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Welcome to my very first quest! This story is set in Gaea, the world of Final Fantasy 9. The plot will roughly follow the events of the game, but the addition of our new character and some key plot differences should make for a new experience, even for those who are familiar with the source material.

Dice mechanics will be explained as they become relevant, and there will be a ten minute voting period after each choice. You are encouraged to write in your own choices if you feel like it, and I will do my best to incorporate non-contradictory options when possible, but I reserve the right to veto options which I feel are out of character. With that out of the way, let's all have a good time!
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Alexandra: The city of marble, perched atop the frosted peaks of the Mist Continent. Stretched across the basins like a steepled bridge, this pearl of the North could be seen from miles away were it not for the continent's namesake: The Mist.

Prolonged exposure can drive men mad, warp and twist the land itself, and even permanently change the weather; to say nothing of the monsters which call the Mist their home. No one knows its source, and any expeditions into the land below have yielded little insight.

It is because of this that the three great nations - Alexandria, Lindblum, and Burmecia - have taken great pains to protect their people from this most unnatural of dangers. Burmecia, proud as they are, have refused to leave their settled valley despite enduring the Mist's encroachment for hundreds of years. They claim their druidic magics have kept the madness at bay, and their famed Dragoons have successfully defended their nation all this time.

Meanwhile, Lindblum and Alexandria have taken great pains to simply avoid the Mist, and either relocated into the mountains or, in Lindblum's case, constructed a series of enormous gates to buffer its townships from the dangers outside.

In such a dangerous world, with so few bastions of safety, is it any wonder that celebrations and festivals are given as much pomp and presence as possible? Even one day of merriment can ease an anxious mind.

In Alexandria, where we lay our scene, today is such a day: The sixteenth birthday of the lovely Princess Garnet Til Alexandros XVII. In honor of such a momentous occasion, Queen Brahne has contracted the world-famous Tantalus Theater Troupe to perform the princess' favorite play: Lore Avon's I Want to be Your Canary. Funny enough, the only people in Alexandria who may have never seen Lord Avon's works performed are situated firmly outside its haute elite, and those people are naturally not allowed to attend.

And yet, on the night of the play, there you are: Dressed in your traditional light garments, vest, and veil, your rounded hat coming to a point right at the top. Your eyes are all that are uncovered, and you wear your sabre at your hip. You clearly don't fit in with the nobles, dressed in all their finery and the airs they've put on, but here you are, all the same.

What are you even doing here?

> I snuck in. I haven't more than a few gil to my name, and a few unusual characters helped me get here.
> I was hired as extra security. Queen Brahne didn't want to take any risks when it came to her only daughter's birthday. I'm to make sure no ne'er-do-wells get past the guards.
> Actually, I do fit in here! I was the queen's honored guest, invited here along with my tutor. He is an esteemed doctor and philosopher, and old friends of the crown.
> I'm a member of the Tantalus Theater Troupe, of course! Don't you recognize me? Don't tell me you haven't seen our shows! But then, what am I doing in the crowd?
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>>694588
>I'm a member of the Tantalus Theater Troupe, of course! Don't you recognize me? Don't tell me you haven't seen our shows! But then, what am I doing in the crowd?
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>>694588
>Actually I do fit in here! I was the Queen's honored guest, invited here along with my tutor.
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> Actually, I do fit in here! I was the queen's honored guest, invited here along with my tutor. He is an esteemed doctor and philosopher, and old friends of the crown.
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>>694588
>> Actually, I do fit in here! I was the queen's honored guest, invited here along with my tutor. He is an esteemed doctor and philosopher, and old friends of the crown.
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>>694588
>Actually, I do fit in here! I was the queen's honored guest, invited here along with my tutor. He is an esteemed doctor and philosopher, and old friends of the crown.

haven't seen anyone try a ff inspired quest yet, lets see how this goes.
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Rolled 4 (1d4)

>>694588
looks like spellblade gear to me. You sure you shouldn't be eating frogs or something?
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>>694588
>Actually, I do fit in here! I was the queen's honored guest, invited here along with my tutor. He is an esteemed doctor and philosopher, and old friends of the crown.
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>>695891
Hey, what I do in my spare time is my own business. Humans can like frogs too. Don't judge me just because I enjoy the finer things in life!

>>694588
Why, you're here at the queen's request, of course! Well, you aren't, per say, but your mentor is. Dr. Tot is a world-renowned scholar and philosopher, and even served as Princess Garnet's personal tutor for a number of years. While he, like most of the upper class, usually resides in the distant city of Treno, he was positively giddy at the prospect of attending the princess' birthday celebration.

As his sole student (for the moment, that is), you were asked to come along as well. You could hardly refuse. You've learned so much about astronomy, political theory, thaumaturgical postulations, and even some rudimentary debate skills that you can fit right in with most of the nobility, as most of them only dabble casually in such subjects; anything to look smart for their peers.

Trait acquired: Treno Scholar - You are both learned and savvy. Your impressive tutelage means you understand a wide variety of subjects, but Treno is also a city of thieves and liars; you have learned to keep an alert eye and a hand on your coin purse.

So when Dr. Tot told you that he would like for you to join him, that was that. You've been to Alexandria before, of course, and whether or not you liked it, you did look forward to the opportunity to speak with the princess again after so many years. You never spent much time around her, as her schooling under Dr. Tot was nearly complete by the time you were taken on, but she was pleasant enough; every bit as demure and courteous as her mother is confident and boisterous. You haven't had a chance to meet with her again tonight, but that's sure to come later.

For now, you enjoy the opening act of the play. Marcus, the play's tragic hero, is meeting in secret with his true love, Cornelia. Their love is obviously highly forbidden, as all good love is in Lord Avon's plays. It's not your favorite of his - Wishing Upon a Star is far more gripping for both the strengths of its deuterogonists and its subtle satire of Brunhilde V's claims of impressive battle prowess - but it's in your top five, to be sure.

Just as Blank, the more level-headed of Marcus' comrades, staunchly proclaims that he will stand with him against his king, Dr. Tot leans over to whisper a question to you.

What is your name?

>This is a good chance to determine if you're a guy or a girl. Pick a name, guys!
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Also, I'm glad to see this has gotten some interest. I'm definitely going to drop the ten minute voting limitation for the time being, because I may have overestimated how much of a response I'd get right off the bat. Who knew that dropping a thread in here in the middle of the night without telling anyone might not get me much of a response right away?

Anyway, just for reference, our character is human, albeit a very conservatively-dressed human. Blue mages gotta rock that stylish hat-veil.
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>>696378
Velvet Orunitia
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>>696378
Tobias
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Tobias
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>>696378

Tobias Silverwhistle
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>>696378

Balthazar Alderleaf
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>>696378

Your name is Tobias Alderleaf!

