[FF] Reign of Winter I - Lost in the Snow (Grail Works, Ltd.: Type-Moon/Pathfinder/Multi-X-over)

[Kieran]

Not familiar w/ Scholar, but it looks like an expanded version of the Loremaster prestige class.

It's a third-party-developed class that works a bit better in describing me than the "Archaeologist" archetype of bards; it was either that, or go dig out my d20 Slayers book.

Is that your eventual goal, here?

Not at the moment, no.

Also, are you using any of the "Pathfinder Unchained" rules? The skill unlocks may be especially interesting to you, although with this class set he may have to burn a feat to get there.

No, I'm not - but I may look into it.

[Xamusel]

So... I like what you did for your updated character sheet. I sure hope that you can write up a character sheet for Kuro as well (if you haven't already done so). Then again, I might have misplaced where you put that character sheet, in the first place.

Care to post this on the the Mission Dossier thread as well?

[Kieran]

So... I like what you did for your updated character sheet. I sure hope that you can write up a character sheet for Kuro as well (if you haven't already done so). Then again, I might have misplaced where you put that character sheet, in the first place.

That's OK - guess what my tide-over for this week is?

Kuro von Einzbern

Personal Data:


NAME: Ilyasviel von Einzbern

ALIASES/TITLES: Kuro, Chloe, Archer-ko, EMIYA Ilya

BASE SPECIES: Half-elf (Drow/Tian Min human)

CREATURE TYPE: Half-elf (young)

SIZE: Small

CLASS/LEVEL: Nimble Blade (Soulknife) 2

MYTHIC TIER/PATH: 4 (Trickster)

WORLD OF ORIGIN: Earth, Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Ilya/Golarion

ETHNIC TYPE: Euro-Japanese

GENDER: Female

AGE: 10

HEIGHT: 137 cm (4’ 6”)

WEIGHT: Unknown

HAIR: White

EYES: Gold

DISTINGUISHING FEATURES: None




Ability Scores / Bonuses:


Strength 14 (+ 2)

Dexterity: 24 (+ 7)

Constitution: 14 (+ 2)

Intelligence: 16 (+ 3)

Wisdom: 15 (+ 2)

Charisma: 16 (+ 3)


Hit Points: 36 (2d10 + 4 from nimble blade level, + 16 from trickster tier)

Languages: Common, Elven, German, Japanese

Skills: Acrobatics + 14, Autohypnosis + 8, Knowledge (arcana) + 5, Perception + 9, Spellcraft + 4, Stealth + 18 (+ 4 size bonus), Use Magic Device + 5

Favoured Classes: Nimble Blade and Oracle

Feats: Mythic Two-Weapon Fighting, Mythic Weapon Finesse, Pirahna Strike, Two-Weapon Fighting, Skill Focus (Acrobatics), Weapon Finesse

Racial Traits: + 2 to one Ability score (Dexterity), low-light vision, adaptability (Skill Focus bonus feat), elf blood (counts as both elf and human), elven immunities (immune to magic sleep, + 2 to save vs. enchantment spells and effects), keen senses (+ 2 to Perception checks), multitalented (two favoured classes).

Class Features: Form Mind Blade, Light Armour Proficiency, Mind Blade Finesse, Shape Mind Blade, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Throw Mind Blade, Wild Talent



Base Mythic Abilities:


Amazing Initiative (Ex): At 2nd tier, Kuro gains a bonus on initiative checks equal to her mythic tier. In addition, as a free action on your turn, she can expend one use of mythic power to take an additional standard action during that turn. This additional standard action can't be used to cast a spell. She can't gain an extra action in this way more than once per round.

Hard to Kill (Ex): Whenever Kuro drops to below 0 Hit Points, she automatically stabilises. If she has an ability that allows her to take action while below 0 Hit Points, she still loses Hit Points for taking actions, as specified. Bleed damage still causes her to lose Hit Points while below 0 Hit Points. In addition, she doesn’t die until her total number of negative Hit Points is equal to or greater than double her Constitution score.

