted by EthanWTyrion528 to TeenagersButBetter [link] [comments] |
2024.05.13 00:25 -PepeArown- The 5 Dimensional Elemental Plan
So, this idea is a bit of a broad one, but I think it would be a great idea for Mojang to consider when laying out the game's next major updates. I already think Mojang have set up a great foundation with adding a wind variant of the blaze: the breeze, for the Overworld, and how they could build on that for all 5 dimensions. That is, create an elemental mob for all 5 dimensions
And yes, I said 5 dimensions. I know the game only has 3 right now, but this idea will revolve around 2 new ones being added: the Dump and the Abyss, which I'll get more into.
Dimension 1: The Overworld
This'd remain unchanged in the context of this suggestion. We'll have trial chambers and breezes by June, probably, so they'd just need to be integrated into other features.
Now, the trial chambers come with trial spawners and vaults, which I think shouldn't be limited to one structure. Instead, each dimension should have one delegated "trial structure", including a unique pool of trial spawner mobs, and unique vault loot.
Dimension 2: The Nether
Of course, the blaze would be the signature elemental mob here. As for the dimension's "trial structure", why not rework the Nether fortresses, which are in desperate need of an upgrade? It makes sense, considering blazes already spawn here, and it'd make them more consistent with breezes.
Your reward for going to the fortresses would still be blaze rods, Nether wart, and Wither skeleton skulls, but perhaps more unique loot could be added, like a second fortress trim, or a fire banner pattern to match the blaze.
I also think renaming these fortresses "trial fortresses" would make sense. It'd strengthen the implied lore that these fortresses and the chambers were built to test the skills of experienced builders (the ones who built the game's generated structures before the player entered into the world), and sounds a little less generic than just "Nether fortress".
Dimension 3: The End
I have tons of ideas for an End update, but, for the elemental plan, I wanted to share my idea for the bulk: an Earth elemental mob.
Bulks would be rocky in appearance, perhaps made out of obsidian to fit the End's bleak atmosphere. They'd have twice the health of blazes and breezes, and would attack by sending a harmful shockwave your way every time they teleport (since teleportation's already a big thing with End mobs). Perhaps using a pickaxe against them would be more effective than a sword.
These strong elementals would be summoned in during trials in what I'll just dub "trial chateaus", a trial structure in the End I imagine being made primarily out of obisidan blocks (including new ones like bricks, chiseled, polished, etc.) that you'd find at the summit of cliffs in a new biome.
While I'm not sure I can outline every use for these elemental mobs, a major use of bulks would be using the powder from their rods, combined with an echo shard and an Ender pearl (which you'd need to polish into being purple with the help of a trell, a new shulker-like mob that can be found in another new End biome I'll elaborate a bit on in a minute to create an orb of the abyss.
Dimension 4: The Abyss
To get to this dimension, you'd need orbs of the Abyss, and a heavy core to activate the reinfroced deepslate frame of the large warden statue in anicent cities to make a portal.
The Abyss would act as the game's deep sea dimension, because I feel like the Overworld, even with its height increase, couldn't do a proper Minecraft deep sea justice. This dimension would be quite a bit tougher from the main 3, as it'd be entirely submerged in a new liquid: deep water. It acts a bit differently from regular water: such as that:
-It kills mobs that normally survive in regular water, such as fish or sea turtles. Guardians, drowns, and axolotls, however, are intentionally unaffected.
-It's quite a bit darker, and will obscure your vision and FOV quite a bit.
-You'll drown in it even faster without water breathing or conduit power.
-You can swim in it a quaryer faster than regular water to balance out the fact that it covers the whole of the Abyss.
-Sculk sensors will make a sound when submerged in it, but will not detect vibrations from you swimming: only you touching ground nearby. (Or, causing vibrations from things like throwing a trident.)
A unique gimmick with the Abyss is that half the biomes are normal, and half of them are infested with sculk. So, all "normal" biomes have a sculk variant where mobs won't spawn, but you still have to be careful not to set off shriekers, or the scolm, an echolating salamander mob, will appear from the ground, and use its skills to kill you if you make too many missteps. Esentially, a warden, but it can swim, and, well, it looks like an elongated axolotl.