"Tobias, my boy, keep a close eye on the stage for me, will you? There's something important I must discuss with Her Majesty." Dr. Tot asks through his bristles. Before you can even wonder why he'd need you to keep an eye on the stage, you've agreed, and he's hopped down from his seat.

But once he's gone, you do start to wonder. He knows this play better than anyone, and he isn't the sort to criticize even major deviations from an old story, as long as they're interesting. Curious indeed.

Behind you, a small row has broken out above the theater seats. A couple guards are chasing down some children who've no doubt snuck in. You steal a glance for just a moment.

One of the children is obviously Burmecian; his rat-like features and lanky frame give that away immediately. He's the quicker of the two, by far, and looks to have left his friend in the dust. This unfortunate friend a shorter, slightly slightly pudgy, and is almost entirely concealed beneath an enormous pointed hat; so concealed, in fact, that you couldn't even catch a glimpse of his face in the few seconds you spent looking. Poor kid. He's not going to outrun the guards.

But a minute later, everything changes: Without warning, several of the royal guards storm the stage! Some of them are chasing the hat-wearing kid, but others are surrounding the theater players.

There's a crackle in the warm spring air as a short plume of fire fans out from the intruding kid's hands! It's a rudimentary fire spell, and quite powerful for someone so small! The guards step back to avoid the sudden attack, and the only casualty appears to be the hooded coat worn by Cornelia. The actress frantically peels off her coat and hurls it to the stage floor as it ignites, revealing herself to be none other than...
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>>696488
"Princess Garnet!?"

You can hardly believe your eyes! What is the princess doing on stage? Why are the guards advancing upon the actors? To their credit, the Tantalus Players are continuing as if this were all part of the performance, but a glance at Queen Brahne's balcony seat is enough to tell you that this is most definitely not part of the play. The queen is furious, and while you can't make out what she's saying, her enraged gesticulating give you a hint.

It dawns on you that this must be why Dr. Tot told you to keep a close eye on the stage. He suspected something would happen, and he must have been going to warn the queen personally! This must be a kidnapping! The Tantalus Players are kidnapping the princess!

While you are certainly more of a scholar than a warrior, you are no slouch when it comes to fighting. Without further hesitation, you leap up from your seat and sprint down towards the stage. Normally you would assume the guards could handle this, but Tantalus seems to be putting up a better fight than you expected; and they're not even using real weapons!

But you can turn the tides, you're certain of it.

How will you approach this fight?

(Pick one to determine what you're best at. You're still going to be at least decent at all of these, and you can improve upon them later.)

> Quick-footed swordplay. You know how to duck and weave while still putting up a strong offense. (+speed/physical attack)
> An all-out magical assault. Your spells will be far more effective against the kidnappers than regular weapons. (++magic attack)
> A mix of magic and mundane. Using various enhancement spells, you are never caught off-guard. (+physical and magical defense)
> Something else? (If you have other ideas, feel free to suggest them. I'm open to the sort of build you guys want to play.)
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>>696489
>Debilitating effects. Non-lethal(usually), and effective at safely capturing foes. You're particularly good at Petrify spells.
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>Debilitating effects. Non-lethal(usually), and effective at safely capturing foes. You're particularly good at Petrify spells.
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>>696489

A buff/debuff-mancer seems fun enough to play. Stack helpful buffs on yourself and allies while applying debuffs on enemies. Status effects and ailments seem potent as well.
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>Write in

>Master of controlling the battlefield, having high proficience in enhancing and debilitating friends, foes and yourself. Besides that, a jack of all trades, using altenation spells to cover for your overall balanced build and uses spells in exotic ways such as heating surfaces so enemies can't walk through there or building ice routes to reach inaccesible paths
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It looks like we're going with a strategic buff/debuff blue mage, with a minor in general battlefield control. I can dig it.

My next post won't be for another couple hours, but I'm planning on running more tonight, as well, so we should have plenty to do.

Seriously, I can't tell you how happy I am to see that I've got players.
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>>696666

Good luck with the quest, man. It does look interesting and is always nice to toy around with the idea of playing a pre-existing story with new characters that sees the situation from another point of view and might even change a bit the outcome
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>>696648
>heating surfaces so enemies can't walk through
that's a bit much. Would require more raw power than our actual black mages.
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>>696648
>>697077
caltrops would fill pretty much the same roll as heating the ground, being able to make paths or walls out of stuff would be really handy though.
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>>696489
Trait acquired: Eye for Detail - Where others see a forest, you can pick out a single tree. Even in the middle of combat, you can take in your surroundings. Even if you don't have time to come up with a concrete battle strategy, you're good at improvising, as well as outsmarting your opponents.

Blue magic acquired! Tobias learned Stone Gaze! This spell causes gradual petrification in those Tobias continues to stare at. It can affect anyone in Tobias' field of vision, but doing so requires substantially more effort. As they begin to petrify, their movements slow over time.

Blue magic acquired! Tobias learned Cocoon! This spell raises the physical defense of one ally for a short time.

Blue magic acquired! Tobias learned Septic Drop! This spell creates a sphere of foul liquid above a target, then drops it on top of them, inflicting water-elemental damage and poisoning them.

Tobias' default stats have been adjusted to accommodate this build: He is an all-around character with average stats across the board. However, due to his focus on status ailments, Tobias has a greater chance of inflicting these conditions than any other character!
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>>697189
With your strategy and spellcraft, you're a force to be reckoned with! As you sprint down the steps in the theater aisle, your vantage point allows you a good look at the entire battlefield before you even arrive:

The stage is in fact the deck of Tantalus' famous airship, the Prima Vista. The fact that they have such a vessel is hardly a secret, but their unique accommodations allow them the advantage over the knights. They know this ship inside and out, and its dual function means the various hidden elevators and disguised steam vents are perfect for disorienting any would-be attackers.

And would-be indeed! Some of these knights are actually fleeing! If you were a military man, you would rankle at such a shameful display, but fortunately it seems someone is already doing plenty of rankling for you: A large, broad-framed man in antiquated iron armor, barking commands at his fellow knights. He's obviously the leader.

"Come back here, you! We must rescue the princess!" the bulky knight bellows, his voice clearly carrying over the chaos. He's got quite a set of lungs on him, that's for sure.

You arrive just in time to see him squaring off against three of the kidnappers: The stocky, red-headed man playing 'Blank' in the play; the kid from before whose magic had bought his escape from the guards; and a wiry, fresh-faced blond man with a tail.

What throws you off about this is less that he has the tail at all, and more that he otherwise appears to be entirely human. Perhaps his parents were both just very open-minded. Regardless, he played a character named 'Zidane', a new addition to the story.

"Hey, who's that!?" the man playing Marcus shouts from your peripheral vision. A quick look tells you he's battling another knight, albeit still using a sturdy prop sword and not the genuine article.

"Hey, great timing! Give us a hand will ya? We've got some uninvited guests we need to show the door before liftoff!" 'Zidane' grins as he catches sight of you.

