[PP|F-01] The House that Death Built

[Kismet 0]

The sky has gone dark.
Players and NPCs alike have begun to trickle into Inns and homes.
Somewhere, a woman has gone out on a date and left the business she owns reserved for a private party. A special kind of party, one where only a single woman sits awaiting her players.

The Twinkling-Tea Stop is an astral themed cafe, normally open from 8 AM to 8 PM, but today it has closed an hour early and the sign on the door has been replaced with one that says 'Closed - Reserved Party only' despite being a few minutes before closing time. Some of the small building's lights are on, seen through closed curtains and the window of the front door. Twinkling lights line the black walls, but only two ceiling lights are on, one at the register, where white lights flood a large crescent moon behind the counter, and one over the center of the room, where two of the cafe's tables have been pulled together to make more space. A party plate of sandwiches sits in the middle, a bowl of hard candies in two of the corners across from each other, and three pitchers of tea, pink lemonade, and ice in each of the other corners. A chair sits on each side of the table, with a small plate and a cup. The side opposite to the entrance and the register though has a barrier made of cafe menus separating the person sitting behind the barrier.

Speaking of, the person sitting behind is a familiarly cloaked person to the people arriving to this private meeting. A small person, hidden in shadows by the snow-white cloak protecting them from the light above with only a glimmer from their purple eyes. While waiting on her guests to arrive, she slowly scribbles on paper with pencils as intricate designs go through her mind of an imaginary house only depicted in books and by words, sometimes spoken out loud, sometimes read in quiet contemplation, and yet ventured through hundreds of times.

"I wonder if I should give them any magic items to start with..." The mysterious small person mutters to themselves while putting a white gloved finger to their chin, "ah, no, be more fun to reward them for finding them resourcefully and such... I'll give them a bonus feat to start with though."

 

Level 1|HP: 20|EN:20
Notable Skills: First Aid (Rank 1)

[Freyd 0]

Preoccupied by the fog of war waging its way through the backalleys of his own mind, Freyd was moving on instinct, following steps retraced a thousand times over through the thinning crowds and familiar streets of the Town of Beginnings.  He'd been to the Hummingbard more times than he could count, knew the way like the back of his hand, even having tried it in his sleep once or twice, though that was more often on the return trip after his business had been concluded.  Thus it was, with great surprise, that he found himself standing in some place utterly and complete not where he expected to be.

Sporting a crisp and freshly laundered dark grey haori over his twilight blue kemono, he'd favoured not to wander town like was making ready to storm some castle,for a change.  Arched brows twisted into confusion, he glanced about, piecing together the telltale signs and smells of the tea shop, but failed completely to figure out which he might have entered.

"What the... this isn't...oh."  The diminutive women behind the table had been muttering something to herself as he arrived, a pair of rabbity ears perched proudly on her head, pairing with a slowly spinning green crystal overhead.  Between Elora's elven ears and Xena's cat-like features, her appearance was less jarring than might have been expected.  The game's base and art style was anime, after all, and bunny girls were practically ubiquitous.  the scene before him seemed set for some sort of seance, arcane diagram and strangely shaped crystals arrayed in matching sets as if expecting a larger group,  The obsidian ones immediately drew his interest.

"I may have taken a wrong turn," he offered, apologetically, yet still unable to overcome his curiosity.  "But what is this place, and what's the setup for?"

***

Note: CS (Shades of the Gemini) and CSA (Beckon the Void) are in use.  If any other player objects to these, please state in first post and it will be considered inactive.

Freyd consumes and shares (because why not):

Mega Slime Farm used.