As for how elementals play into this, the trial structure for this dimension would be home to the brine: a water elemental that attacks you by shooting bubbles. If you get hit by these bubbles, you'll become trapped in them, and will be unable to move until they pop. Yes, you'd also be able to create bubble charges so that you can trap mobs in bubbles.
Brines can put out fires, but they'd dehydrate and die after being out of deep water for 2 minutes or so. They'll die immediately if you somehow bring them to the Nether.
Dimension 5: The Dump
Esentially, a realm between the End and Overworld. And, as its name implies, all it's used for is a dumping ground for Endermen to place down all the blocks they collect.
You'd get here from a portal in The End: perhap the same shape and size as the stronghold portal. I'd imagine you'd need some eye of Ender equivalent that uses wind charges and flowers, to simulate that you're going into what would be considered a rather unkempt and unruly dimension which you're "fighting" off with good smells and breezes.
Not much would be going on in this dimension besides an unruly mess of blocks. Endermen would spawn here patrolling the dimension under its weird sky box that would look like TV static, but it'd also be infested with Endermites who love nesting off the Endermen's disorganization.
This is meant to be a "between dimension", so not as adventurous or fleshed out as the other 4. However, there is one unigue generated structure that'll spawn here: compactors, whch will come with at least one spawner that will spawn the buzz: the 5th and last elemental.
Buzzes would act like redstone/electricity elementals. Red in color, buzzes would be weaker than blazes and breezes in health, but have a strong electrical beam attack that takes a moment to charge. Kind of like the warden's sonic boom, but weaker and more fair.
And, no, no trial structures would generate here, as this is meant to be a more incomplete, dilapidated "between realm" ravaged by the Endermen's carelessness on purpose.
Applications for Brewing
Blazes are used to craft brewing stands, and their powder is needed to fuel them. Breeze rods can be used to brew wind charge potions already, but I think all 5 elementals could be incorporated into brewing.
I don't have the whole brewing system rework envisioned, but one thing I'd love to see is to have different powders or charges brew different types of potions.
Blaze powder is already used to brew water potions.
With the End update, I think a new liquid called hydrender (could maybe use a better name): a purple liquid that resembles water, but is perhaps more acidic, should be added. You could use this for new potions, but you'd need to fuel a brewing stand with wind charges instead of blaze powder. Hydrender would spawn in only one End biome, which is also where the trells that polish Ender pearls I mentioned earlier would be found.
Deep water could be used to brew new potions, too, but you'd need bulk powder instead. I feel like the bulk's shockwave ability fits in pretty well with the Abyss' sculk motif, so I think this pairing makes sense.
TLDR
The Overworld: Breezes (Wind Elementals)
The Nether: Blazes (Fire Elementals)
The End: Bulks (Earth/Rock Elementals)
The Abyss (Deep Sea and Sculk Dimension): Brines (Water Elementals)
The Dump (Enderman Block Dropoff dimension between the Overworld and End): Buzzes (Redstone Elementals)
I have more ideas for my elemental plan, including a new boss, but I think that's best reserved for other posts.
submitted by -PepeArown- to minecraftsuggestions [link] [comments]
And yes, I said 5 dimensions. I know the game only has 3 right now, but this idea will revolve around 2 new ones being added: the Dump and the Abyss, which I'll get more into.
Dimension 1: The Overworld
This'd remain unchanged in the context of this suggestion. We'll have trial chambers and breezes by June, probably, so they'd just need to be integrated into other features.
Now, the trial chambers come with trial spawners and vaults, which I think shouldn't be limited to one structure. Instead, each dimension should have one delegated "trial structure", including a unique pool of trial spawner mobs, and unique vault loot.
Dimension 2: The Nether
Of course, the blaze would be the signature elemental mob here. As for the dimension's "trial structure", why not rework the Nether fortresses, which are in desperate need of an upgrade? It makes sense, considering blazes already spawn here, and it'd make them more consistent with breezes.