Amidst the din of chaos and noise, you can see Princess Garnet behind Zidane, Blank, and the be-hatted kid. She seems unharmed, but appears very nervous, her gaze flitting back to her mother's balcony every few seconds. She does not seem to be making any move to escape, even though a quick glance around the area tells you she has about half the deck to run, should she desire to.

"You there! Help me to apprehend these criminals! They intend to abscond with Her Majesty!" the knight yells, gripping his broadsword tightly in both hands.
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>>697197

Both sides have attempted to recruit you in this debacle, and neither seems to want to make a move before they know which side you're on. What will you do?

>Help the knight! Tantalus is obviously attempting to kidnap the princess.
>Help the Tantalus Players! Kidnappers they may be, but the princess seems to be more worried about her mother than about herself. Something's fishy here.
> Everyone calm down! Try and subdue them all before this really gets out of hand!
> Something else?

While you're at it, tell me how you're going to try and put your plan into action, whatever it may be.
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>>697200
> Everyone calm down! Try and subdue them all before this really gets out of hand!

first off use cocoon on the princess, keeps her safe and all, then try and petrify Zidane and the Knight, since they seem to be at the head of the respective groups facing off.
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>>697200
well that's rather open-ended. If you wanted us to make plans and stuff, you probably should have gone over what reinforcements the castle is mustering

>Help the Tantalus Players! Kidnappers they may be, but the princess seems to be more worried about her mother than about herself. Something's fishy here.
I don't really care either way about deviating from the story, but I want to petrify the Bomb.
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>>697216
You wouldn't really know what sorts of reinforcements the castle is mustering right now, unfortunately. Taking some time to check is definitely an option, but the fighting might start back up again if you take too long to decide.
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>>697200
>> Something else?

Focus in reaching the princess (And disabling people in the way) and get her into safety. Both parties seems to be too busy fighting each and might cause harm to the princess via indirect fire
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>>697200

>> Something else?
Focus in reaching the princess (And disabling people in the way) and get her into safety. Both parties seems to be too busy fighting each and might cause harm to the princess via indirect fire
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File deleted.
>>697200
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNmqJMaBBA4

Whatever's going on, the princess' safety is most important. Rather than joining either rank, you break to your right, sprinting towards Garnet.

"Ha! My thanks, friend!" the burly knight cheers as he, too, begins to charge; his will take him to the trio of kidnappers, however.

"I don't think so, pal!"

Marcus lunges at from one side, and Blank attacks from the front. The two of them are clearly good at working in tandem. Focusing on one of them will leave you open to a hit from the other.

It's a good thing you watched them pull this same trick on the guards a minute before. You were ready for this.

You duck and roll at the last minute. Both Tantalus players' heavy wooden swords clip you in the back, and you're a bit rattled, but you're otherwise unharmed. More importantly, you're past them. Before they can go on the attack again, you spring back up to your feet and stare at the two of them, unblinking and terrible. Your Stone Gaze activates without even a gesture giving you away.

Zidane and the kid are contending with the knight, so as your magic catches the other fighters, you're not currently in danger of being interrupted. Blank and Marcus charge at you again, only this time their movements are more sluggish. Their faces betray their concern as both of them realize just how much effort it's taking for them to move their limbs...

However, by your calculations, they will reach you before you can fully petrify them; not that your intention is to kill them, of course. You can easily outrun them now, so you give your eyes a rest, and with a hard blink, you end your spell. Those two are going to be moving slower for a while, at least.

Without any other obstacles in your way, you race over to the princess. She clutches a heavy oak walking stick in both hands, in a nervous attempt at brandishing it for defense. She's obviously not used to having to defend herself.

"...Are you here to take me back to my mother?" Garnet asks softly, her eyes still nervously regarding her mother's frenzied anger up in her booth. But now, she's looking at you with similar fear. She saw what happened to Marcus and Blank without even drawing your sword, even if she doesn't understand what you did to them. "Whoever you are, please let me go. I...I have something I must do."

Her soft voice pleads with you now. She knows she won't be able to stop you should you try to take her back.

Suddenly, the entire stage lurches, and you can hear heavy steam-machinery groaning to life. The airship is preparing to take off!

What do you do?

>I'm taking you back, princess. It's too dangerous to stay here.
>Fine, but stay close to me. I'll keep you safe.
>Something else?

Also:

>Remind her of who you are
>Save that for later
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>>697813
Well, that picture was way too big. Let's try that again without it taking up the entire screen.
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>>697813
>>Something else?

"This place is dangerous, just what are you planning to do? Nevermind, let's get you out of here to a safe place while you tell me your story, I might help you if it isn't anything dangerous"

And:

>Remind her of who you are

Just to make sure she knows we are a friendly force in this chaos. After all, hard to trust somebody you just witnessed stopping two grow ups just with a gaze
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>>697813
I'll back
>>697892
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>>697813
Sure
>>697892
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>>694580
>Velvet Owl
Where did that name come from, anyway?
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My next post will happen in an hour or so. I'll be posting from my phone for the rest of the night, but I'll be here.

>>697920
I'm a fan of Stewart Lee. He's a very funny comedian, and he used that term to sarcastically describe someone who was entirely harmless. I just thought it was a funny term, so I use it now.
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>>697813

You furrow your brow, considering Garnet's request. You don't have time to argue with her, especially with the [i]Prima Vista[/i] lurching to life like it is. Even if you wanted to protest, a moment spent debating the princess is a moment you could be getting her to safety. For all her curtsies and courtesies, the Garnet you remember was stubborn and willful to her core. It's probably quicker to just go along with this until she's safe, then get the details of her plan later.

"Fine, but this place is dangerous, Your Majesty. Let's get you out of here to a safe place while you tell me your story. I might be able to help you once I know what's going on."

Garnet's hazelnut eyes are still narrowed suspiciously. You realize she probably can't even tell who you are. You quickly take down your veil and remove your hat.

"Princess, it's me, Tobias Alderleaf. I know this isn't the best time for us to catch up, but I need you to come with me, and I need you to tell me what's going on."

Garnet's face shows immediate relief, and even her walking stick lowers from her defensive stance.

"Tobias!? Goodness, how many years has it been?" Garnet smiles brightly. She's glad to have found a likely ally. "Yes, I will tell you everything, but I am not leaving this ship. I have to get away from here and speak with my uncle- with the regent of Lindblum. I have asked the crew of this airship to kidnap me so that I might reach Lindblum with due haste."

Just as stubborn as you remember. To her credit, her plan would likely have gone off without a hitch had her coat not caught fire. Then again, that doesn't explain why the crew are so willing to go along with this.

"Fine, but let's at least get below deck. We don't want to be up here when this thing takes off." you suggest, just in time for the ship to take off.

Everyone on deck stumbles, but no one is thrown overboard just yet. The [i]Prima Vista[/i] lifts off above the grand theater, its great mist engines pumping mightily and its propellers giving their all to keep the bulky airship aloft. You usher Garnet below deck, and despite her earlier protests, she seems to have no qualms with getting to the relative safety below deck.

