Jerubba'al
Bringing Down The Old Gods
(B+, Anti-Fortress):
A sacred pole erected in honor of the Pagan fertility goddess Asherah. Living in fear of the Midianites, the Hebraic peoples turned away from the Lord and began embracing idols instead, of which these poles were but one of the most famous examples. Called upon by God, Gideon tore down the unholy Asherah pole near his town and built up a new altar to the Lord in its place, effectively declaring war against the Midianites. That pole has become Lancer's primary Noble Phantasm, repurposed to showcase the impotence of Pagan gods and idols before the true Lord's power.
A hefty wooden staff as thick and long as a tree trunk, with carvings depicting the Pagan gods Ba'al and Asherah along its length and a great spear-head affixed to one end. Its great bulk lends the spear a high degree of destructive power. Each thrust can be likened to cannon-fire, able to split armor and shatter defenses. However this same aspect is also a double-edged sword, insuring that Lancer can only barely manage to lift and swing his oversized weapon.
Since it symbolizes the destruction of the old gods, this
deals greatly increased damage against foes with ties to Pagan divinity. Upon drawing blood from such beings, it powers up greatly. The spear becomes lighter in Lancer's hands and, after repeated blows will begin seeking out the target's blood almost of its own accord, lending his normally clumsy strikes a preternatural accuracy. This effect amplifies and stacks both with the foe's own degree of divinity and the amount of successive blows Lancer lands over the course of battle. Against an incarnate Pagan Divine Spirit, it would be elevated to a true god-slaying spear comparable in nature to the Holy Lance which pierced the side of Christ.
By invoking its True Name as a pole of Asherah, Lancer can utilize the power of the subjugated Pagan deities still bound inside the spear. Calling upon the twin powers of the supreme mother goddess Asherah and the storm god Ba'al, thick churning storm-clouds begin to gather around the spear's length, enveloping it completely.
Imitating the motion of a spear-thrust, the gathered storm is unleashed as a blast of spiralling wind and roaring divine thunder that pierces everything directly ahead of Lancer. Due to the effects of the storm being unbelievably concentrated along a straight line, this Noble Phantasm shows immense piercing power with minimal collateral damage to the surrounding environment. A direct shot can rip apart a castle wall and plow through entire fortifications, gouging the earth for several miles.
This function of the
is known as
Ba'al Asherah
Lord Of Storms That Scourges Opposition
, an Anti-Fortress level destructive attack. A remnant of the Pagan divinities lingering inside the spear, ready to be unleashed against its bearer's foes.
By the way, the basic name for this Noble Phantasm derives from the title Lancer received after tearing down the Asherah pole. Meaning
'Let Ba'al contend against him', it is a title specifically tied to Lancer's role as a destroyer of idols, while the name Gideon is more closely associated with his military victories.
Peerless Illusory Army
Sword For The Lord And For Gideon
(C++, Anti-Army):
The crystallization of Gideon's famous victory against the Midianites. In order to prove that the victory was to be an act of God and not man, God instructed Gideon to send home all but 300 of his men, a miniscule force in comparison to the thousand-strong invading army. To win, it would take nothing short of a true miracle.
And a miracle was granted. Divided into three groups, Gideon and his forces waited until the dead of night to stealthily encircle the Midianite encampment on all sides, each equiped with a pitcher, lamp and trumpet. All at once, they broke the pitchers, blew mightily on the trumpets and waved the lanterns all about, shouting
"The sword for the Lord and for Gideon!"
The Midianite people couldn't see clearly in the darkness, so all they perceived were flashes of light, thundering sounds and glimmering swords from all directions. It was if they were suddenly surrounded by a virtually limitless army. Terror-stricken, the Midiantes fled the encampment and attacked each other in a blind panic (not able to clearly tell friend from foe in the dark and confusion). Retreating to their homeland in the south-east, they were quickly picked off by Gideon and his forces of 300.
As a Noble Phantasm, it allows Lancer to conjure up that terrifying army which shook the Midianites so greatly. Not his true force of 300, but what it became to the Midianites in the dark. A peerless, all-encompassing and limitless army that even the best soldiers can only retreat from.
Invoked by blowing on his signature trumpet, the image of an army of ancient Israelite soldiers is conjured up around the opponent bearing swords, shields and armor. This is an illusion, but is brought into reality through the target's beliefs. Any target must pass a Luck check at this point, lest they abandon any thought of fighting and flee the battle in terror. If they remain, the appearance of the army will be gradually distorted more and more to accomodate the enemy's worst fears, becoming demonic or inhuman soldiers straight out of nightmares. Also, a more insidious effect imposes the image of one such soldier upon every allied target to every other, so they perceive each other as enemies. At its greatest potential, an entire army could be thrown into disorder and made to wipe itself out without Lancer needing to lift a finger.
The effect can be resisted by Skills like
Bravery and
Soul Of A Martyr, but as a miracle from God it bypasses
Magic Resistance regardless of rank. Also, it can only be invoked at night, in effect recreating the conditions of Lancer's original victory. However, in the Grail War where most battles take place at night, this is unlikely to be an issue.
Originally Posted by The Bird of Hermes