Your reward for going to the fortresses would still be blaze rods, Nether wart, and Wither skeleton skulls, but perhaps more unique loot could be added, like a second fortress trim, or a fire banner pattern to match the blaze.
I also think renaming these fortresses "trial fortresses" would make sense. It'd strengthen the implied lore that these fortresses and the chambers were built to test the skills of experienced builders (the ones who built the game's generated structures before the player entered into the world), and sounds a little less generic than just "Nether fortress".
Dimension 3: The End
I have tons of ideas for an End update, but, for the elemental plan, I wanted to share my idea for the bulk: an Earth elemental mob.
Bulks would be rocky in appearance, perhaps made out of obsidian to fit the End's bleak atmosphere. They'd have twice the health of blazes and breezes, and would attack by sending a harmful shockwave your way every time they teleport (since teleportation's already a big thing with End mobs). Perhaps using a pickaxe against them would be more effective than a sword.
These strong elementals would be summoned in during trials in what I'll just dub "trial chateaus", a trial structure in the End I imagine being made primarily out of obisidan blocks (including new ones like bricks, chiseled, polished, etc.) that you'd find at the summit of cliffs in a new biome.
While I'm not sure I can outline every use for these elemental mobs, a major use of bulks would be using the powder from their rods, combined with an echo shard and an Ender pearl (which you'd need to polish into being purple with the help of a trell, a new shulker-like mob that can be found in another new End biome I'll elaborate a bit on in a minute to create an orb of the abyss.
Dimension 4: The Abyss
To get to this dimension, you'd need orbs of the Abyss, and a heavy core to activate the reinfroced deepslate frame of the large warden statue in anicent cities to make a portal.
The Abyss would act as the game's deep sea dimension, because I feel like the Overworld, even with its height increase, couldn't do a proper Minecraft deep sea justice. This dimension would be quite a bit tougher from the main 3, as it'd be entirely submerged in a new liquid: deep water. It acts a bit differently from regular water: such as that:
-It kills mobs that normally survive in regular water, such as fish or sea turtles. Guardians, drowns, and axolotls, however, are intentionally unaffected.
-It's quite a bit darker, and will obscure your vision and FOV quite a bit.
-You'll drown in it even faster without water breathing or conduit power.
-You can swim in it a quaryer faster than regular water to balance out the fact that it covers the whole of the Abyss.
-Sculk sensors will make a sound when submerged in it, but will not detect vibrations from you swimming: only you touching ground nearby. (Or, causing vibrations from things like throwing a trident.)
A unique gimmick with the Abyss is that half the biomes are normal, and half of them are infested with sculk. So, all "normal" biomes have a sculk variant where mobs won't spawn, but you still have to be careful not to set off shriekers, or the scolm, an echolating salamander mob, will appear from the ground, and use its skills to kill you if you make too many missteps. Esentially, a warden, but it can swim, and, well, it looks like an elongated axolotl.
As for how elementals play into this, the trial structure for this dimension would be home to the brine: a water elemental that attacks you by shooting bubbles. If you get hit by these bubbles, you'll become trapped in them, and will be unable to move until they pop. Yes, you'd also be able to create bubble charges so that you can trap mobs in bubbles.
Brines can put out fires, but they'd dehydrate and die after being out of deep water for 2 minutes or so. They'll die immediately if you somehow bring them to the Nether.
Dimension 5: The Dump
Esentially, a realm between the End and Overworld. And, as its name implies, all it's used for is a dumping ground for Endermen to place down all the blocks they collect.
You'd get here from a portal in The End: perhap the same shape and size as the stronghold portal. I'd imagine you'd need some eye of Ender equivalent that uses wind charges and flowers, to simulate that you're going into what would be considered a rather unkempt and unruly dimension which you're "fighting" off with good smells and breezes.
Not much would be going on in this dimension besides an unruly mess of blocks. Endermen would spawn here patrolling the dimension under its weird sky box that would look like TV static, but it'd also be infested with Endermites who love nesting off the Endermen's disorganization.