Not everyone is pleased with your choice, however.

"Princess!! Princess, I'm coming for you!" It's the broad-figured knight from before, looking to all the world like a sterling bill as he stares you down. "Do you not see that you've sent the princess into a veritable lion's den!? Who knows what those vile kidnappers will do to her away from our eyes! Stand aside!"

You're about to reply - you've got several things you'd like to say, after all - but just then, the ship rocks and dips dangerously. Enormous harpoons, fired from the castle's mounted cannons, have pierced the [i]Prima Vista's[/i] hull! Queen Brahne is quite serious about keeping her daughter here; understandably so, really, but in a moment of dread, you hope Garnet wasn't just skewered.
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>>698360

Before you can worry too much about that, you hear the engines howling as the great theater ship wrenches itself free from the mighty steel harpoons, ripping huge chunks of polished wood out of the hull. Your ascent has resumed, and all of a sudden, you find yourself flanked by Zidane, Marcus, and Blank.

"Get below deck! Come on!" Zidane shouts, trying to pull you away before the second volley of harpoons can begin.

Looking down at the castle below, you see Dr. Tot standing beside the furious queen, positively dwarfed by her excessive bulk. You meet his bespectacled eyes, and he sneaks you a small nod of approval. Was this his intention all along?

The loud knight grits his teeth and steps forward, pointing an accusing finger at the Tantalus Players.

"No wait just a minute!! By the authority of Her Majesty, Queen Brahne, I, Captain Adelbert Steiner of the Knights of Pluto, order you to ground this ship inmediately! Everyone here is to be placed under arrest for crimes against the crown, and-"

You're almost thankful for the second volley. That speech seemed like it could have gone on for a while l. Who knows how many more titles he might have?

This time, however, you're not met with harpoons tearing through the hull. Instead, a huge steel cannonball crashes into the mast, bending it at a worrying angle. The cannonball splits apart into two perfectly-fitted halves, revealing something most distressing inside.

With a cinder-spewing cackle, the living bomb begins to swell...

[blue]What now?[/blue]

>Run for it! Get below deck before it explodes!
>Try to kill it before it can explode. It's alive, so it might be possible.
>Use Stone Gaze again! It'll be tough, but you might be able to petrify it before it can cause any damage.
>Something else?
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Man, my phone just does not like text formatting. Sorry for all the broken formatting tags, guys.
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>>698364
>>Try to kill it before it can explode. It's alive, so it might be possible.

we have a water spell, might as well try it out
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>>698364
>Try to kill it before it can explode. It's alive, so it might be possible
Welcome back.
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>>698364
>Use Stone Gaze again! It'll be tough, but you might be able to petrify it before it can cause any damage.
Might be the only viable option. Trying to kill it would take us too long with just status effects, and I don't want it blowing up at all, even if we are below deck
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>>698364
>Run for it! Get below deck before it explodes!
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>>698398
we have a water elemental spell:
>Blue magic acquired! Tobias learned Septic Drop! This spell creates a sphere of foul liquid above a target, then drops it on top of them, inflicting water-elemental damage and poisoning them.
does water damage and poisons them, though I wonder if we could get vivi to toss out a blizzard to help...
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>>698364
>>Try to kill it before it can explode. It's alive, so it might be possible.
septic drop it
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>>698364
>>698364
>Use Stone Gaze again! It'll be tough, but you might be able to petrify it before it can cause any damage.
>get steiner to look at you. If he does, he stops interfering. If he turns around to avoid stone gaze, then he sees the bomb
Wooden swords and SFX isn't going to kill a Bomb.

>>698425
Doesn't he only know fire?
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>>698477
I don't remember early game vivi's abilities... but it is true he's only used fire so far... i'm just so used to having all 3 basic element spells on a black mage that I figured he'd have a basic ice spell...
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It sounds like we've got a pretty strong consensus. The group is going to try and take out the bomb before it explodes. I'll probably get that post up sometime in the next couple hours, but that's going to be my last post of the night. I'll keep this going in the morning.

I just want to thank you guys again for giving my.quest a chance. Hopefully I end up making this fun for you guys.
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>>698551
It's pretty fun so far. Hello from Pokemon Quest, by the way!
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>>698364
>>Try to kill it before it can explode. It's alive, so it might be possible.

As a jack of all trades, we could combine septic drop and swordplay to bring him down And maybe eventually acquire the magic sword talent. A bomb is still a bomb no matter how strong it is. Now if it were a mother bomb, that would be some serious shit.
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>>698551
it's been a good run so far, also... your name made me think of this guy in the pic.
Hi from pokemon quest btw.
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>>698577
Is it really so unusual for you to be in another quest? Are anons from pokemon quest that closed off?
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>>698565
>>698577
Glad to see some pokemon quest peeps here. Thanks for giving this a shot. Also, that picture is great.

>>698570
There is a distinct possibility of that happening. How Tobias' abilities develop will depend on what you guys choose to focus on. I've got some vague ideas for later that I don't want to spoil, but for now, just know that nothing is currently off the table.

Blue magic is super flexible, so tailoring it to how you want to fight is something I really wanted to do for this quest. I'm also planning on giving the other party members some cool stuff to make up for the high likelihood of Tobias winding up being a walking magical toolbox.
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>>698570
This bomb IS as big as what we consider as Mother Bombs in other titles.
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>>698602
No, I participate in... about 12 (maybe more since some have weird schedules) quests right now, just saw this one from his post advertising it in pokemon quest (qm there gave permission)
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>>698602
I briefly pimped this thread in their thread, because their QM said it was cool. That's what they're referring to, I think.
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>>698617
>>698620
>advertising in another quest
>yet not advertising in qtg or discord
.....I guess there are all sorts of people out there.
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>>698632
I'll fully admit to that not being the best way to do it, in retrospect. Like I said, this is my first time doing this, so I'm bound to make at least a few dumb mistakes.
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>>698632
I almost never check qtg (I remember it getting pretty toxic back on tg so i'm a bit wary of it) and I barely use discord for anything but dark souls stuff, hell I didn't even use twitter till earlier this week.

I'm probably a weird case though.
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>>698632
>>698650
It just makes sense to me. I've dropped in on Somnious a few times, although usually it's me forgetting to drop my trip or making a joke about lewd posting.

Don't forget to archive!
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>>698658
>>698698
I just find the allocation of effort rather confusing.

Unless of course, you are aiming for a very particular subset of anons.
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>>698364

Getting below deck might protect you from the brunt of the blast, but an explosion from something this big could knock the ship out of the sky. It won't matter where you're standing if the ship crashes into the stands. In fact, the more you think about this, the more this seems like a very poorly thought-out rescue on the queen's part. Surely she must realize that her daughter is far from fireproof. Then again, judging by how many ornate fans she's already snapped in half while screaming orders, there is a very real chance that this has yet to occur to her.