Mythic Power (Su): Each day, Kuro has a pool of 11 uses of mythic power.

Recuperation (Ex): At 3rd tier, Kuro is restored to full hit points after 8 hours of rest so long as she isn't dead. In addition, by expending one use of mythic power and resting for 1 hour, she regains a number of hit points equal to half her full hit points (up to a maximum of her full hit points) and regain the use of any class features that are limited to a certain number of uses per day (such as barbarian rage, bardic performance, spells per day, and so on). This rest is treated as 8 hours of sleep for such abilities. This rest doesn't refresh uses of mythic power or any mythic abilities that are limited to a number of times per day.

Surge (Su): Kuro can spend one use of mythic power to add 1d8 to the result of any d20 roll she just made as an immediate action.



Path Abilities:


Defensive Move (Ex): Once per round, Kuro can designate one opponent. Unless she attempts to move through that opponent’s space, her movement (including standing up from a prone position) doesn’t provoke an attack of opportunity from that opponent—and if she does move through the opponent’s space, she can make an Acrobatics check to avoid attacks of opportunity.

Fickle Attack (Ex): Whenever Kuro rolls damage for a melee or ranged attack with a weapon or alchemical item she can treat any natural 1s on the damage dice as if they were the highest possible number on those dice.

Impeccable Balance (Ex): Even the smallest of handholds and outcroppings are more than sufficient for her purposes. Kuro automatically succeeds at all Acrobatics checks to walk along narrow ledges. Her Acrobatics checks never take a penalty because of obstructed, slippery, sloped, or unsteady surfaces, and she can move at full speed across such surfaces with no penalty. Kuro also gains a +10 bonus to CMD against trip attacks.

Nimble Glide (Ex): Whenever Kuro falls, she doesn't take any damage and she lands on her feet. When using this ability, she falls at a rate of 150 feet per round, and can move up to 5 feet horizontally for every 10 feet she falls.

Surprise Strike (Ex): As a swift action, Kuro can expend one use of mythic power to make a ranged or melee attack against any target within 30 feet in addition to any other attacks she makes that round. When making a surprise strike, the target is considered flat-footed regardless of any class features or abilities it might have, and she adds her tier to her attack roll. Damage from this attack bypasses damage reduction.

Special Qualities: Simple template (young): +4 size bonus to Dexterity, - 1 Size category, - 2 to natural armour bonus (inapplicable), - 4 to Strength and Constitution, attacks decrease damage dice by one step (as per Small weaponry).


COMBAT CAPABILITIES:

Base Attack Bonus: + 2

Base Saving Throws: Fortitude + 2, Reflex + 10, Will + 5 (+ 2 when against enchantment/mind-affecting effects)

Initiative: + 11

Base AC: 17 (10 + 7 Dex + 1 size)

Combat Manoeuvre Bonus: + 0

Combat Manoeuvre Defence: + 17 (+ 10 vs. trip attacks)

Base Speed: 20 ft.


ATTACK LIST:

Mind Blade (kukri): + 7 (1d3 + 7 slashing damage)

Pirahna Strike: + 6 (1d3 + 9 slashing damage)

Care to post this on the the Mission Dossier thread as well?

I'll think about it . . .

. . . I had something else in mind as a tide-over, too, but I can't remember what it was.

In any case, with luck, this week should see my schedule going back to something approaching normal, and I'll be adding the next chapter next Sunday.

[Xamusel]

Kieran... you magnificent bastard! You won the internet!

[Kieran]

Oh - kay . . . I don't see where I've done anything particularly special . . .?

[Xamusel]

Technically, you won the internet for posting Kuro's character sheet, if that explains anything.

Also... where's your avatar from?

[Kieran]

That's Jeanne D'Arc, as she appears in "Bayonetta 2." More distinctive than Ruler's Saber-ish look, eh?