Gungir’s Shard (Untradeable/Unique/Reusable Consumable): Smokin' Hot Honey Bun Tray | ACC 2 | EVA 2 | Feast (6/6) + [filled ACC]

Freyd | HP: 1300/1300 | EN: 162/162 | DMG: 21 | MIT:152 | ACC: (8 incl AA)  | TAUNT | F-SPIRIT | EVA:4 | BH:72 | VAMP-D: 72 | VAMP-O: 143 | PARA-V | LD:4                                                                                                                            

Spoiler

Name: Freyd, Kuro bara no kishi
True Tier: 18
Level: 34
Paragon Level: 143
HP: 1300/1300
EN: 162/162

Stats:
Damage: 21
Mitigation: 152
Accuracy: 4
Evasion: 2
Battle Healing: 72
Loot Die: 4
Stealth Rating: -5
AA
TAUNT
VAMP-D: 72
VAMP-O: 143
PARA-V

Equipped Gear:
Weapon/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Veritas | T4 Katana) | AA, PVO I, VO I, Taunt
Armor/Trinket: 
  - Negare Omnia | T4 HA | MIT III | VD I
Shield/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Night Shades | T3 Trinket | ACC III | EVA I

Combat Mastery:
  - Combat Mastery: Damage R3

Combat Shift:
  - AOE Shift

Familiar Skill:
  - [unavailable]

Custom Skill:
  - Shades of the Gemini (CS)
  - Beckon the Void (CSA)

Skills:
  - Battle Healing R5
  - Charge
  - Energist
  - Extended Mod Limit
  - Extended Weight Limit
  - Fighting Spirit
  - Heavy Armor R5
  - Howl
  - Katana R5
  - Lock Picking R1
  - Quick Change
  - Searching R4

Extra Skills:
  - Disguise
  - Survival
  - Leadership R5

Inactive Extra Skills:
  - Forgotten King's Authority
  - Meditation
  - Lady Luck
  - Photosynthesize
  - Brawler
  - Assault Mode
  - Frozen Hide

Addons:
  - Focus
  - Focused Howl
  - Iron Skin
  - Precision
  - Reveal
  - Stamina

Mods:
  - Detect
  - Elusive
  - Impetus
  - Night Vision
  - Press the Attack
  - Rally
  - Tracking

Inactive Mods:
  - Emergency Recovery
  - Inspiring Speech
  - Steadfast

Battle Ready Inventory:
  - Bear Trap (Reusable 1/combat) x1
  - Bear Trap (Reusable 1/combat) x1
  - Crystal of Divine Light (Reusable 1/thread) x1
  - Mass HP Rec [Inst] (+10% HP) x7
  - Meathook (Reusable 1/combat) x1
  - Ordsea Crystal-B (Reusable 1/combat) x1
  - Ordsea Crystal-B (Reusable 1/combat) x1
  - Rhino's Horn (Reusable 1/combat) x1
  - Samael's Pride | T4 Katana | FLN II | HLY II  x1
  - Teleport Crystals x7

Housing Buffs:
  - Bedroom: -1 energy cost for the first two expenditures of each combat
  - Bathroom: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down)
  - Basic Kitchen: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps. Ex: A perfect T2 MIT food gives 35 MIT instead of 30.
  - Storage Closet: +1 Battle Ready Inventory Slot
  - Living Room: Increases out of combatHP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
  - Attic (Bedroom): +1 Expertise to declared utility skill. Cannot boost a skill without ranks, or increase a skill past its maximum rank. Cannot boost a skill the user has not learned yet. Ranks obtained using this buff will make the mods of that rank available for purchase. Mods obtained this way are unusable if this buff is removed until the skill is returned to the appropriate rank by way of SP purchase.
  - Basement: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll
  - Guest Room: Players can have one «Amenity» in a «Guest Room» and the «Amenity» cannot be recovered. Players are allowed to change which «Amenity» is in the «Guest Room». Multiple instances of the same «Amenity» do not stack. This buff affects the player and their choice of up to two party members.
  - Extended Workshop: +2 Crafting EXP per crafting attempt and +1 crafting attempt per day
  - Ornate Fishing Pond: +2 Fishing EXP per Attempt and additional +1 LD & CD to fishing attempts.
  - Dining Hall: Turn 3 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Feast. A Feast contains 6 portions of the food items sacrificed. Feasts created this way cannot be used outside of the thread they are created. Limit 1 item created per thread.
  - Mega Slime Farm: +10% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post.

Guild Hall Buffs:
  - Trading Hall: Reduce LD needed for Salvage by 5 (10+ for Alchemist crystals, 6+ for everything else). +2 EXP per craft. Rank 9 crafters and Rank 4 merchants/performers receive +1 crafting/identification attempt per day. Rank 10 crafters and Rank 5 merchants/performers receive +2 crafting/identification attempts per day.
  - Treasury: +5% bonus col from last-hit monster kills and +10% bonus col from treasure chests.

