With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

[Mr Zoat]

Pretty small might be an exaggeration but at some point when Nolan was a young man or a child and before the Viltumites started to conquer other planets, their entire species had SUPER bloody civil war where the strong culled the weak until only about half of them were left. Add to that a few being killed here and there in various ways? That is a pretty small number of people to run a vast space empire, especially when you are a race that really dislikes using anything other than your own hands or random thing around you as a weapon.

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Oh, no, I knew about the Great Purge, I just didn't think it had dropped their numbers quite as far as you implied.

 

[Cuchulin]

Oh, no, I knew about the Great Purge, I just didn't think it had dropped their numbers quite as far as you implied.

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Relative to their ambition? A very long-lived one planet species that killed at least half it's members spreading out of a vast space empire is a pretty small population.

 

[Senevri]

All of the alternate Marks that followed their dad seem to have any sympathy or goodness wiped away from them.

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I wonder. We usually only see them in pretty confrontational contexts, not in quiet moments of doubt, or anything.

It's really an "up to the writer" deal. We also don't know all the butterflies.

 

[WereDragon]

Confess the fallout stuff feels to be dragging a little - Think it's just that he's detached enough from the superhero mindset that it feels a little weird to see here.

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It isn't detachment so much as the fact that we are in a crisis episode, yet are spending multiple updates on the minutia of Krono's slice of protagonist life situation.
I am vastly more interested in finding out what the Maltusian is up to and how well a Viltrumite stands up to an experienced orange lantern.

 

[ForeverShogo]

Was it ever said how big their population was at their peak? Earth currently has 8 billion people living on it. When they did their self-purge the Viltrumites cut their population in half. Even if you assume their numbers wouldn't be higher, just having them start with a comparable population to Earth would still mean there would have been 4 billion conquerors for a species that can conquer entire planets with single digit numbers.

Spoiler: Comic Stuff

Of course the thing that really kneecapped them was a bioweapon deployed against them. One that was able to hit almost the entire species. Which seems unlikely given how spread out I'm sure they were while playing conqueror, but whatever. What we do know is that that bioweapon dropped them down to just 50 people. And even with the Viltrumites still fighting their war against the Coalition of Planets despite this there were still 37 full-blooded Viltrumites left when the war ended. Who mostly hid on Earth to make babies in the aftermath. I think. It's been awhile.

 

[Chaoswind]

Question, it's the Paul in invincible in his thirties or did the ring age him back to being a teenager? If aging didn't change did the ring shape his physique to give him a more heroic body?

Also I will also echo that this game with doki seems too much like filler and it's hard to remain focused on this silly stuff... We know Krono has Krona's body in storage and I am expecting that is going to be relevant to the controller whenever he shows up in the fallout continuity.

 

[Darko]

Was it ever said how big their population was at their peak? Earth currently has 8 billion people living on it. When they did their self-purge the Viltrumites cut their population in half. Even if you assume their numbers wouldn't be higher, just having them start with a comparable population to Earth would still mean there would have been 4 billion conquerors for a species that can conquer entire planets with single digit numbers.

Spoiler: Comic Stuff

Of course the thing that really kneecapped them was a bioweapon deployed against them. One that was able to hit almost the entire species. Which seems unlikely given how spread out I'm sure they were while playing conqueror, but whatever. What we do know is that that bioweapon dropped them down to just 50 people. And even with the Viltrumites still fighting their war against the Coalition of Planets despite this there were still 37 full-blooded Viltrumites left when the war ended. Who mostly hid on Earth to make babies in the aftermath. I think. It's been awhile.

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I think that's pretty accurate.

They actually started liking living on Earth.

I guess being surrounded by people that wouldn't kill them if they seemed weak really helped with their mental health.

It was actually quite a contrast to Mark, who was having trouble relating to Earth.

Question, it's the Paul in invincible in his thirties or did the ring age him back to being a teenager? If aging didn't change did the ring shape his physique to give him a more heroic body

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Probably.

I think that Paragon either woke up looking like a buff teenager, or quickly became like that from his subconscious desire after waking up, so the same may be true with this one.

 

[Mr Zoat]

I think that Paragon either woke up looking like a buff teenager, or quickly became like that from his subconscious desire after waking up, so the same may be true with this one.

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It was kind of a Dawsons Creek thing. He doesn't need to shave due to power ring, he didn't complain about being put on the youth team and he doesn't have any of the slight wear and tear that a more adult body would usually have.