. . . As you can see, Kuro is less experienced than Kurai, but a lot more inherently powerful (and edited for a couple of errors I made, now). I tried to base her abilities on what I've seen of Kuro fighting Miyu, and Ilya taking on Saber Alter in her fugue state, so she's well-suited for leaping and fighting in high places, with a certain knack for using magic, as well - albeit a largely undeveloped one. Hopefully this is reasonably accurate and acceptable for everyone.

[Xamusel]

So, wait, let me get this straight. Jeanne D'Arc is an Umbra Witch?

And, yes, I can see what you mean.

[Kieran]

So, wait, let me get this straight. Jeanne D'Arc is an Umbra Witch?

Yup. So was Cleopatra, according to one of the item history notes, and I understand that she's going to be a Servant in Fate/Grand Order - coincidence . . .?

[Xamusel]

Dude... thanks for that mental image. /not serious

[Kieran]

DISCLAIMER: Lunar Legend Tsukihime, Fate/Stay Night, and all related characters and concepts are the creation and property of Kinoko Nasu and TYPE-MOON, along with whomever they’ve happened to license them to, such as Geneon and Funimation. The Pathfinder RPG and the “Reign of Winter” Adventure Path, along with all related characters and concepts, are the creation and property of Paizo Publishing and its employees. Disney’s “Frozen” and all related characters and concepts are the creation and property of Walt Disney Animation and its employees.


This is a not-for-profit, just-for-fun project.




The Kingdom of Arendelle









Janson grumbled as he crossed the length of the lodge to step out onto the porch. Sure, somebody had to check things outside every once in a while, and half their band was battling shakes and fever from the cold — but that didn’t mean he liked having to do it. Especially with that miserable little ice fairy outside, watching the bridge; everybody knew it was spying on them, waiting for a chance to rat them out to the troll and the rest of its kin.

Frankly, the sooner this job was over with, and they were out of Irrisen’s reach, the better. Rohkar said he was planning something, and they believed him, but if things didn’t improve soon . . .

The wind picked up as if in response to his thought, bringing with it a wave of fresh snow. Janson shuddered —

Wait a minute — it’s the roof that’s shuddering . . .

Having reached its limit as to the weight of snow it could support, the roof of the porch abruptly gave way, burying the guard under a localised avalanche of cold, white powder.








“You have got to be kidding me,” Kurai muttered under his breath, as he peered around the corner of the building at the results of their plan.

Granted, the mini-avalanche breaking through the roof was a surprise; he’d been hoping Elsa could just dump enough snow on the lookout to make him retreat inside, or at worst, provide cover for Ilyasviel to take him out with her blades. But despite the gaping hole in the roof, not a single plank had fallen. It was broken through, but hadn’t actually collapsed, and judging by the thrashing legs in the impromptu snow bank, the lookout was actually still alive.

It’s like something out of a Warner Brothers short — what kind of D&D setting runs on cartoon physics?

None that he could think of, short of maybe the one based on the “Slayers” anime. And yet this obviously was a setting that operated on some form of d20 rules, given its apparent conversion of Kuro Ilya from a Lolita-knockoff of Archer EMIYA to a drow soulknife — and one close to the source material, at that. Dark elves existed in a lot of settings, but psionics were relatively rare, in comparison to magic; D&D and its spinoffs were among the few that mixed the two.

So where the hell was he, then?

Sounds rumbled from inside the house — the porch collapse had drawn attention from its occupants.

“New plan,” he hissed to the others. “Pick a side door or window while they’re all heading for the front!”

In this, Kristoff was invaluable, since he knew the layout of the place. Between that and the qualities of Ilyasviel’s psi-blades, they had cut out a window pane in relative silence, and hoisted themselves into a small, unoccupied bedroom.

“So, where do we go now?” Ilyasviel asked in a whisper.