Scents of the Wild Totem:
  - Tanos

Crafting Profession:
 - Appraising[3478exp] R5
Gathering Profession:
 - Fishing[576exp] R5

 

Edited Friday at 11:16 PM by Freyd

[Pollux 0]

If by any chance their third participant was just as eccentric in their choice of self-expression, they could, hilariously, convince the lost old man that he’d walked right into a furry cult ritual. Yue Hua arrived dressed in the full effects of her vanity potions, unlike in their trip to the desert where she had gone half without for her comfort, with her yellow-to-blue gradiented hair loosened to its full length and her hands painted, a pair of horns atop her head, and a long feathered tail, the end of which wrapped around the doorknob and swung it shut behind her. Eyes lined with kohl fell first on the cute bunny girl at the head of the table and Yue Hua’s oft placid expression lit up like a bulb. Like recognizes like.

“Hello, Miss Kismet,” she greeted with a glowing smile. She resisted gushing over a stranger’s appearance right off the bat, instead occupying her attention with the two empty chairs. “I messaged you about the invite. Player name Pollux, but I prefer to be called Yue Hua. Am I too early?”

Then she turned to nod politely at the aforementioned lost old man. She slowly blinked as they made eye contact. Blue eyes? And something about his voice--

“Freyd…?” Yue Hua guessed.

厌倦你浪潮般涨落地爱我 当作莫名靠岸惶惑地来过 再说了从未幻想过你爱我 天马行空都埋没

Spoiler LEVEL 24: HP: 480/480 | EN: 66/66 | DMG: 19 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 3 SKILLS Spoiler  | skills mod count: 3/5 STRAIGHT SWORD | RANK 5/5 [BASE: Proficiency] +7 DMG [ADDON: Ferocity] +2 DMG [ADDON: Precision] +1 ACC [ADDON: Stamina] Reduce EN of all attacks by 2. [SHIFT: TECH Specialist] For TECH Sword Arts, +4 to multipliers, +3 to EN cost. COMBAT MASTERY: DAMAGE | RANK 3/3 [BASE: Proficiency] +9 DMG | extra skills [2] FIRST AID | RANK 5/5 [BASE: Proficiency] [PA, 15 EN] Single target heal: 20% of target max HP. [MOD: Purify] [PA, 3 EN, 1 CD] Single target cleanse: Can target the user. [MOD: Energize] [PA, 10 EN] Single target restoration: +8 EN. [ADDON: Hyperactive] [PA, 5 EN, 3 CD] Single target buff: +3 Passive EN Regen for three turns. Can target the user. [MOD: Barrier] [PA, 15 EN, 2 CD] AoE buff: Reduce final damage from all sources by 15% for one turn. [ADDON: Field Medic] [PA, 15 EN, 3 CD] AoE heal: 25% of target(s) max HP. | expenditure Spoiler Total SP: 120 | Spent: 119 | Unspent: 1 SKILL: Axe (30) ADDON: Stamina (4) ADDON: Precision (2) ADDON: Ferocity (4) SHIFT: TECH Specialist (10) SKILL: Combat Mastery: Damage (13) EXTRA SKILL: First Aid (30) MOD: Purify (4) MOD: Energize (5) MOD ADDON: Hyperactive (5) MOD: Barrier (6) ADDON: Field Medic (6)   EQUIPMENT Spoiler Dull Blade DAMAGE II TIER 1 RARE STRAIGHT SWORD It's worn from use. But the swordswoman favors it anyway. It was her first blade. Seafoam EVADE III TIER 1 PERFECT TRINKET A small glass bottle filled with sea water, miniature sea shells, and prop organisms. INVENTORY Spoiler (1) Teleport Crystal Use a post action to activate a teleport crystal. Teleports the player to the town or designated teleportation area they specify. SWORD ARTS Spoiler | ST [x12] ST-I (10 EN) | A single-target sword art. [x15] ST-II (13 EN) | A powerful single-target sword art. Only available for use when ST-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if ST-II had been used and had missed the previous turn. [x20] ST-B (18 EN) | A devastating single-target sword art. Can only be used if the sword art used the previous turn is not ST-B and had rolled a natural CD9+. When performing an AoE attack, use only the first roll. | AOE [x11] AOE-I (9 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. [x14] AOE-II (12 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A powerful sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. Only available for use when AOE-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if AOE-II had been used and had missed all intended targets the previous turn. | TECH [x16] TECH-A (14 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy. [x16] TECH-B (13 EN) | DELAY | A single-target sword art that, on a successful strike, applies [Delay] on the enemy. [Delay] is a debuff that reduces the enemy’s ACC by 1 for one turn.