This is meant to be a "between dimension", so not as adventurous or fleshed out as the other 4. However, there is one unigue generated structure that'll spawn here: compactors, whch will come with at least one spawner that will spawn the buzz: the 5th and last elemental.
Buzzes would act like redstone/electricity elementals. Red in color, buzzes would be weaker than blazes and breezes in health, but have a strong electrical beam attack that takes a moment to charge. Kind of like the warden's sonic boom, but weaker and more fair.
And, no, no trial structures would generate here, as this is meant to be a more incomplete, dilapidated "between realm" ravaged by the Endermen's carelessness on purpose.
Applications for Brewing
Blazes are used to craft brewing stands, and their powder is needed to fuel them. Breeze rods can be used to brew wind charge potions already, but I think all 5 elementals could be incorporated into brewing.
I don't have the whole brewing system rework envisioned, but one thing I'd love to see is to have different powders or charges brew different types of potions.
Blaze powder is already used to brew water potions.
With the End update, I think a new liquid called hydrender (could maybe use a better name): a purple liquid that resembles water, but is perhaps more acidic, should be added. You could use this for new potions, but you'd need to fuel a brewing stand with wind charges instead of blaze powder. Hydrender would spawn in only one End biome, which is also where the trells that polish Ender pearls I mentioned earlier would be found.
Deep water could be used to brew new potions, too, but you'd need bulk powder instead. I feel like the bulk's shockwave ability fits in pretty well with the Abyss' sculk motif, so I think this pairing makes sense.
TLDR
The Overworld: Breezes (Wind Elementals)
The Nether: Blazes (Fire Elementals)
The End: Bulks (Earth/Rock Elementals)
The Abyss (Deep Sea and Sculk Dimension): Brines (Water Elementals)
The Dump (Enderman Block Dropoff dimension between the Overworld and End): Buzzes (Redstone Elementals)
I have more ideas for my elemental plan, including a new boss, but I think that's best reserved for other posts.
2024.05.13 00:21 wadafuc Choose one.
 | Out of these pills, you can pick only one. submitted by wadafuc to YigaClanOfficial [link] [comments] |
2024.05.12 21:49 RyuNinja189 You can only choose 2 pills choose wisely
 | submitted by RyuNinja189 to InternetCity [link] [comments] |
2024.05.12 19:06 DTG_Bot [D2] Daily Reset Thread [2024-05-12]
Daily Modifiers
Vanguard Ops
- Subtle Foes: Certain foes are stealthy when at a distance. They become visible when near a Guardian.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
Dares of Eternity
- Keep It Loaded: Guardians deal increased damage with Sidearms.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Onslaught: Playlist
- Onslaught Rules: Defend and repair the ADU against waves of combatants. There are 10 waves to a set. ADU: If the ADU is destroyed, the activity ends. Scraps: An in-activity currency. They are earned by scoring and used to purchase and upgrade defenses at the start of every set and after waves 3 and 6. Rewards: Paid out after every set upon defeating the boss wave. Subsequent sets pay out better rewards. Legend increases rewards. Bonus Objectives: Rewards resources, vendor reputation, and armaments.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Riven's Lair
- Mettle: Power Level: All combatants in this activity will be at least 5 points over the player's current Power level.
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Grounded: Damage taken while you are airborne is greatly increased.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Solar Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Solar damage.
The Coil
- The Coil Rules: Successfully complete four pathways inside Riven's Lair. Escalating Difficulty: Player's Power levels are fixed. Starting at 0 each subsequent pathway increases all combatants' Power level over the player's by 5. Wishing Glass: Wishing Glass is an in-activity currency. They drop from combatants, Glass Collectors, and pots. Wishing Glass comes in multiple rarities equating to their worth. Wishing Glass is used to purchase Dragon's Gifts from Riven. Dragon's Gifts: A set of buffs are randomly chosen, once per run. Between pathways, players can purchase buffs from Riven via Wishing Glass. Buffs are separated into three price point tiers. Rewards: After each pathway, players will return to Riven for their rewards. Subsequent pathways pay out better rewards. Breaking through score thresholds unlock secret chests. Finishing The Coil with a platinum score rewards players with access to the lustrous and lucrative Chamber of Wishes.