“No idea,” the psychic answered honestly.

The dark girl’s done turned biting. “What, you can’t feel the princess in the Force?”

“If I knew anything about her, maybe,” he replied defensively, privately reflecting that he’d have an easier time scrying for the princess than searching psychically — if he could still use scrying spells, that was. As it was, though, his present talents were more thoroughly based in telekinesis and its variants than telepathy or divination.

“As it is,” Kurai continued, “we’ll just have to improvise.” He turned to Kristoff. “Does this place have an attic, basement, cellar, cold storage — somewhere they could keep a prisoner reasonably secure and out of the way?”

Kristoff replied after a moment of thought, “There’s a planning room on the second level, and a storage cellar,”

At that, all of them said aloud, “Storage cellar.” It was just too obvious, since the alternative risked the captive climbing out a window or up a chimney — which Elsa, at least, was perfectly aware that Anna would try.

“Lead the way,” Kurai invited, “and keep as quiet as you can. Ilyasviel, get behind him — with luck, you can catch people by surprise, hiding behind him. I’ll take the rearguard position, which puts you in front of me, Your Highness.”

The good points of that position included the fact that, being taller than Elsa, he could aim over her head — Ilyasviel’s too, for that matter. The bad points were, despite a lovely view of her hair (which was an absolutely gorgeous shade of platinum), her clothes didn’t leave much else of her open to admiration.

(Hey, he tried hard to be a gentleman, but he was also approaching the point that “The 40-Year Old Virgin” would count as an autobiographical documentary — ergo, he had to take what pleasures he could; and far better he ogled her than Kuro — Ilyasviel.)

Stealth was not a natural talent for someone Kristoff’s size, but on the other hand, this was a land with wolves, bears, and other predators, and he habitually travelled with one of their prime food sources. Kuro’s steps were silent, though that might’ve been due as much to her weight (or lack thereof) as anything else. Elsa had a gliding step, of the sort attributed to ballerinas and fairy-tale princesses, which kept her movements near-soundless, and as for Kurai . . .

Well, like Kristoff, he wasn’t naturally gifted at stealth, nor professionally trained to it as Elsa and Ilyasviel seemed to be. But on the other hand, he had been slipping downstairs to watch cartoons at the crack of dawn since he was five years old, and they’d been very creaky stairs at that. He knew a trick or two about distributing his weight properly, at least; not enough to make him a professional sneak, but enough to give him some edge.

Still, the four of them moved very slowly, which just set everyone’s nerves on edge — as evidenced by the ice trail Elsa was leaving behind her, which he had to keep sidestepping to avoid. The good news, at least, was that the cellar didn’t seem to be far away from where they’d entered; Kristoff stopped in front of a bearskin rug barely ten feet from the room, and rolled it back to reveal a trapdoor.

And, of course, it was a padlocked trapdoor.

“I don’t suppose any of you can pick locks . . .?” Kristoff whispered.

“No,” Kurai sighed, before glancing at Ilyasviel. “But I’m betting her blades can cut it pretty quietly.”

Psi-blades, as far as he knew, weren’t quite like lightsabers (not in the D&D milieu, anyway) but at least it wouldn’t sound like metal striking metal, and hopefully wouldn’t carry as far. Elsa might be able to freeze it deeply enough to crumble it, but contracting metal shrieked like a banshee. The immediate goal here was to get Princess Anna, and get the hell out; the royals could send in the army to clear out the bandits later. Fast and quiet was the best way to go.

Ilyasviel formed one quickly enough, and lashed out at the lock. As expected, it only took a couple of strikes to cut through one of the restraining bars, and manoeuvring it out of its position was easy enough. All the while, Kurai kept his eyes and ears peeled for signs of movement beyond them. Their unintentional distraction could only hold attention for so long, and unfamiliar noises would only draw the kidnappers out faster —

“ELSA?” cried a shocked, feminine voice from below. It was a cry that was immediately followed by the heavy stamping of running, booted feet, with a rasping counterpoint of drawn steel.