Edited Friday at 04:50 AM by Pollux

[Ryo 0]

A strange letter had found its way into the samurai's inventory. Less so his digital inventory, and more along his belongings. Someone had planted it. At first he was afraid it was old ghosts come to haunt him, but it didn't seem to be the case. Instead of threats or promises, it instructed him to meet somewhere at a specific time. He had half a thought to toss the letter aside and ignore it entirely, but it intrigued him enough to keep him thinking most of the day. Who was it that planted this letter on him, and what did they want with him? The instructions bade him to the first floor within it's safe zone, so there was no fear of being ambushed. And so he went.

Following the instructions it led him to a cafe of sorts. Which, he'd seen before? He tilted his head in thought, trying to place when he was here last. Regardless, the building said closed for private party. Must've meant him and whoever it was that summoned him. Some of the lights were still on in the building, and inside Ryo could see shapes moving about. He counted two shapes moving, and one shifting around. He took a deep breath. "This better not be them." He muttered to himself before taking the slight step up and opening the door.

Inside, he was quite surprised. Two people he didn't recognize and one he did. Well, less recognize because of facial features and more so that he recognized a woman wearing bunny ears. "Oi." He said, greeting the room. Looking around he saw snacks, drinks, and various things spread on a table. He remembered the name of the person with bunny ears. "Kitkat, what is this? Did you slip me this letter?" He asked using an incorrect name while producing the letter. While she answered, Ryo kept close to the door in case he needed to quickly get away from a sudden trap. His eyes wandered to the other two in the room. The golden woman sported horns and a feathered tail. She didn't seem like much a threat, but he could never be too careful. His eyes shot over to the other person. At first glance Ryo thought he may have been older his hair sporting grey and white. But upon closer inspection, it seemed that this was cosmetic as his face was quite young. Despite his casual appearance, he felt more like a threat than anyone else in the room. Ryo spoke up again. "Kitkat, these friends of yours?" He asked, not entering the room further.

<quest link>

Ryo | HP: 680/680 | EN: 100/100 | DMG: 21 | MIT:91 | ACC:3 | BH:22 | REC: 3 | LD:2 [TIER LOCK] PARTY STATS Spoiler Ryo | HP: 680/680 | EN: 100/100 | DMG: 21 | MIT:91 | ACC:3 | BH:22 | REC: 3 | LD:2 THREAD INFO Spoiler equipped »Gin Kin (+9 DMG) »Fierce Deities Coat (+36 MIT, +3EN Recovery) »Accuracy Charm (+3 Accuracy) battle-ready inventory » » » » » skills »Katana R5 (+7 DMG) »Heavy Armor R5 (+40 MIT, -5 Stealth) »Battle Healing R3 (18 healing per turn) »Searching R2 (+2 LD, +2 Stealth Detection) » extra skills »Survival (Healing effects 10% more, immune to environmental effects) »Leadership R1 (Grants access to Leadership Arts, takes 2 Extra Slots) »Leadership R1 » » addons »[Katana] Focus (Minor Crit on BD 8, reduce DoT threshold by 1) »[Katana] Stamina (-2 EN) »[Heavy Armor] Iron Skin (+15 MIT, +45 HP) mods »Impetus (+1 DMG) »Emergency Recovery (Heal 62 when brought below 156 | Once per thread | 10EN) »Night Vision (No penalties from low light/darkness) buffs » Dining Room: "Tasty" - Turn 2 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Lesser Feast. A Lesser Feast contains 4 portions of the food items sacrificed. Lesser Feasts created this way cannot be used outside of the thread they are created. Limit 1 item created per thread. » Basic Kitchen: "Filling" - Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps.(Ex: A perfect T2 MIT food gives 35 MIT instead of 30.) » Living Room: "Relaxed" - Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.