- Multiplicity: Combatant difficulty scales with fireteam size.
- Limited Revives: Limited fireteam revives. Purchase additional revives from Riven with Wishing Glass. Small chance to drop from destroying pots.
- Full Extinguish: If all your fireteam members fall with 0 Revive Tokens, everyone is returned to orbit.
- Famine: All ammunition drops are significantly reduced.
- Galvanized: Combatants have more health and are more difficult to stun.
- The Pathways: Riven's wish magic stirs weekly. The following are the pathways and their order in The Coil: -First Steps (Temple of the Queen's Wrath) -Divining Hall -Sensorium (Pavilion) -Observatory
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Scorched Earth: Enemies throw grenades significantly more often.
- Overcharged Trace Rifle: 25% bonus to Trace Rifle damage.
- Overcharged Rocket Launcher: 25% bonus to Rocket Launcher damage.
Seasonal
Legend/Master Lost Sector
Exotic armor drop (if solo): LegsBay of Drowned Wishes: Legend
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Arc] Arc
- Shields: [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Stalker Shield
Bay of Drowned Wishes: Master
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Arc] Arc
- Shields: [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Stalker Shield
Misc
- Terminal Overload: Ahimsa Park Weapon: Basso Ostinato (Shotgun)
- The Wellspring: Attack Weapon: Fel Taradiddle (Combat Bow)
- Altars of Sorrow Weapon: Apostate (Sniper Rifle)
Guns & Materials
Banshee's Featured Weapons
| Name | Type | Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 | Masterwork |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whispering Slab | Kinetic Combat Bow | High Tension String // Polymer String | Fiberglass Arrow Shaft // Straight Fletching | Rangefinder | Unrelenting | Tier 2: Draw Time |
| Cartesian Coordinate | Energy Fusion Rifle | Cleanshot IS // Hitmark IS | Ionized Battery // Particle Repeater | Feeding Frenzy | Vorpal Weapon | Tier 2: Charge Time |
| Vulpecula | Kinetic Hand Cannon | Arrowhead Brake // Smallbore | Appended Mag // Flared Magwell | Encore | Headstone | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
| Palmyra-B | Heavy Rocket Launcher | Volatile Launch // Linear Compensator | Black Powder // Implosion Rounds | Auto-Loading Holster | Adrenaline Junkie | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
| Ogma PR6 | Energy Pulse Rifle | Arrowhead Brake // Corkscrew Rifling | Appended Mag // Tactical Mag | Stats for All | One for All | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
Master Rahool's Material Exchange
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Legendary Shards)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Dark Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Phantasmal Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 25 Herealways Piece)
- Enhancement Prism (1 for 10 Enhancement Core & 10000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Shard (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Alloy (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
Bounties
Commander Zavala, Vanguard| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horseshoes and Hand Grenades | Defeat combatants with grenades. Defeating them in Vanguard playlists grants additional progress. | 20 [Grenade] Grenade | XP+ |
| Pride Before Destruction | Defeat powerful combatants. Defeating Champions grants additional progress. | 10 Powerful combatants | XP+ |
| Vanguardian | Defeat combatants while in Vanguard playlists. | 50 Targets | XP+ |
| Fast and True | Defeat combatants with Primary ammo. Bow final blows in Vanguard playlists grant additional progress. | 75 [Bow] Bow | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burn Bright | Cast your Super. | 2 Supers | XP+ |
| Slice and Dice | Defeat opponents using Strand damage from any source. | 5 Strand final blows | XP+ |
| On the Mark | Defeat opponents with precision final blows. | 3 [Headshot] Precision | XP+ |
| Push the Advantage | In Control, defeat opponents while holding Zone Advantage. | 3 Zone Advantage | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blockade | Send Blockers; medium and large Blockers contribute more progress. | 30 Blockers | XP+ |
| Face-to-Face | Summon Primevals in Gambit by filling up your team's bank. | 2 Primevals summoned | XP+ |
| Final Ploy | Defeat combatants with finisher final blows. | 5 Finisher | XP+ |