 

[WereDragon]

I think that Paragon either woke up looking like a buff teenager, or quickly became like that from his subconscious desire after waking up, so the same may be true with this one.

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As seen in the very first update of WTR Paul woke up as normal, recognised he was in a superhero setting, realised he was very out of shape for such a setting and then the ring reshaped him. Very painfully.

 

[Steelplaza]

Confess the fallout stuff feels to be dragging a little - Think it's just that he's detached enough from the superhero mindset that it feels a little weird to see here.

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We should note that the entire reason Krono is running from ants and bats is that he decided to make Doki's game his problem by flying in to try and rescue the contestants. He had the option to shake his head sadly and say wow, seems like a bummer, and keep flying his saucer home.

Some serious heroic nonsense (and I say that with all possible affection) from him here.

 

[Ardy]

We should note that the entire reason Krono is running from ants and bats is that he decided to make Doki's game his problem by flying in to try and rescue the contestants. He had the option to shake his head sadly and say wow, seems like a bummer, and keep flying his saucer home.

Some serious heroic nonsense (and I say that with all possible affection) from him here.

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Though admittedly the chance to snag Lanius after a bachelorette wins would be a serious blow to the surviving legionaries morale.

 

[Mr Zoat]

20th April 2013
23:37 GMT

"Mister van Wyck!" The red, white and flame figure stops in the air as I call out to him. "Fancy seeing you here."

He hesitates for a moment, then turns and flies closer to me. "Why wouldn't you? I live here now."

I glance around at the Maltusian city around us. "Oh? Since when?"

"End of last year. I was getting bored with how quiet our Sector was, and asked to be reassigned. My Controller has finished the machines for changing people into Effigies automatically and he wants me to train them."

Mr. van Wyck doesn't have a military background, but he is 100% of the non-Martians with his power set and that's inevitably going to help the new people adjust.

Wait…

"Last year? Did you miss the whole Anti-Life..? Thing?"

He looks a little puzzled. "What anti-life thing?"

Be-cause his powers don't come with a database or news feed.

"Ah, short version, a mafia boss made a deal with Darkseid and got given the ability to inflict weaponised clinical depression on the whole planet. It took the Justice League months to undo it, and it's been like a second Sheeda invasion as far as the effect on civil society is concerned."

"Oh." He looks dismayed for a moment, then his eyes snap back to me. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I had no idea where you were, and… I assumed that if you were on Earth that you were already involved. I was… Updating the N.E.M.O. database with everything I discovered…"

"Uh."

"You didn't read it?"

"I didn't have much of a life back on Earth." He shrugs disinterestedly. "No one to keep track of. Things going alright now?"

"Not great, but… The remaining problems can't really be fixed with brute force. I mean, if… Controller Jevek Jos Jar can spare you, we could give you a region to look after. Policing is one of the things that's… Collapsed in a lot of places."

"That what you're doing?"

"I'm on infrastructure repairs. You don't realise exactly how much road there is on Earth until you've got to rebuild it."

He grimaces. Jevek made him powerful enough to keep up with a normal Lantern in a fight without the empathic requirement, but he has almost no utility in other situations and he knows it. Best to move on.

"How long until they start letting you loose on Reach targets?"

"About a week. He wants to get the new recruits used to their abilities, then find an ideal target so he can assess how best to use us."

An ideal target is a reasonable place to start, but depending on how Jevek wants to use them a less than ideal target might be better. And even then, they'll have to outperform L.E.G.I.O.N. marines by a lot for them to be worth N.E.M.O.'s time. Because they can't hide like Darkstars and lack Lantern adaptability, so the marines are their competition when it comes to combat viability.

"I'll look forwards to hearing how it goes." Hm. "Actually, your… Faster than light travel. Are the Reach interdicting it?"

He grins. "No. No. We can fly right past their defenses. Attack them anywhere."

I raise my right forefinger. "Until they work out how it happened and block you. The first attack has to count, and you have to have a way to get away again."

"It's super-telekinesis. The only way to block it is to have someone who's better at telekinesis, and they don't have anyone like that. All the martians are back on Mars and Adam Blake is in Vega."

"We don't have a full list of every species that they've exterminated and we certainly don't have a list of every species that they've had dealings with. I wish you all success, but don't get overconfident." I think he's rolling his eyes but the flame effect makes it hard to tell. "Ah, what species are compatible with… Becoming an Effigy?"