[Kismet 0]

Kismet stopped writing as soon as she heard the door open, slowly she looked up, and laced her fingers together in a mastermind pose as she saw Freyd.

"Freyd not." Kismet spoke with a slightly deeper pitch in her voice to add to the mystique of her hooded form. Also did she just say his name despite having never met him before, or was that a coincidence of the tongue? "You are precisely where you need to be. Precisely where you should be. For I don't think it's an accident that you arrived, it never is, in fact, by the night's end, I think you'll find you were very glad you came."

 

"Ms. Yue Hua, yesssss~" Although her face is hidden under a hood, Yue Hua sees Kismet's head pop up a little bit even as she tries to maintain the mysterious mystic vibe, like recognizes like indeed. "We've still a few minutes actually, well, technically. The real start time was always going to be whenever our last arrives." Kismet grins, happy to see a fellow inhumanly fashionable person arriving. "Neat trick with your tail feathers there. I gotta get me one of those~" Kismet fluttered her eyes thoughtfully, unfortunately even if she did attach a bit of cotton fluff to her rear, she didn't see herself pulling off such tricks. Plus, I mean, the ears are one thing, but could I really go through with getting a cute little bunny tail...? Naaaaaaaaah. In truth, her heartbeat fluttered a bit at the thought and in the darkness of her hood her cheeks turned rosey, but alas, Kismet was not one to let herself be cutified so easily. Still though, she deemed asking Ms. Yue Hua where exactly she got her cosmetics an important quest, even if it wasn't in pursuit of a cute little bunny tail, the woman simply was cool looking and that was an example Kismet wouldn't mind replicating sometime.

 

Speaking of cool, Kismet leaned a little bit forward as Ryo entered and misspoke her name.

"Do I look like a Kat-girl to you Ryo? Besides, how should I know how it got there? I'm but a humble waitress, perhaps it was Kismet and it flew from it's intended target through the crack in your window. What's with that stance though, you're in a safe zone, in a building that I have partial ownership of for the night." As a demonstration of her power, Kismet opened a menu and locked the door, then unlocked it. She was also the one who had set the mood lighting earlier before anyone arrived. "Anyways, regardless of who that letter may or may not have been sent to or by, you're here, and seeing as you're the last person I was expecting..."

 

"Sit, oh, sit, won't you?" Kismet holds her gloved hands out to the three empty chairs before her. "The food and drinks are for you while we play, sorry they don't provide buffs, I had them made on short notice, but there's ham and turkey and tuna too and if you're desperate enough, I can go grab some condiments from my inventory. We've much to discuss, for the night is young and we must create the form you each wish to play." She retracts her hands and patiently waits for them to join her.

Assuming the three sit, Kismet hands a menu to them, although this one's interior has been replaced with sheets of paper scrawled with pencils rather than the cafe's normal drinks and foods.

"The creator of this death game has bastardized the escape from reality many sought by entering this world. Tonight, I will take you away from here to a world of adventure where you will become lights that fight the darkness fuming from hearts of evil. First though, we must create the vessel you will control through the tales we weave together tonight."

 

The menus Kismet has handed them shows the following:

CLASSES Artificer - Imbue objects with magic, become the creator of powerful tools and weapons, aid  Barbarian - Hit hard and take hits harder. Enter a rage to dull your pain to the world and increase your strength and the blows you deal. Bard - Sway men with your silver tongue, change the world with magic with your sheer force of will, and push your allies to go beyond with their words. Cleric - Become the intermediary between the mortal world and the gods. Defend others with holy spells and hurt your foes with a divine touch. As varied as their gods. Druid - Channel the forces of nature. Fight with magic or fight with the tooth and claw of beasts. Fighter - Become a true master of the battlefield, slay monsters and men with true technique. Monk - Harness energy that flows through your body in a display of speed and focus, destroy enemies with a flurry of blows. Paladin - Through sheer force of will, gain power from an oath or a god and reign down smites amongst those who go against your tenets, for glory, honor, or vengeance. Ranger - Become the hunter, track foes endlessly, know their weak points, hit them where it hurts while courting the world of nature through your weapon. Rogue - Rely on skill, stealth, and your foes' vulnerabilities to get the upper hand in any situation. No one can beat a Rogue in their field of expertise. Sorcerer - Gifted with magic that is latent in your very being. Wow mortals with the power of your heritage, from dragons to celestial beings to the source of magic itself. Wield powerful magic like no mere mortal can. Warlock - Make a pact with a powerful being, in return for carrying out their wills, gain powerful magic and knowledge no mortal was meant to have. Wizard - Through study you have mastered the arcane, begin a long journey to godhood by collecting spells from libraries and scrolls until the secrets of the universe are at your disposal.

ABILITIES Determine the order in which you want these abilities to be your strongest. STRENGTH - The default ability for hitting things and applying force to things. Useful for fighters and barbarians. DEXTERITY - Certain weapons such as daggers, bows, and rapiers use this ability instead. Also determines your ability to dodge attacks and traps. All classes care about this Ability a little bit unless they wear heavy armor. Monks, Rangers, Rogues, and Fighters that focus on ranged attacks care about this most. CONSTITUTION - Increases your HP. Determines how resistant you are to poison and disease. Spellcasters value this ability as the stronger it is the less likely they are to drop a spell they're concentrating on, also they need more HP as they start with less generally. Barbarians are harder to hurt the more Constitution they have (although they also get the most HP of all classes by default). WISDOM - Street smarts and insight. Helps you notice hidden threats, detect lies, and connect to the world around you. Monks with higher Wisdom are harder to hit. The spellcasting ability of Clerics, Druids, and Rangers. INTELLIGENCE - How knowledgeable you are, recall helpful information and deduce investigative notions. The spellcasting ability of Artificers, Wizards, and (optionally) Warlocks. CHARISMA - Your ability to impress your will onto the world and others. Useful for interacting with other people. The spellcasting ability of Bards, Paladins, Sorcerers, and (optionally) Warlocks.

SKILLS Choose four of the following to become 'proficient' in, increasing the chances of success with the skill which only get better as you level up! Note the ability listed above each group of skills, it is suggested you pick skills that compliment your best abilities. (Rogues choose six.)   Strength Athletics Dexterity Acrobatics Sleight of Hand Stealth Intelligence Arcana History Investigation Nature Religion Wisdom Animal Handling Insight Medicine Perception Survival Charisma Deception Intimidation Performance Persuasion

 

"For tonight, boys and girl, we storm the Death House in tonight's game of Dungeons and Dragons!" Kismet held her hands up like she was declaring the start of an occult ritual, spun a pencil in one of her hands, dropped it, quickly leaned over in her seat to snatch it up, then sat up, only letting the party catch a glimpse of her snow-white face before correcting her shifted hood.

"Now, I know what some of you are thinking, 'oh great and powerful Kismet, I've never played DnD before, I don't know the rules' or something along those lines. Well don't worry, I'll be running most of the calculations, and I'll be filling out your sheet using my wonderful memory-" she taps her forehead with her pencil "-of the rules and I'll keep combat relatively simple by reminding you what you can do on your turn and keeping track of the numbers for you. You just tell me how your character would react out of combat so I can describe the environment and people to you and I promise it'll be a breeze."

"Anyways, for right now, just pick a CLASS, the order from strongest to weakest of your ABILITIES, and finally pick what SKILLS you want. Outside of what's written before you, I'll be allowing you to come up with the RACE and backstory of your character on your own, literally be whatever medieval fantasy species you want, you wanna be an elf, I'll give you the abilities of an elf. Doesn't have to be anything normal either, just describe whatever you wanna play~!" Kismet seems to look at Yue Hua specifically when she says that, as if expecting her to come up with something like a 'half-dragon' or something. "And while your backstory should be whatever you want it to be, I'll be giving you a special feat, those are like Sword Arts b-t-dubs, depending on what kind of life your character has had before they were forced into the Death House, which, again, can be anything, but keep in mind you'll be starting as level 1 characters, spare for having amnesia, your character won't have been a godlike warrior or something."