| Like Kindling | Use Solar ignition to defeat targets in Gambit. Defeating Guardians grants more progress. | 10 [Solar] Solar ignition | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Rifle Calibration | Calibrate Auto Rifles against any target. Earn bonus progress with precision final blows and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Auto Rifle] Auto Rifle | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Rocket Launcher Calibration | Calibrate Rocket Launchers against any target. Earn bonus progress against opposing Guardians and for additional targets defeated with each shot. | 100 [Rocket Launcher] Rocket Launcher | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Glaive Calibration | Calibrate Glaives against any target. Rapidly defeating targets and defeating Guardians grants additional progress. | 100 [Glaive] Glaive | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Solar Calibration | Calibrate Solar weapons against any target. Earn bonus progress using Power weapons and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Solar] Solar weapon | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invasion Repulsion | In Neomuna, defeat combatants. Shadow Legion combatants grant additional progress. | 90 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Almighty Scorching | In Neomuna, defeat combatants with Solar damage. Shadow Legion combatants grant additional progress. | 60 [Solar] Solar | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Distant Doom | In a single life, defeat combatants in Neomuna using Sniper Rifles, Linear Fusion Rifles, Scout Rifles, or Rocket Launchers. | 20 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Terminal Rewards | Open chests after completing Terminal Overload. | 3 Chests opened | 1 Terminal Overload Key & 50 Neomuna Rank & XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onslaught Defender | Deploy and upgrade defenses in Onslaught. | 30 Defenses completed | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Angling for a Win | Catch fish throughout the system. Rarer fish grant additional progress. | 30 Fish | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Shoot Out | Defeat targets with Hand Cannons. Combatants in Onslaught and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Hand Cannon] Hand Cannon | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Fallen Down On The Job | Defeat Fallen. Those defeated in Onslaught are worth more. | 100 Fallen | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wishful Spelunker | Complete a Lost Sector in the Dreaming City. | 1 Lost Sectors | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Lair Defense: Power Weapons | Defeat targets with Power weapons. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 20 Power weapon | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragon's Fang | Defeat targets with Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, or Trace Rifles. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 30 [Auto Rifle], [Pulse Rifle], or [Trace Rifle] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragonthread | Defeat targets with Solar or Strand damage. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Solar] or [Strand] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
2024.05.12 19:06 DTG_Bot [D2] Daily Reset Thread [2024-05-12]
Daily Modifiers
Vanguard Ops
- Subtle Foes: Certain foes are stealthy when at a distance. They become visible when near a Guardian.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
Dares of Eternity
- Keep It Loaded: Guardians deal increased damage with Sidearms.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Onslaught: Playlist
- Onslaught Rules: Defend and repair the ADU against waves of combatants. There are 10 waves to a set. ADU: If the ADU is destroyed, the activity ends. Scraps: An in-activity currency. They are earned by scoring and used to purchase and upgrade defenses at the start of every set and after waves 3 and 6. Rewards: Paid out after every set upon defeating the boss wave. Subsequent sets pay out better rewards. Legend increases rewards. Bonus Objectives: Rewards resources, vendor reputation, and armaments.
- Power Level Disabled: Combatant difficulty is set at a fixed level.
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Void Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Void damage.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Champion Foes: You will face [Shield-Piercing] Barrier, [Disruption] Overload, and [Stagger] Unstoppable Champions. Visit the Character or Mod Customization screen to view your active anti-Champion perks.
Riven's Lair
- Mettle: Power Level: All combatants in this activity will be at least 5 points over the player's current Power level.
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Grounded: Damage taken while you are airborne is greatly increased.
- Strand Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Strand damage.
- Solar Surge: 25% bonus to outgoing Solar damage.