“’God, I hate being right all the time . . .’” Kurai quoted under his breath.








After thinking, and thinking, and thinking some more, Anna had come to the conclusion that thinking just wasn’t her strong suit.

Oh, she was as imaginative as anybody, and probably more than most people — she had had to basically entertain herself for the last ten years, after all. Unfortunately, imagination could only take you so far when you were locked up in a pitch-black, underground room. After finding that there were no other doors other than the one at the top of the ladder, and that the walls were too thick and hard to dig through, she was pretty much out of ideas.

So she sat in the dark, trying to think of some way out, kicking her feet against the barrel she was sitting on (the same one she’d tripped over, a while back, while searching her cell), hoping that maybe, just maybe, someone would come and rescue her. She was a princess, after all — even if her sister didn’t care about her, the guards should, right? Right! So of course she was going to get out of here, and go back to the castle, and . . .

And not talk to Elsa. And be even more alone, without her parents there . . .

As she thought about it, Anna came to the conclusion that there wasn’t actually a whole lot of difference between her current circumstances and the ones waiting for her. The castle was just a bigger, nicer prison, really.

I wonder if I can escape, she thought to herself, and just go out on the road. See the kingdom and the rest of the world, maybe even have an adventure or two (better ones than this, hopefully). After all, it’s not like there’s really anyone left to miss me —

The trapdoor above her opened suddenly, sending a shaft of light spearing down into her eyes. The pain caused by the unexpected brightness prevented her from immediately replying to the stage-whispered call of “Anna! Are you there? Are you all right?”

It was a call that was given in a very familiar — a rarely heard, but never forgotten — voice.

“ELSA?” Anna blurted incredibly, unable to bring herself to fully believe it — her sister was here? Her sister actually had come to rescue her?

Whatever reply might’ve been made was drowned out by a low, rumbling thunder which quickly grew in volume. It was then that it occurred to Anna that yelling in an echoing sort of space while being held prisoner — and in the middle of potentially being rescued — might not have been the smartest thing she could have done.

“Elsa, ice the floor between here and the door,” ordered a voice whose owner she couldn’t see; a young man’s, she thought. “Both sides — we don’t want anyone coming up from behind us — then help your sister up out of there, and get ready to run. Kristoff, keep an eye on our rear. Kuro, I’m going to try something to set up the people at the front, be ready to take the opening.”

“Again with the ‘Kuro?’” snapped someone — or at least, that’s what it sounded like.

Anna heard the words, but couldn’t understand their meaning, and she was distracted by the flickers of bluish, whitish light she could see at the corners of the opening. Where was that coming from, and what was it, exactly? And that last voice, it sounded like . . .

But that was ridiculous, Anna told herself. Who would bring a little girl to something like this?

“It’s faster!” the first voice snapped back. “Just get ready!”

There was the sound of wood splintering, several battle cries, met almost immediately by purplish flashes (the same thing, or something else?), turning the cries into agonised ones, instead. This was followed by a quick flash of green —

“Anna!” Elsa hissed. “Come on!”

She blinked, and then the realisation hit. “Oh, right!”

. . . I got so caught up in trying to figure out what was going on, I actually forgot that I was supposed to be escaping, she thought as she climbed the ladder, mortified. This is just not my day at all, is it? Hmph — I’ll bet that stuff like this never happens to Flynn Rider . . .








Events happened quickly after that: a small horde of armed and armoured men charged around the corner, towards them — and had the expected reaction upon suddenly hitting an icy surface at full speed. Given that there was barely elbow room between them all, it was hardly surprising that they toppled like the proverbial house of cards. What was surprising, however, was Kurai’s next move, as he fired another bolt of pseudo-Sith lightning into the floor.