Regardless, while this could become a problem for the queen in short order, it's your problem right now. You can't let the bomb explode, no matter what!

Stone Gaze could do it, given enough time, but you're not sure you have the sort of time that would require. If you happened to fall short, that would be it for you. Better to try a more direct approach, then. With a flourish, you draw your sabre, and use your other hand to focus your magic. You form a sphere of water above the bomb, lacing it with poison, appearing as oily, violet ink inside the clear blue orb.

The [blue]Septic Drop[/blue] smashes into the bomb with considerable weight, bursting messily over it'd bulbous orange body. The living flame screeches indignantly as angry steam billows off its body, and it fixes you with a predatory glare. It's still growing, but now it sees you as a threat. The acrid smell of the poison hangs in the air around it, as well. You're pretty sure you managed to poison it with that spell!

On the plus side, this means you can probably kill it. The bad news is, well, you know.
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>>698964

Its first order of business is to charge straight for you. It moves quickly for a creature whose airborne movement could best be described as trundling, but luckily for you, Captain Steiner chooses precisely that moment to make a break for the stairs you just ushered Garnet down. This causes the bomb to collide with him, instead, protecting you from harm for the moment.

"Wh-Wh-WHAT IS THAT THING DOING HERE!? BOMB ON DECK!! BOMB ON DECK!!" Steiner yells frantically, apparently just now realizing that this thing has been here. He's not the most observant fellow, it seems.

"Oh [b]hell[/b] yeah! Another mage! I'm with you all the way, man! Let's beat this thing down!" Suddenly, Zidane is right at your side, wielding a pair of very real steel daggers. He's certainly enthusiastic about helping you kill this bomb, and if he's as handy with his knives as he is quick, he could be a great help.

"Hey, kid, Rusty, help us out over here! This guy's got the right idea trying to take this thing out before it blows!" Zidane shouts, and while he doesn't step forward, the kid in the floppy hat nods shakily and grips his mage's staff tightly. If he has ice magic, that should do well against this thing, too.

"'Rusty'!?" Steiner sputters angrily, once again brandishing his finger at the monkey boy. "Look here, you! You will address me properly or not at all! I am Ca-"

Oh, you definitely don't have time for more of that right now.

"Less talking, more helping, Captain! We need your sword for this!" you yell, preparing for your next strike.

"Took the words right outta my mouth! Let's kick some ass!" Zidane cheers as the four of you assemble for battle.

BOSS FIGHT: Baron von Bomb

https://youtu.be/OPatnSv96FU

>No set options for now. Plan some general battle strategy! You're a natural strategist, and it shows, so Zidane and Vivi will probably listen to any plans you suggest. Steiner might, but you're not sure. He's going to at least help you to try and kill this thing, though. He doesn't want to blow up, either.

This is my last post of the night. I'll continue this in the morning. Thanks again for showing up for my very first quest, guys!
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>>698970
I looked up the wiki and none of vivi's staves have blizzard. The first ice move is blizzara....?

Stand with our back to the outside. Charge up another water ball, and when it tries to ram us, dive to the side and hope it teeters towards the edge.

Zidane and Steiner use this moment to push it off with physical, and we loudly proclaim TO PROTECT THE PRINCESS FROM THE EXPLOSION if the message wasn't clear. Vivi also launches a blizzard he may or may not know. Do absorbed moves still knockback?

Stone Gaze if it tries to cling to the ship with those stubby arms
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>>699001
eh... how much hp would the bomb recover from vivi's fire if he has no other spells? also... they still have the stage pyrotechnics right? maybe fire some into its face to disorient or blind it?
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>>699001
Vivi learns blizzard from the leather wrist, which he can have by this point if you steal one from Baku during the tutorial fight. In lieu of going that heavy with game mechanics, I'm going to go ahead and say that Vivi knows Fire, Blizzard, and Thunder already. Does that sound alright?
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>>699058
sweet, we can smash it with both of its elemental weaknesses!
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>>699058
>>699043
>>699058
Cool.

Speaking of SFX, there were some steam vents, right? Steam=water, maybe itll help take the bomb down.
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>>698970

Monkey boy look to be quick on his feet, tell him to quickly move and attack the bomb from one of its flanks to get its attention and swiftly change flanks when the bomb followed him.

Big knight should stay in front of the princess in case the bomb decides to be a dick and smash it with powerful sword strikes with his heavy blade.

Ask the small mage if he knows ice or water spells (our character only saw him use fire) and if yes, to focus in using his strongest ones while the other members of the group distracts with concentrated fire the bomb.

As for Tobias? Cast more septic drop. The other two guys seems to have more DPS than you with weapons, so its better to exploit its magical weakness.

And as an out of character question, how do we deal with Zidane's steal command? FF9 was a very steal focused game and greatly rewarded using it on anything that moves, specially bosses, which is cool gameplay wise, but in a slightly more realistic format such as an RP, it would only make sense to steal from human targets or in creatures that wore equipment
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>>699570
>human targets or in creatures that wore equipment
there are a lot of those, you know.

Besides, I can think of some really powerful uses, like stealing the gem from a Sand Giant to instakill it.

Let's not talk about that until we get there, OP needs to stay on task.
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It's looking good so far, will definitely keep up with this quest.
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So it turns out that overnight shifts make you sleep for most of the day once you get home. Who knew? I'll get a post up in the next hour or so, and run off and on throughout the night. My work week officially began last night, so I'm going to have plenty of late nights to run this thing. It won't move quickly, but it should be a pretty constant thing.

>>699077
That sort of out of the box thinking is what a good blue mage should do.

>>699570
>>699595
Zidane's stealing is going to be more of just a thing he can do, rather than a "command". I'm thinking each character's equipment will operate along the principle of "sidegrades", where there are very few things that are strictly better than the rest, but each one does something unique. New abilities are going to come up when it makes sense for them to, particularly if you guys want to go for something specific.

Funny enough, the one thing I'm still not sure about is how to handle learning new blue magic spells. I don't want spells to be "missable", but I don't want them to be automatic, either, and I definitely don't want a situation where you have to spend rounds upon rounds of combat trying to learn something over and over again.

What do you guys think? I'm open to any suggestions about that (or anything else) that you guys might have.
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>>701163
well... blue magic is learned from monsters yeah? so... make it so we can learn skills from a monsters remains, also wasn't there a shop in one city that had monsters you could fight under the floor of the main shop or something, we could always visit something like that or a Colosseum sort of thing to pick up spells we "missed".
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>>701302
That's not a bad idea. Treno already has the monster pit in the weapon shop, so expanding something like that could work for giving people a chance to lean stuff they missed.

I more meant learning blue magic in the first place, though. What sorts of mechanics would you guys like for that?
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>>701163
Let's focus on the Blue Magic. I'd say to put it off as well, but I guess this is kinda important.