The Coil
- The Coil Rules: Successfully complete four pathways inside Riven's Lair. Escalating Difficulty: Player's Power levels are fixed. Starting at 0 each subsequent pathway increases all combatants' Power level over the player's by 5. Wishing Glass: Wishing Glass is an in-activity currency. They drop from combatants, Glass Collectors, and pots. Wishing Glass comes in multiple rarities equating to their worth. Wishing Glass is used to purchase Dragon's Gifts from Riven. Dragon's Gifts: A set of buffs are randomly chosen, once per run. Between pathways, players can purchase buffs from Riven via Wishing Glass. Buffs are separated into three price point tiers. Rewards: After each pathway, players will return to Riven for their rewards. Subsequent pathways pay out better rewards. Breaking through score thresholds unlock secret chests. Finishing The Coil with a platinum score rewards players with access to the lustrous and lucrative Chamber of Wishes.
- Multiplicity: Combatant difficulty scales with fireteam size.
- Limited Revives: Limited fireteam revives. Purchase additional revives from Riven with Wishing Glass. Small chance to drop from destroying pots.
- Full Extinguish: If all your fireteam members fall with 0 Revive Tokens, everyone is returned to orbit.
- Famine: All ammunition drops are significantly reduced.
- Galvanized: Combatants have more health and are more difficult to stun.
- The Pathways: Riven's wish magic stirs weekly. The following are the pathways and their order in The Coil: -First Steps (Temple of the Queen's Wrath) -Divining Hall -Sensorium (Pavilion) -Observatory
- Solar Threat: 25% increase to incoming Solar damage.
- Scorched Earth: Enemies throw grenades significantly more often.
- Overcharged Trace Rifle: 25% bonus to Trace Rifle damage.
- Overcharged Rocket Launcher: 25% bonus to Rocket Launcher damage.
Seasonal
Legend/Master Lost Sector
Exotic armor drop (if solo): LegsBay of Drowned Wishes: Legend
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Arc] Arc
- Shields: [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Stalker Shield
Bay of Drowned Wishes: Master
- Legend Difficulty: Locked Equipment, Extra Shields
- Champions: [Disruption] Overload, [Stagger] Unstoppable
- Threat: [Arc] Arc
- Shields: [Void] Void
- Modifiers: Stalker Shield
Misc
- Terminal Overload: Ahimsa Park Weapon: Basso Ostinato (Shotgun)
- The Wellspring: Attack Weapon: Fel Taradiddle (Combat Bow)
- Altars of Sorrow Weapon: Apostate (Sniper Rifle)
Guns & Materials
Banshee's Featured Weapons
| Name | Type | Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 | Masterwork |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whispering Slab | Kinetic Combat Bow | High Tension String // Polymer String | Fiberglass Arrow Shaft // Straight Fletching | Rangefinder | Unrelenting | Tier 2: Draw Time |
| Cartesian Coordinate | Energy Fusion Rifle | Cleanshot IS // Hitmark IS | Ionized Battery // Particle Repeater | Feeding Frenzy | Vorpal Weapon | Tier 2: Charge Time |
| Vulpecula | Kinetic Hand Cannon | Arrowhead Brake // Smallbore | Appended Mag // Flared Magwell | Encore | Headstone | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
| Palmyra-B | Heavy Rocket Launcher | Volatile Launch // Linear Compensator | Black Powder // Implosion Rounds | Auto-Loading Holster | Adrenaline Junkie | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
| Ogma PR6 | Energy Pulse Rifle | Arrowhead Brake // Corkscrew Rifling | Appended Mag // Tactical Mag | Stats for All | One for All | Tier 2: Reload Speed |
Master Rahool's Material Exchange
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Legendary Shards)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Dark Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 10 Phantasmal Fragment)
- Purchase Glimmer (10000 for 25 Herealways Piece)
- Enhancement Prism (1 for 10 Enhancement Core & 10000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Shard (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
- Ascendant Alloy (1 for 10 Enhancement Prism & 50000 Glimmer)
Bounties
Commander Zavala, Vanguard| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horseshoes and Hand Grenades | Defeat combatants with grenades. Defeating them in Vanguard playlists grants additional progress. | 20 [Grenade] Grenade | XP+ |
| Pride Before Destruction | Defeat powerful combatants. Defeating Champions grants additional progress. | 10 Powerful combatants | XP+ |
| Vanguardian | Defeat combatants while in Vanguard playlists. | 50 Targets | XP+ |
