Servant Shielder:
True Name: Pallas
Alignment: Neutral Good
Alternate Class: Lancer
Strength- D
Agility- B-
Endurance- C+
Mana- C
Luck- D
NP- B+
Equipment: Carries a simple, yet finely crafted bronze spear to attack and defend herself with. Contrary to expectations, Shielder does not bear the armament synonymous with her Class. Instead through her first Noble Phantasm, Shielder's entire body is raised to the level of her namesake weapon.
Appearance (Tagged for sheer size)
Personality: A carefree and excitable tomboy. She loves sparring and battles of every kind, exalting in the chance to test her skills against worthy adversaries. Being a child of the sea, Shielder has strong ties with water and enjoys frequent bathing- feeling uncomfortable if stranded on the surface for too long. Shielder believes ardently in the right of children to determine their own path in life and despises the paternalism of those who'd restrict the future of humanity for their short-sighted ideals. As such, as a Servant she shows excellent compatibility with the "Chaldea Security Foundation" that holds safeguarding mankind's future as its highest goal.
Her wish on the Holy Grail is simply to have one final sparring match with her sworn sister Athena. An honorable battle where victory is declared only through one's strength of arms, free from the influence of overzealous gods and scheming fates. It matters not to her which of the two comes out triumphant, for just being able to match blades once more with the goddess is already Shielder's deepest wish.
Relationships:
Athena: Shielder's sworn sister. She was the only person in Athena's life who approached her as a friend and sister, rather than a divinity to be worshipped. As such, the two grew nearly inseperable during the years they spent together under the care of her father Triton, gaining a bond close to that of lovers. Shielder holds no bitterness over Athena's hand in her demise, reminiscing fondly of her many sparring matches against the goddess.
Zeus: Sees him as the worst sort of father and the worst sort of person. A thoughtless, arrogant, stubborn and self-righteous blowhard with an ego bigger than Mount Olympus. While Shielder's dismal view is surely biased by the role Zeus played in her death, at the same time her assessment of the chief god's vices isn't exactly wrong.
Achilles: Sharing a similar boisterous spirit and love of battle, the two could be expected to get along heartily. So from whence comes this inexplicable animosity...? "That jerk... he stole my Noble Phantasm! An honorable battlefield my ass, there's no one who deserves such a thing more than I do!" Eh, Shielder... you do realize that's not how Noble Phantasms work, right? "I don't care!" Ah, the grudges of youth.
Likes: "big sis", honorable battles, the ocean
Dislikes: helicopter parents, dry skin, dirty tricks
Talent: sparring against divinity
Natural Enemy: Zeus, Goetia?
Class Skills:
Territory Defense- B+
A power displayed when protecting allies or an allied camp. Exhibits damage reduction surpassing the defensive limit value, but Shielder herself is not included as a target. Also, the protective range of this Skill spreads in proportion to the rank. Through the holy power of the Palladium, Shielder can erect a "zone of divine providence" that repels all attacks originating from outside.
Magic Resistance- C-
Power to neutralize the effects of Magecraft aimed against oneself. At this rank, all spells with an incantation below two verses are cancelled. Proves difficult to cope with the likes of High Thaumaturgy or Greater Rituals.
While a heroine from the Age Of Gods, Shielder was not recorded to have encountered the magical arts in life and as such possesses only a moderate level of resistance. Due to the circumstances of her death, Shielder's magical defenses suffer further reduction against spells enacted through an optic medium- like the Mystic Eyes of a certain Gorgon.
Personal Skills:
Divinity- B+
Qualifies one's aptitude as a Divine Spirit. At this level of godly aptitude Shielder can be said to qualify as a Demigod- a halfway point between divine and mortal. Daughter of the Libyan sea god Triton, divine blood naturally flows through Shielder's veins. Posthumous veneration as an aspect of Athena has further elevated her ranking.
Eye Of The Mind (True)- A
A heightened capacity for observation, refined through training, discipline and experience. An ability possessed mainly by mortals rather than the gods, honed through tenacious training. So long as there is even a 1% chance of comeback, this Skill greatly improves the odds of victory.
At this rank, Shielder is capable of reading the opponent's moves in combat and adjusting her own tactics fluidly to compensate. Even against a vastly superior foe, Shielder can still hold her own through little more than wit and technique- closing the gap between herself and the opponent and opening a path toward victory.
As one to hold her own in sparring matches against the wisdom goddess Athena with only mortal skill, Shielder uncontestably merits a great ranking in this Skill.
Affections Of The Goddess- B
A Skill that denotes the boosting of parameters due to receiving divine favor. At this rank, all parameters save Luck and Mana are treated as Rank-Up upon entering battle.
is from the wisdom goddess Athena, given in grief after accidentally killing her sworn sister.SorrowAffection
Merfolk Constitution- C
A Skill that expresses one's nature as a "Merfolk"- a mythical being said to be part human and part fish and dwell in the depths of the seas. As a creature of the seas, Shielder is empowered by seawater- gaining a rank-up to all parameters when fully immersed and able to breath underwater as easily as on air. Her body also undergoes some dramatic shifts- skin turning an ocean-blue complexion and becoming covered with rough scales, gills opening on her neck and ears changing to resemble webbed fins.
Over time, Shielder's father Triton came to be associated with a race of mermaid-like creatures known as the Tritones- with the lower-bodies of fish and the upper-bodies of men. Though she herself was never described as such an existence, it seems that association and ties to her godly father has been enough to grant her this Skill.
...The only downside is that Shielder's skin tends to become terribly dry and cracked if denied water for too long, requiring regular baths to manage her complexion.