I propose that we don't consider them as "missable" but rather "choose from X". We don't necessarily want 1 spell from EVERY single monster, that would give us way too many options compared to everyone else.

Proposition 1
>Collect "tropy" from every monster (Bomb Shell, Wolf Fang, Gizamaluke Fin, etc)
>Every 3 trophies of similar theme(Fire, Beast, Aquatic, Magic User, etc), we can cook them together to make a dish
>Pick one ability from those 3 monsters to learn, or possibly a Hybrid move.

Proposition 2
>Blue Magic Spells are actually "stored" in weapons.
>We have to buy the appropriate weapon to learn an ability from a certain type of monster.
>It's actually the weapon that "learns", so even if someone else uses the sword, the spell still gets stored.
>A weapon can only store 1-3 abilities

>>701314
Within the narrative structure of a Quest, you have far more freedom to balance spells to not be broken.
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>>701314
Well, getting hit by a learnable attack could teach it, as could simply killing enough of a particular enemy...
or we could have a "dissect" command that functions as a melee attack, if you kill a monster with it you learn its skill?
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>>701314

Well, he's an scholar, so I guess he could learn new abilities from witnessing how monsters works. I assume part of his background story involves studying monster and their nature, as that's the kind of in-context reason one would be to be a blue mage in first place besides the usual "he/she simply can do it, end of discussion".

I guess it be a combination of analyzing combat abilities and maybe using a catalyst like another anon said about gathering pieces of creatures
>>
Good suggestions, guys. I'll take them into consideration.

Also, probably not going to be running tonight after all. If I do, it'll be sometime later, but it'll most likely be tomorrow morning.
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>>701674
I like the idea of cooking and eating monsters to learn new things. Maybe where the preparation has as much to do with it as the eating; like a combination autopsy/butchering (and the spices and cooking are like doing "Science" in a lab with chemicals and heated glassware)
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>>698970
>Overall strategy has been decided: Zidane attacks the bomb's flank and runs interference, Steiner keeps himself between the bomb and your back line, and you and Vivi use spells.

Roll me 1d6 each. The first three rolls are going to be added up to determine your total. We're going by degrees of success, instead of crits and crit failures, so while "swing" rounds are going to be less common, you're still going to get better results if you beat a DC by a lot. These rules are subject to change later if they turn out to not work as well as I hope they will, so let me know what you think once we've tried it out a bit.

DC is 9. Good luck, guys!
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>>703957
>>
Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>703961
And I forgot my dice. Whoops.
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Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>703957
>>
Well you guys have passed the DC. Let's have one more roll to see if you guys can pull that up even more.
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Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>703957
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>>703962
>>703971
>>704066

The bomb wastes no time in spitting out a spray of sparks and flame, blanketing the area with stifling heat.

Fortunately, you aren't wasting any time, either.

"Zidane, flank it and attack when you can! Captain, stay in front and keep it from reaching our position!" you shout, voice carrying just enough to ring out over the venting steam and blasts of cannon fire still rocking the airship.

Zidane and Steiner call out their agreement and take their positions right away. As the monkey boy zooms off, daggers glinting in the moonlight, you turn to the shaky little kid standing beside you. He's scared. He's afraid you're all about to die here, and all he wanted was to watch a play.

You begin to conjure another septic drop above the bomb's spherical body, and with a flourish, you pour the last of the magical poison into water.

"This isn't the best time for introductions, but my name is Tobias Alderleaf. I'm a mage, like you, and we need your help to beat this thing, or we're probably going to die. I would like to avoid that. Do you know any ice magic?"

The kid tugs anxiously on the brim of his floppy hat. He looks like he wasn't expecting for anyone to ask for his help, let alone shoulder him with that sort of pressure.

"B-But what can I do against something like that? What if I set it off or something? What if it gets angrier and blows us all up and it's all my fault?"

Your eyes flit back to the battle and you release the septic drop, timing it just before the bomb crashes into Steiner. The blow is softened somewhat as the beast's momentum stumbles, allowing the burly knight to smash his sword into its side. The bomb screeches and rolls backwards in the air, only for Zidane to make another running leap and cut into its left arm with his daggers. The three of you are doing well, but the bomb is still steadily growing. You know you don't have much time left.

"What's your name?"

The little mage blinks. Even at this distance, you can't make out any of his other features. It's like he doesn't even have any at all.

"...Vivi, sir."

Vivi, then. Even if he's just a novice, every little bit helps; and he was holding off royal guards with his spells. He's clearly good enough to deal some serious damage to a bomb.

"Vivi, listen to me: The three of us might not be able to do this without you. You don't have time to doubt yourself right now. Now help me with this!"
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>>704182
11 = 1 extra degree of success!

Something about what you said gets through to him! Nodding quickly, Vivi stretches his gloved hands out and unleashes a fierce gust of freezing wind, savagely pummeling the huge bomb!

Zidane lets out a roudy cheer as he sees that both mages are working in tandem, and suddenly the battle has swing even further in your favor. The bomb knows where the brunt of its pain is coming from, but for all his bluster and pomp, Steiner is genuinely very skilled, especially when it comes to protecting your back line. Meanwhile, every second the bomb focuses on the rest of you is a second Zidane can use to sneak in some attacks from behind. Your sheer numbers are quickly overwhelming the monster.

It must realize this is hopeless, because it quickly gives up on trying to put up a fight. Instead, it does what you were afraid of: its stubby arms quickly elongate and bulge with liquid fire as it pumps more and more of its fiery essence outward. This thing looks about ready to burst now. Instead of attacking you, however, it uses its arms to push itself off from the ground and fly over the side of the Prima Vista.

Before you can even wonder if you've won, you can feel the ship lurch to the side from which it jumped. You immediately realize what's going on: it's latched onto the side! It knows it can't contend with all of you at once, but it also clearly knows that you can't fly!

The four of you regroup and sprint over to the edge of the ship, peering down at it. It's only about ten feet below the top of the deck, so you and Vivi can still hit it without any problem, but Zidane and Steiner won't be able to reach it with just their weapons, and jumping off to hit it runs the very real risk of falling to their deaths.

The bomb cackles and swells, turning a worrying, brilliant orange hue. You don't have much time left.

Zidane turns to you, looking worried for the first time.

"Right! So! What now?" he asks, his voice still chipper, in contrast with how nervous he looks. He's good at putting on a strong face. The other two look to you as well. Like it or not, everyone is looking to you to figure out what to do here.

>Because you were able to quickly get Vivi to join the battle, you have some more time to deal with this. It isn't much, but it could make the difference.

What will you do?