| Fast and True | Defeat combatants with Primary ammo. Bow final blows in Vanguard playlists grant additional progress. | 75 [Bow] Bow | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burn Bright | Cast your Super. | 2 Supers | XP+ |
| Slice and Dice | Defeat opponents using Strand damage from any source. | 5 Strand final blows | XP+ |
| On the Mark | Defeat opponents with precision final blows. | 3 [Headshot] Precision | XP+ |
| Push the Advantage | In Control, defeat opponents while holding Zone Advantage. | 3 Zone Advantage | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blockade | Send Blockers; medium and large Blockers contribute more progress. | 30 Blockers | XP+ |
| Face-to-Face | Summon Primevals in Gambit by filling up your team's bank. | 2 Primevals summoned | XP+ |
| Final Ploy | Defeat combatants with finisher final blows. | 5 Finisher | XP+ |
| Like Kindling | Use Solar ignition to defeat targets in Gambit. Defeating Guardians grants more progress. | 10 [Solar] Solar ignition | XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Rifle Calibration | Calibrate Auto Rifles against any target. Earn bonus progress with precision final blows and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Auto Rifle] Auto Rifle | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Rocket Launcher Calibration | Calibrate Rocket Launchers against any target. Earn bonus progress against opposing Guardians and for additional targets defeated with each shot. | 100 [Rocket Launcher] Rocket Launcher | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Glaive Calibration | Calibrate Glaives against any target. Rapidly defeating targets and defeating Guardians grants additional progress. | 100 [Glaive] Glaive | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Solar Calibration | Calibrate Solar weapons against any target. Earn bonus progress using Power weapons and against opposing Guardians. | 100 [Solar] Solar weapon | XP+ & Enhancement Core & Gunsmith Rank Progress |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invasion Repulsion | In Neomuna, defeat combatants. Shadow Legion combatants grant additional progress. | 90 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Almighty Scorching | In Neomuna, defeat combatants with Solar damage. Shadow Legion combatants grant additional progress. | 60 [Solar] Solar | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Distant Doom | In a single life, defeat combatants in Neomuna using Sniper Rifles, Linear Fusion Rifles, Scout Rifles, or Rocket Launchers. | 20 Targets | XP+ & 50 Neomuna Rank |
| Terminal Rewards | Open chests after completing Terminal Overload. | 3 Chests opened | 1 Terminal Overload Key & 50 Neomuna Rank & XP+ |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onslaught Defender | Deploy and upgrade defenses in Onslaught. | 30 Defenses completed | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Angling for a Win | Catch fish throughout the system. Rarer fish grant additional progress. | 30 Fish | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Shoot Out | Defeat targets with Hand Cannons. Combatants in Onslaught and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Hand Cannon] Hand Cannon | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Fallen Down On The Job | Defeat Fallen. Those defeated in Onslaught are worth more. | 100 Fallen | 1 XP+ & 25 Lord Shaxx Reputation & 50 Lord Shaxx Reputation |
| Name | Description | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wishful Spelunker | Complete a Lost Sector in the Dreaming City. | 1 Lost Sectors | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Lair Defense: Power Weapons | Defeat targets with Power weapons. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 20 Power weapon | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragon's Fang | Defeat targets with Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, or Trace Rifles. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 30 [Auto Rifle], [Pulse Rifle], or [Trace Rifle] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
| Dragonthread | Defeat targets with Solar or Strand damage. Combatants in Riven's Lair or The Coil and Guardians are worth more. | 100 [Solar] or [Strand] defeats | XP+ & 25 Spirit of Riven Reputation |
2024.05.12 16:59 Serg1o2Think You can only choose one. Choose wisely.
 | submitted by Serg1o2Think to repost [link] [comments] |
2024.05.12 16:13 ImpossibleEvan How many?
 | submitted by ImpossibleEvan to countablepixels [link] [comments] |