Kismet seems to be sitting up straight excitedly by the time she finished talking. It's not too hard to imagine that if she had an adorable little bunny tail it'd be wagging as she sits ready to start writing up character sheets.

Edited Friday at 07:34 AM by Kismet

[Freyd 0]

"Yue Hua?" He seemed surprised and caught slightly off guard by the drastic change in her appearance.  "I suppose this explains some of your distaste for the desert, but also much more common ground with Xena than I might have previously thought."  She might have thought him just as much in costume by the beard and added bleaching of his nominally unruly mop, the black having been inexplicably drained to white by Callisto's near-fatal blow.

"D&D, you say?"  Brow furrowed yet buoyed by a broadening smile as he picked up his preferred molds of prismatic forms for inspection.  "I haven't seen dice like these or played a tabletop game since I was a kid.  Whatever gave you such an excellent idea?"  Something twinkled behind his eyes at the perverse amusement of toying with Kayaba's intricately woven web by inserting a game of their own within Aincrad's tragic tapestry.  Foot snaring and pulling out the nearest chair, he snatched and scarfed the nearest bit of ham and plunked himself down with unexpected vigor and surprise.

This is probably just what I needed.  The admission made with silent relief and acceptance that the sheer absurdity of its was utterly brilliant.

"Freyd, by the way."  A nodded greeting to their last arrival, who seemed more cagey than the others.  Kizmet's clever word play was lost on him, having taken it at face value and been too busy admiring the details of her hood by means of comparison with his own trademark cowl. The new arrival seemed on familiar terms with their hostess. That guy's gonna choose either rogue or warrior, probably prioritizing charisma.  A mental bet, made with himself ,was filed for future review.

"Alright.  Let's see how much of this I actually remember."  Listening attentively as Kismet energetically set the scene, an overwhelming sense of nostalgic comfort settled over him like a favourite, familiar blanket being draped over his shoulders by the gentle hands of his grandfather as they sipped tea upon the dock at sunrise. Quickly scrawling down a few rough notes and sketching a crude image on the page, he spun it round a few moments later for Kismet to review.

"How about this?"

Spoiler

"Bloop"

Myconid Druid
(Circle of Spores inspired)

Stats (Highest to Lowest)
- Wisdom
- Intelligence
- Constitution
- Dexterity
- Charisma
- Strength

Trained Skills:
- Nature
- Medicine
- Insight
- Survival

 

 

Edited Saturday at 12:23 AM by Freyd

[Pollux 0]

"Hehe. Thank you." The end of Yue Hua's tail flicked upward and she subconsciously brushed her hand through its feathers. "Your ears are lovely, too. I'd considered a similar effect in the past but I couldn't find the clothes to match. Not in my preferred style, at least."

She thought the newly reintroduced Freyd similarly inclined to their hobby, even though he had wandered here not by his intention and his words implied some degree of separation from it. Appearances spoke for themselves, didn't they? So, while her gaze was narrowed in scrutiny, she wasn't interested in the 'how.' She thought she had the answer to that. "Hmm..." Yue Hua leaned forward as much as she could while still maintaining a polite distance. "It's nice to see you again. And congratulations on clearing Floor 28. Is this the cosmetic or is it the other one? No-- hold on. Let me guess. It's this one. Either way, both look good."

Her eyes raised once she had examined to her full satisfaction and she tapped a hand to her cheek in thought. "Xena? I didn't notice. Her effects must have blended in quite well with her other features, or it might have just been the hood."

The third participant entered while they were talking. He was a handsome man with long hair and a wary expression. And he's already in-character? Yue Hua thought, until Kismet lightly reprimanded him. He, plus the lost Freyd, were quickly adopted into the table. Yue Hua took it in stride as was her wont. "Yue Hua. Please, join us," she offered after Freyd finished his introduction. She slid into an empty seat and poured herself cold tea.