>Nobody jump! Vivi and I might be able to finish it off with just spell!
>Steiner, jump down and stab it! It's risky, but a direct hit like that will end this for sure!
>Zidane, jump down and slice it up! It might not kill it on its own, but you've got a better chance of getting back up!
>I'll jump! I need to make sure it dies, and I can't ask you to take that risk for me!
>Something else?
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>>704186
>Stone Gaze it
>Vivi, freeze the arms
>Zidane, I hate to ask you this, but can you climb down and shatter the arms?
work that monkey tail
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>>704186
>Something else?
can we drop a septic drop on the edge of the ship so it pours down the side and hits the bomb?
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>>704197
we can just hit it directly with septic drop. So can Vivi with blizzard.

The problem is that our melee characters can't do anything.
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>>704197
That's an option, yes.
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>>704195

Sounds like a plan, although instead of risking Zidane too much, maybe we can find a rope or chains neaby and tie them to one of his daggers? That way Zidane only gets close enough and swings, God of War Kratos style, one of his daggers at him from distance and shatters his arms without needing to get dangerously close to the bomb
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>>704198
well... there are stage pieces on deck from the play right? have steiner and zidane toss one over the side after our septic drop, the bomb should be too busy getting doused to do much about the falling object.

also... how much damage is the poison racking up?
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>>704201
It would be safer to hold onto the rope and swing/rappel. Kratos daggers are basically badly balanced whips, with improvised chains you're more likely to hit with the flat of the blade and have the daggers slip off.

>>704202
Steiner can definitely do that.

Poison is inherently not going to do much against the quickly self-destructing monster. We'd get the most value by discouraging it from trying to self-destruct. It's a little late to be attempting that.
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>>704210

True enough. Then I change my vote for looking for a rope/chain, do the septic drop /blizzard combo and then have Steiner swing Zidane near the bomb. That's it, if there's a rope/chain available, otherwise just use magic against it.
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>>704202
A decent amount by now, and still going. Unfortunately, while it's done a good chunk of damage, it won't matter if the thing blows up anyway. The good news is that it has definitely helped, and thanks to your repeated castings of septic drop, it hasn't had a chance to shake the poison off. If you do well this round, the bomb will die. That can be achieved with any of the options, but the riskier ones will be easier.

Or, in the case of Steiner jumping, you won't even have to roll for damage;0 you'll roll for whether or not he gets back on the ship afterwards.
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>>704195
>>704210
>>704213

Give me a d6 each, guys. First three rolls count. DC is 9 again.
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Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>704288
>>
Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>704288
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Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>704288
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>>704291
>>704310
>>704313

"Vivi, keep it up! Captain, Zidane...!" you have an idea. Sending Steiner down the side of the ship would be sending him to his almost certain death, and while Zidane might be a safer bet, that still comes with a big risk. You need a lifeline.

Fortunately, you find one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQzzoQAl4tk&

The Prima Vista is equal parts airship and stage. Stages need some way to move their scenery around quickly, and that means ropes and weights. It isn't hard for you to find a rope, and you've already got one big, loud weight helping you fight this thing.

"Captain, hold onto that rope and brace yourself against something sturdy! Zidane, tie the rope around your waist, then jump down there and slice it to pieces!" you bellow, confident that your plan will finish the molten monstrosity once and for all.

"Countin' on you, Rusty. Don't drop me, or you'll never convince a pretty lady knight to let you carry her off into the sunset." Zidane smirks as he scoops up the sturdy hemp rope and fastens it tightly about his waist.

Steiner fumes and grits his teeth, but he seems to realize that time is a major factor. Besides, history has thus far shown that listening to you is everyone's best chance at stopping things from getting even worse, so he winds the rope around one arm and grips it with both hands.

Once Steiner has properly braced himself against a sturdy piece of scenery, he shouts for Zidane to hurry up and jump.

"If I didn't know any better, Rusty, I'd say you want me gone!!" Zidane yells, his last word emphasized by a confident leap off the side of the ship.

From the stairwell behind you, you can hear both Blank and Princess Garnet shriek in panic as Zidane jumps. Apparently you have an audience.
>>
>>704551
You don't have time to pay them any mind, however. You and Vivi begin hurling your spells at the bulging bomb once again, intent on weakening the thing enough for Zidane to finish it off.

10 = success!

You have to pause for a moment to keep from accidentally hitting Zidane during his descent, but once he's clear, you and Vivi rain down ice and poisoned water on the bomb once more! Zidane stabs downward as he falls into position, and you can hear Steiner groaning from exhertion behind you, but he keeps the monkey boy steady all the same. As your spells hammer into the molten menace, Zidane deftly swings himself towards the side of the ship, then suddenly kicks off it, using his momentum to perform a slicing attack along the full length of the bomb's arm as he passes.

The combination of your spells and Zidane's quick thinking cause that arm to burst open, spilling white-hot lava into the air! Fortunately, the people in the stands have long evacuated to a more distant position, so there's no danger of any of it leaking onto any of them.

Better yet, the injury causes that hand to lose its grip on the Prima Vista! The bomb is hanging on by just a single hand!

"Keep it up, Zidane! We've almost got this!" you yell, deciding now is as good a time as any to concentrate solely upon that one arm.

Unfortunately, it's now using its injured arm to block some of the damage from your spells! It's not a perfect defense, by any means, and the poison in its system is still taking its toll, but the bomb has flopped its leaking molten arm over the top of the other, meaning most of your magic is just hitting that one instead. It's still taking plenty of damage, but making it fall is going to be difficult.

You can tell it's nearly dead. Smoke is billowing off the bomb's body like a chimney, and its cackles have grown feeble and hoarse. You nearly have it!

And just then, things take a turn for the worse.

With a grimace, the huge bomb puffs up one last time, then swings its injured arm to the side, landing a surprise haymaker right into Zidane's chest with the back of its 'bicep'. The monkey boy cries out in pain and shock as he's slammed hard against the side of the ship.

The bomb's arm flops limply to its side, and that maneuver clearly did in what was left of it, but that one hit was enough to wind your quick-footed comrade. You aren't sure if Zidane is conscious; he's dangling there, but he hasn't let go of his daggers. He's a fighter, that's for sure.
>>
What a time to mess up my text formatting. Welcome to blue town, everyone!
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>>704564
The bomb begins to glow a searing hot white now, and you know your next move needs to come very quickly if you're going to stop this explosion.

Steiner might not be able to pull Zidane back up in time, but if you and Blank help him, you might be able to get him back on deck before the bomb detonates.

If you and Vivi work together, you might be able to finish it off in time, but what if you can't? What if you sent Zidane to his death with this plan of yours? You hadn't accounted for it being willing to sacrifice its arm just to get in one last spiteful hit; then again, these are monsters who blow themselves up.

Your heart races! Your head is pounding! What are you supposed to do!?

You feel white-hot power welling up inside you; a surge of emotion usually kept politely in check.

You have to save him. You have to save him and finish the bomb off before it can detonate. You have to!

A wave of brilliant blue light radiates out from you, and in and instant, you feel a surge of strength you never knew you had!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfu0XBf8kmk [Embed]

"Wh-What...is this...?" you hear Steiner murmur. Even if you knew the answer, you can't waste time talking right now.