"Everyone we've tested it on. Apparently it even works on Reach tissue samples." He shrugs. "We've got no problem recruiting anyone who wants to join. And we're immune to just about every form of mind control they use."

I smile. "Maybe don't recruit reachians anyway."

"What-? No, we're not-." He shakes his head. "Look, I've got work to do. Catch you later."

He turns away and flies off at speed.

Huh. I suppose that it's good to know that he's alright. But the whole 'Effigy' thing… It seems to be a villain thing, if I'm not being a little unfair there. It would work really well if deployed en masse on a population with almost no combat capacity, as it would immediately make them a lot more dangerous. But in a situation like this… The war just doesn't involve that much direct combat close to our civilian populations. The Reach are focused on mind control, with extermination being a long term side effect. And with them only being able to destroy…

I suppose that the at-will FTL has some utility at least.

My ring flashes.

"Answer?"

Ah, not a message. Just data. And… Ah. Not unwelcome news. Richard Madoc did not survive the Anti-Life. Nothing ironic, just beaten to death by someone in the prison he was housed in. It's unlikely that we'll ever know who, and honestly it's not that important.

I don't think I'll mention it to Calliope. She either knows or doesn't care.

Hm. I can feel Orange Lanterns focusing on self-reflection. It gives their connection to the orange light a distinct feel, less… Grabby. Perhaps I'm being unfair, but I hope that neither Ragnar or Zartok make the same breakthrough that Xalitan did anytime soon. I'm pretty sure that they'd both want a fight to the death, and I don't particularly want my Corps to be the sort of organisation where that happens. Perhaps it's my fault for offering exactly that to both of them, but…

Xalitan appears next to me, and I don't notice any of the disorientation that accompanies some forms of teleportation.

"You got the hang of it, then?"

"Yes. I think so. I visited Onigar, and a moment later I was here. And my constructs remained strong around her, even when she-."

He stops talking.

"When she distracted you? When you felt another emotion?" He nods awkwardly. "That's another nice benefit. Even in combat you can feel other things without your constructs weakening. Focusing makes them stronger…"

I shrug, and he nods.

"That will be helpful. Illustres, now that I am enlightened, what is my next assignment?"

"Up to Dox, I suppose. Let's go and ask him."

 

[Cuchulin]

Was it ever said how big their population was at their peak? Earth currently has 8 billion people living on it. When they did their self-purge the Viltrumites cut their population in half. Even if you assume their numbers wouldn't be higher, just having them start with a comparable population to Earth would still mean there would have been 4 billion conquerors for a species that can conquer entire planets with single digit numbers.

Spoiler: Comic Stuff

Of course the thing that really kneecapped them was a bioweapon deployed against them. One that was able to hit almost the entire species. Which seems unlikely given how spread out I'm sure they were while playing conqueror, but whatever. What we do know is that that bioweapon dropped them down to just 50 people. And even with the Viltrumites still fighting their war against the Coalition of Planets despite this there were still 37 full-blooded Viltrumites left when the war ended. Who mostly hid on Earth to make babies in the aftermath. I think. It's been awhile.

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True, but like I said that is still a hilariously low number of people to rule/run an interplanetary empire with trillions, likely tens of trillions, of subjects and deal with all the spying, tech transfer, instruction, indoctrination and paperwork that goes with it.

 

[Darko]

"I had no idea where you were, and… I assumed that if you were on Earth that you were already involved. I was… Updating the N.E.M.O. database with everything I discovered

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And you may not have wanted him on Earth, since Manheim would just get a planet killer on his side.

depending on how he Jevek wants to

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"how Jevek"

Huh. I suppose that it's good to know that he's alright. But the whole 'Effigy' thing… It seems to be a villain thing

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Dude, you use the power of greed and your soul is a snake.

You have no right to criticize.

Perhaps I'm being unfair, but I hope that neither Ragnar or Zartok make the same breakthrough that Xalitan did anytime soon

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I don't think it's unfair to not want to die.

 

[The Froggy Ninja]

The Reach are focused on mind control, with extermination being a long term side effect. And with the only being able to destroy…

I suppose that the at-will FTL has some utility at least.

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I mean, it also makes them immune to mind control. So it depends on if "only able to destroy" is a broader side effect of the process or just a statement of their powers not having non-combat applications. Making people immune to mind control and able to defend themselves from their "plan B" of brute force seems like it would be helpful.