Noble Phantasms:
Palladium- Oh My Sister, Thou Shall Be Remembered For Eternity (B, Support): To atone for her role in Shielder's death, the goddess Athena elected to build a bronze statue in the likeness of her fallen sister and take on her own name as an epithet, gaining the title "Pallas Athena". Later on, that very statue became a great idol imbued with protective powers that could extend over an entire city. It originally safeguarded the city of Troy during the famous Trojan War, but after its untimely theft through the wile of Odysseus the statue was eventually brought to Rome by Aeneas- regarded as a sacred token of Roman rule.
This statue and the later veneration it received have been conflated with Shielder's own essence as a Heroic Spirit, granting her this Noble Phantasm. A defensive ability that transmutes her body into bronze in response to attack. A sheen of hardened bronze spreads over any part of her body sufficiently damaged- rebuking subsequent attacks to that portion with the protective power of a rank 'B' Noble Phantasm.
The scope of this Noble Phantasm progresses with damage to her body, from merely coating her extremities in bronze to eventually granting her a metallic constitution akin to a living statue. Of course, Shielder's weight also greatly increases as more of her body is transmuted. Especially on delicate or uneven terrain, this newfound heaviness and corresponding loss of agility can easily prove a hindrance as well as a blessing.
The effects of this Noble Phantasm persist only so long as Shielder remains in combat. Upon the conclusion of an engagement, all transmuted parts of her body are instantly returned to normal. Thankfully for her, since it's rather hard to go for a relaxing swim when over half your body is solid bronze.
Palladium Athene- Oh Statue, Give Sanctuary To All (B+, Barrier): By invoking the true name of the Palladium as an aspect of Athena, Shielder's body begins to glow with golden light. Said light is then expelled outwards, forming a shimmering "bubble" of holy power that expands to envelop her surroundings before solidifying into a great dome-shaped barrier. This is a full manifestation of the Palladium's protective powers, enclosing Shielder and her surroundings in a "zone of divine providence" that repels all attacks originating from outside.
Only Noble Phantasms of equal or greater rank to the Palladium itself stand a chance of breaking through this sacred barrier. Giving the appearance of a single unbroken surface, the dome is in fact comprised of hundreds of interlocking geometric shapes like a honeycomb. Though normally distributed evenly, Shielder can alter the configuration of these shapes at will, either directing them all to one portion of the dome to rebut a single powerful attack or spreading them about to patch up damaged areas.
Even if an opponent were to forcibly intrude upon Shielder's sanctum, they suffer a rank down in all parameters so long as the barrier itself remains active. To truly dispel this Noble Phantasm's effects, one must not simply pierce through the barrier but shatter it utterly with either a single powerful attack or simultaneous bombardment from all directions.
It can be imagined that this dome of light can be expanded so its defensive powers would encompass an entire city- recreating the legend in which the Palladium shielded the city of Troy from downfall- but achieving such an epic feat would demand vast reserves of Mana, far greater than what Shielder herself possesses.
Agapimeni Thanato- Demise Of My Beloved (C, Anti-Mind): A Noble Phantasm sublimating the moment of Shielder's death. In the midst of a particularly fierce sparring match against her sworn sister Athena, Shielder cornered the goddess so severely that Zeus himself was struck with fear for his divine daughter's life. Intervening from the heavens, Zeus brandished the Aegis shield- emblazoned with the ghastly visage of the Gorgon Medusa- before Shielder.
While the shield's magic was unable to petrify Shielder entirely, it was enough to momentarily immobilize her in mid-strike. Without knowing of this Athena thrust forth her own spear, expecting Shielder to block or evade- only to watch with horror as the weapon sunk into her sister's unmoving breast.
This Noble Phantasm recreates that moment of Shielder's legend, weaponizing the horror and grief of killing a loved one. By invoking its true name, a powerful mental interference is imposed upon Shielder's adversary- forcing them to perceive her as their own "most precious person". Whether a dear sister, a cherished lover or sworn comrade, the opponent will see Shielder as the one person they value more than anyone else in the world.
A truly insidious ability, since even the most hardened of warriors is sure to falter before attacking the image of their beloved. While this illusion lasts only for an instant, that single moment of indecision is all Shielder needs to launch a decisive blow to her opponent. As an attack on the mind, it can be evaded by Skills that specialize in resisting mental interference such as Bravery or Soul Of A Martyr at sufficient rank. The only other surefire defense is to possess a merciless heart of steel that could strike down even one's beloved without a moment's hesitation.
Since Shielder yearns for an honorable fight more than anything and detests those who'd rely on dirty tricks, she loathes to use this Noble Phantasm despite its great effectiveness. Shielder would sooner let herself die than invoke it against a worthy opponent, but may see poetic irony in using this Noble Phantasm against an enemy who themselves resorts to underhanded means of attaining victory...
Incidentally, she would much prefer a "duel field" Noble Phantasm born of her wish for an honorable battle, cutting off both combatants from the external world and barring outside interference. Unfortunately for her, it seems this ability has already been taken by "that green-haired jerk"... copyright infringement truly is a cruel mistress.
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Another lesser-known hero(ine) from Greek Mythology this time around. I'd pretty much gotten down most of her sheet about a week ago, but a bunch of stuff came up in my life and I didn't get the chance to finalize it until now. Originally envisioned her as a Lancer, but I realized her NPs made more sense for a Shielder, plus wanting to go with a lesser-used Class for a change.
I'm pretty proud of her overall. Might add Craft Essences sometime later on but for now I'm just happy to post this up rather then leaving her to languish on my word file any longer...