Your next spell will finish this. It has to.

You have entered Trance! This special state is triggered by an intense surge of emotion, no matter what that emotion may be, but only those whose hearts are tempered by a strong and unflinching resolve will find success in achieving it.

While in this state, Tobias' stats increase, and his spells deal double their normal damage! In addition, rather than casting his regular spells, he gains the ability to 'mix' his blue magic spells together! You can choose the same spell twice to greatly enhance the effect, or choose two different ones to combine their effects!


No rolls. How do you end this?

>Combine Stone Gaze and Septic Drop, creating Heaven' Cataract
>Enhance Stone Gaze, creating Demon Eye
>Enhance Septic Drop, creating Clean Sweep
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>>704602
>Enhance Septic Drop, creatingClean Sweep
I really want to use the Demon Eye but we should end this quickly
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>>704583

Nitori a cute, CUTE!

>>704602

>>Enhance Septic Drop, creating Clean Sweep

No time for status effects, that thing has to die, NOW.
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>>704602
>Enhance Septic Drop, creating Clean Sweep
say... can the cocoon spell combine with anything? either way clean sweep seems the best option.
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>>704651
I'm thinking it probably can later on; either a spell which enhances it and gives it some extra elemental resistance, or a spell to trap and squeeze the target. Probably both, come to think of it. It all depends on what you combine it with and how creative you are.

Anyway, Clean Sweep won. I'll write that up soon, and then that'll probably do it for this first thread.
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>>704617
>>704636
>>704651

[Clean Sweep]

Splaying your right hand's fingers, you swipe your arm towards the enormous bomb, feeling an unusual resistance as you do so. It's as if you're dragging your hand through an invisible stream, laced through the air itself. The resistance only lasts for the blink of an eye, however, and by the time you even register its presence, it's vanished, leaving an almighty rush of water in its place.

Your magic stores open as if by the breaking of a floodgate, and from your arm, a massive wave of water and fury plunges down at the molten nuisance. Its efforts to cling on are utterly futile as it's swept away in the sudden current. Rather than bring it to the ground, however, you sweep your arm upwards, causing the wave to arc up into the sky high above the Prima Vista.

In lieu of the fireworks which previously heralded the Princess' birthday celebration - now gone, on Queen Brahne's order - the bomb is held aloft for just a few seconds, before the intense water pressure crushes it utterly.

Mere moments before it could detonate, the bomb crumbles into lifeless ash, which sprinkles down listlessly once your spell dissipates.

Your fellow ship-goers are speechless as your brilliant aura softens and fades. Steiner almost forgets to pull Zidane up until the latter yells at him to do so. You're exhausted, you're overwhelmed, and you can hardly believe you just did any of that.

But amidst the distant sounds of cannon fire, the castle's harpoons falling far short of the high-flying theater ship, two figures approach your tired form.

"Man, you saved our asses. I seriously owe you one." Zidane smiles, wincing as he holds his ribs. He should really get that checked out.

And from the stairs, Princess Garnet has rushed to your side. Her hand rests on your shoulder, her expression still anxious but now tinged with relief.

"You really did save us, Tobias. I cannot imagine what might have become of us had the four of you not intervened when you did. Thank you."

Congratulations are given all around. Zidane grins proudly, Vivi gives a shy mumble of thanks and insists that he really didn't do much of anything, and even Steiner looks somewhat pleased with himself; that is, until he remembers that he just aided in the princess' kidnapping. His stern face falls dramatically.

"W-W-Wait a minute!! This isn't how it was supposed to happen at all!! I demand you turn this vessel around immediately, so that the princess can be returned home safely and you can all stand trial for-"

Your fatigue is getting the better of you. You aren't unconscious yet, but you can feel it coming any minute. You mumble out what you hope is a warning to them that you're about to pass out, but you're really too tired to tell. So you're a kidnapper now. Well, at least the princess is safe; and Dr. Tot seemed to approve of your decision.

Maybe you'll figure out what's going on once you wake up.
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>>705502
And that's it for thread #1 of Blue Mage's Tale! Thanks again to everyone who participated. I can't tell you how great it is to have players in my very first quest thread, now that I finally worked up the nerve to start one. I'm not sure when I'll run next, but I'm going to try and shoot for Monday. Like this thread, it's going to stay up for quite some time, and I'm not planning on things moving too quickly, so everyone should have plenty of time to participate if you want.

I'll be back on throughout the day if you guys have any questions or feedback for me. Thanks again, guys!

Also, does anyone know how to archive threads? I've never done it before.
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>>705505
Thanks for running, I'm actually excited to see how this will go from here, especially since I haven't finished FFIX. As far as getting new abilities I would support either learning from observing monsters, maybe tutors or books we could pay for and equipment if nothing else works.
Unfortunately I don't know how to archive
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>>705505
Not sure how to archive... maybe ask in the quest thread general?
and thanks for the thread Owl, this is off to a good start!
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>>705505

You are doing a great job, man. Keep doing what you are doing.

As for skill obtaining, I still think Tobias should learn by inspection, and as the scholar that he is, he has a built in scan command/spell that lets him know about a limited number of creatures and also adds more of them to his monster encyclopedia during the adventure (That's it, if he does carry something like that, no idea what is his field of expertise of scholarship)

In the case of Vivi, maybe obtain magic tomes that teaches him spells and he takes a while to master them as reading isn't going to immediately make one be able to cast magic. Ditto for Garnet and Eiko's white magic, their summons can simply be dealt with as part of the plot.

Steiner and Freya if I remember well were considered seasoned warriors already, so I dunno how to justify that they do NOT start with at least mid tier abilities. Maybe they are rusty and haven't really faced something that put to test their abilities in a while?

Amarant is amarant, he joins late and thus wouldn't be weird for him to have most of his abilities already.

Quina is an odd guy/girl, they can stay as they are and learn blue magic in the strange way their species does, no harm in keeping it like that.

And Zidane, eh, he probably simply learns from experience, he seems to be that kind of guy.

And those are my ideas, although I guess you already had some system in mind, you did mention they would come up when they make sense.
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>>705505
Great first thread, OP it was fun and engaging.

To archive go to suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/requestqstinterface.html?

That should take you to the form you can fill out

I'm on my phone and don't have the exact link so if it takes you to a 404 just google suptg and you can click around until you find the qst archive page
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We're archived! Thanks for the feedback, guys. I'm glad you've enjoyed it so far.
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>>707781
Just read the thread. Seems good, man. I have no idea what's going on since I've never played Final Fantasy 9, but I like the main characters.

Now we just got to find out what our motivation for the Blue Mage is going to be other than Garnet is hot, but I'm looking forward to it. Also O guess you have the game's plot to lean on as well.
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Is OP dead? It's been a week since his very first post, so I thought he would've started a new thread by now
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>>727896
OP never left a means to contact, so who knows. I just check the Catalog now and again to see if a new thread started.



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