Now, while she had the entire volume of thaumaturgical knowledge one would expect of the heir of the Einzbern family, Ilyasviel’s mundane education level only reached that of the average Japanese ten-year-old in the twenty-first century. As such, she had no idea whether ice would conduct electricity as well as liquid water did, or whether it was some property inherent in Elsa’s magic or Kurai’s psychic powers. Either way, though, she had to admit she liked the results, as bodies spasmed and writhed under electrical arcs, their full-throated yells turning from aggression to agony.

Despite his tendency to use that lousy nickname (and yes, it was faster, especially in a combat situation. Maybe she should just let him call her “Ilya?”), she had to admit to liking what she’d seen of Kurai so far. The guy had all of Onii-chan’s good qualities (including the inconvenient ones), but they were mixed with a creative nasty streak that she could appreciate — case in point.

Shirou was a straight arrow, prone to charging in without thinking, and tackling problems head-on. Kurai, it seemed, had fewer issues with sneaking up on his problems and knifing them in the back, if he could figure out how to do it and get away with it.

Yeah, she reasoned, I can definitely work with this.

As part of her mind analysed that, the rest of her was focussed on the fight. And since Kurai had been kind enough to set up a bunch of prone targets for her . . .

Her psi-blades, she’d been discovering, were not Noble Phantasms. They weren’t even Traced replicas of existing weapons, despite their familiar shape. That said, however, she was capable of “breaking” them, just as her instincts insisted she should be able to — it was simply that it took a different form and effect than that of a Broken Phantasm.

Ilyasviel hurled her psi-blades, and they exploded into waves of flying shrapnel as they left her hands. Admittedly, aiming the lethal cloud was a bit difficult, given the jumbled pile that was her target, but several misty sprays indicated that she’d hit arteries on at least a few of them.

That was good — if they hadn’t been killed instantly, they’d bleed out quickly. Even better, those she’d hit were at the front and/or top of the pile — which meant that anyone she’d missed would find themselves suddenly buried under several hundred pounds of literal (or soon-to-be so) deadweight. It could take them a few minutes or more to get loose, and in combat, that was virtually a lifetime.

“Uh, guys?” Kristoff said nervously. “What the heck are those things?”

She spun around, and saw two mobile skeletons coming down a set of stairs at the other end of the hallway. As if that wasn’t horrifying enough, the skeletons were surrounded in an aura reminiscent of being on fire — and yet it seemed to be made of frost.

A flicking motion above her head drew Ilyasviel’s eye, and a hanging lantern set atop the wall hurled itself at the staircase, setting them ablaze. The fire didn’t seem to worry the skeletons, but they certainly shrieked as they entered it, even more so when the burning stairs collapsed beneath them.

“They’re distracted,” Kurai answered grimly. She followed his glance back, and saw that the princess had made it to their level. “We’ve got the girl, now let’s go!”

They hightailed it back the way they’d come in, and Ilyasviel was annoyed to find herself the last one through the door — she really needed longer legs. Once she was through, however, Kurai slammed the door shut, and barked, “Elsa, freeze it shut — cover the whole wall. Kristoff, you’re first out — help Ilyasviel and the princess.”

Mentally, the little soulknife approved; it would keep anyone from pursuing them directly, and freezing the door and the wall would stop them from simply breaking the doorframe to get in. Also, since she was smaller, and the princess was their primary goal, sending the big, beefy shield out first to cover them was best.

“OK, what’s going on?” the princess asked — yelping as Kristoff grabbed her and pulled her through the window. As she hit the ground, she fixed Kristoff with a glare that Ilyasviel thought appropriate to a kitten that had had enough of that taunting sunbeam, before swivelling to Kurai. “OK — Elsa, who are these people?!”

“I’m Luke Skywalker, I’m here to rescue you,” Kurai replied immediately, and Ilyasviel resisted the urge to bury her face in her hands.

“You did not just say that,” she groaned.