Yue Hua had heard of Dungeons and Dragons. She had seen it referenced enough in media and tried to watch the occasional stream. It seemed like it might line up with her interests, but her health and her time could never afford her the commitment and it was not fun watching others play a game she couldn't. She was excited; bits and pieces of knowledge clicked into place as she browsed the menu, but she could not describe the flow of the game to save her life. She shyly peered over the material to check on her fellow players and saw Freyd taking pen to paper.

No way.

She had prior notice; she wasn't going to let herself fall behind.

Yue Hua did not know how people made DnD characters and she had the impression that she was working backwards. She narrowed her interest to three classes, then hit a mental wall and frowned at her notepad in intense concentration. The point of these games was the fantasy. The 'escape', as their host called it. To Yue Hua, that had also meant leaving 'herself'. Why play little old her in a world of unlimited possibility? But, at the same time, she must also be able to puppet her 'vessel' according to the traits she gave it. There should be a part of 'herself' in it, Yue Hua guessed, but not too much. Who was Yue Hua, anyway? Excluding the difficult parts, she was quite infamously a fashionable person whose head was stuffed full of swords and potions and the occasional gorgeous blue-eyed man (Dexter -- not Freyd). She won fifty percent of the duels she entered. She wasn't as adept at solving mysteries as the rest of her guild, but she did her best and she liked to think they were happy with her. Yue Hua flipped and rearranged the pieces in her mind, sometimes blotting a cluster out entirely so see how the rest fit in. It was fun and fiction; it didn't have to share her morality.

Maybe... a barbarian?

No. Not elegant enough.

And she caught that thought and held. She looked at the classes she had picked again, fidgeted with her pen, then started to write. Her neat script turned into a rushed but still legible scrawl as she raced to put her idea to paper before it could flee her. Yes. This was fine for a first character. Yue Hua hit another mental wall at the blank section reserved for her character's name and blasted it down with the first two words that popped into her mind. Was this a real person's name? She hoped it wasn't. Finally, scrolling through her inventory for a set of painted cards she had purchased from an NPC's art booth, she withdrew an image of the prettiest woman she could find and clipped it to her character sheet. She also hoped this was not a real person's appearance.

Yue Hua handed her notes to Kismet after she had reviewed Freyd's. "I hope this is sufficient."

Spoiler

Marie Antoinette

Slime ("That can change its appearance to a human!" -- Yue Hua's note) Wizard

ABILITIES:
* Intelligence
* Constitution
* Dexterity
* Wisdom
* Strength
* Charisma

SKILLS:
1. Arcana
2. History
3. Investigation
4. Nature

BACKSTORY: A kind but lonely adventurer brought this slime along on their travels as a companion instead of killing it for experience. Somehow the slime gained intelligence and a love for books and the human form. It now sets out on its own journey seeking to turn itself wholly into a human so that it may stand by its friend's side as their equal.

 

[Ryo 0]

Ryo lessened his stance, and tilted his head. Did, he get the name wrong? Shit. The door locked behind him, then unlocked again. Not really enlisting trust in this event. "Wait, play?" Ryo looked around a second time. The menus, the snacks, the small group of people, the lighting. Shit, this was a dungeons and dragons thing wasn't it? Ryo couldn't believe it, nor hide his embarrassment from his face. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Shit. Sorry about that, things have been stressful recently." He said, trying to explain himself. He gave a formal bow. "Please, excuse my behavior. I am honored to be invited for this game." He said, apologizing.

Looking over everything was a bit disorienting, but not confusing. It seemed simple enough to follow along with the guide and figure it out. Ryo nodded to the other pair, doing his best to memorize their names. It seemed that he was meeting so many people recently, perhaps that was issue. "Freyd, Yue, a pleasure to meet you." Ryo said. "I'm Ryo, my apologies for my behavior again." He looked at another piece of paper. "So, what are we playing?" He asked looking at other sheets. A druid, and a wizard. Both were main casters, and lacking in proper defense. Ryo rubbed his chin. "How about some, frontline." Ryo said, sketching down his character prospect.

Spoiler

 

"Galadriel Sunsworn"
Aassimar Paladin

Stats (Highest to Lowest)
- Strength
- Charisma
- Constitution
- Wisdom
- Intelligence
- Dexterity

Trained Skills:
- Persuasion
- Athletics
- Perception
- Survival