“Are you kidding?” he replied in a slightly manic tone. “How could I resist?” As she went out the window, he leaned over and whispered to her, “At least I didn’t point out that you’re a little short for a stormtrooper.”

Now it was Ilyasviel’s turn to glare at him, though she wasn’t sure which one she was more annoyed at — the constant movie quotes, or the crack about her height. As it was, she just stewed as they ran across the snow back to where they’d parked Sven and the sled.

“Kristoff, get the ladies into the sled and get them moving,” Kurai said, more seriously. “If the weight’s too much, jump off — we need speed, and getting the royals out of here is the priority.”

“Now wait a minute,” the big man protested. “It’s my sled!”

“And you’ll be the heaviest thing on it, next to the reindeer that’s actually pulling it,” was the counterargument. “I repeat: speed is critical.”

“So why won’t you get off it?” he shot back.

“Because I won’t be on it,” Kurai snapped. “Someone’s got to make sure these guys don’t catch you.”

That brought Ilyasviel to a dead stop. “Wait, what?”

“I’m going to stay behind and slow down pursuit,” he repeated. “Give you guys a chance to get some lead on them. We still don’t know how many there are, or what resources they’ve got —”

“And you want to play martyr finding out?” she exploded. “You are exactly like Onii-chan, you dim-witted, suicidal —”

A combination of Kristoff’s and Kurai’s hands had abruptly caught her off-guard, and she found herself in the sled and moving before she could continue her tirade. She watched as Kurai stood there a moment, cupping his hands around his mouth.

“WE DON’T HAVE TIME TO DISCUSS THIS IN COMMITTEE!”

Ilyasviel’s anger flared to incandescent levels, and she yelled back the phrase that she thought, at that moment, would hurt him the most.

“WRONG MOVIE, YOU JACKASS!”








Additional Writer's Notes: Portions of Chapter 5 have been revised, as per Kurai's class change from psychic warrior to psion. You might want to check it out.

[Xamusel]

Okay... what movie were you thinking of with that last line?

[Kieran]

Okay... what movie were you thinking of with that last line?

"The Empire Strikes Back," as opposed to "A New Hope."

[Xamusel]

Okay, that makes sense.

Still, I actually approve of the story as you have it so far... seriously.

[Kieran]

Well, it would be rather dry if I just followed everything in the book by rote - not to mention, probably even longer.

Glad you approve, though.

[Xamusel]

Yeah, that makes perfect sense, not following the book exactly. You have a deadline to keep, so to speak, anyway.

[Kieran]

So unfortunately, I'm still writing rain-checks on this chapter; my work (and workout) schedule hasn't improved over the last couple of weeks, and I'm having a bit of writer's block on what comes next. I am planning to add another Works agent, and maybe another character - the question is, who, and how . . .?

Among the candidates, I have Raven Queen, whose faculty advisor at Ever After High is Baba Yaga. She might be an interesting counterpoint to Kuro:






In a similar (and more recent) vein, there's Mal, who at least fits into Disney continuity (sort of):






Likewise, there are winter-themed characters like Weiss Schnee:






. . . Or I could just add the Works agent, and proceed from there. Opinions, suggestions?

[Xamusel]

Kieran, at the very least, allow me to suggest something after I finish watching the videos you have linked on the post you have here... I haven't gotten far enough to that point to actually advise you on who to go with.

...then again, I wouldn't be adverse to you tossing in the Works agent and proceeding from there, though I'm probably the minority here.

[honed]

Your third and fourth ideas sound pretty good, but Descendants is...well, not quite as bad as Battlefield Earth, maybe.

...then again, I wouldn't be adverse to you tossing in the Works agent and proceeding from there, though I'm probably the minority here.

I doubt that.

[Xamusel]

I doubt that.

You'd like that, too? Now, that's a good thing to keep in mind.

...also, just a bit of a brainstorm, but Weiss sounds like a good candidate. Why not use her?