 

[Signaller]

Have we ever had a chapter from Xalitan's point of view?

 

[thebishop8]

"How long until they start letting you lose on Reach targets?"

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'Lose' should be 'loose'.

Maybe Dox is going to get them involved in what Jevek is doing. If he does, that implies that contacting alternate Paul's isn't just a personal project of Jevek's.

 

[Mr Zoat]

"how Jevek"

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'Lose' should be 'loose'.

Click to shrink...

Thank you, corrected.

 

[Lord Ernest]

Aw, I wanted to see the Ophidian's reaction to Xalitan and how he reacted. I imagine the next step in his training is trying to gain a measure of control over his connection with the Embodiment, for when/if he needs the extra power, like Guy sometimes does with Ion. Maybe the esoteric abilities that the Illustres has developed, but I don't know if that's because of the Ophidian's heart on top of Enlightenment or just because of the latter.

Anyway, I get why the Illustres thinks that the Effigies are competition for the L.E.G.I.O.N. Marines rather than Darkstars and Lanterns, but in that case aren't Effigies way more valuable than Marines? What equipment do Marines have? Comparable to a super-psionic capable of fighting on a Lantern level, capable of FTL travel at will, with no requirement for additional equipment?

The only downside is the lack of fighting experience and the adjust period necessary to master the new powers. And the first can be mitigated by better recruitment, if anyone is compatible with the Effigy process, while the second could be assisted by telepathic instruction if Mr. van Wyck is/gets capable enough.

 

[Chojin Patriarch]

20th April 2013
23:37 GMT

"Mister van Wyck!" The red, white and flame figure stops in the air as I call out to him. "Fancy seeing you here."

He hesitates for a moment, then turns and flies closer to me. "Why wouldn't you? I live here now."

Click to shrink...

Wyck, Wyck... Ah, yes. Effigy. Been a while since we saw him last. Presumably getting a solid grip on his powers and proving himself mentally stable. Presumably OL is waiting for Xor to get the hang of Greediporting.

Spoiler: Commentary spoilered for length

I glance around at the Maltusian city around us. "Oh? Since when?"

"End of last year. I was getting bored with how quiet our Sector was, and asked to be reassigned. My Controller has finished the machines for changing people into Effigies automatically and he wants me to train them."

Click to shrink...

Hmm. I guess he's been proven a functional weapon, and now Jevek is moving to full production testing status.

Mr. van Wyck doesn't have a military background, but he is 100% of the non-Martians with his power set and that's inevitably going to help the new people adjust.

Wait…

Click to shrink...

And presumably he's at least done some basic training with the NEMO forces. Otherwise, there's always advisors to help him work out a training routine.

"Last year? Did you miss the whole Anti-Life..? Thing?"

He looks a little puzzled. "What anti-life thing?"

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Man might be one of a very small number of humans not exposed to the Anti-Life. Him, Jade... Adam Blake... Anyone else?

Be-cause his powers don't come with a database or news feed.

"Ah, short version, a mafia boss made a deal with Darkseid and got given the ability to inflict weaponised clinical depression on the whole planet. It took the Justice League months to undo it, and it's been like a second Sheeda invasion as far as the effect on civil society is concerned."

Click to shrink...

Which, I suspect, will make van Wyck not want to go visiting anytime soon.

"Oh." He looks dismayed for a moment, then his eyes snap back to me. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I had no idea where you were, and… I assumed that if you were on Earth that you were already involved. I was… Updating the N.E.M.O. database with everything I discovered…"

Click to shrink...

Including 'Above top secret' briefings on stuff like the White Light, no doubt.

"Uh."

"You didn't read it?"

Click to shrink...

Not everyone is as diligent about reading briefings, OL. Especially when they have to do it manually.

"I didn't have much of a life back on Earth." He shrugs disinterestedly. "No one to keep track of. Things going alright now?"

"Not great, but… The remaining problems can't really be fixed with brute force. I mean, if… Controller Jevek Jos Jar can spare you, we could give you a region to look after. Policing is one of the things that's… Collapsed in a lot of places."

Click to shrink...

...After making sure he's got enough mental shielding to protect him from lingering traces, I hope.

"That what you're doing?"

"I'm on infrastructure repairs. You don't realise exactly how much road there is on Earth until you've got to rebuild it."

Click to shrink...

Close to 34 million miles, at a rough estimate. And that's probably just the paved and sealed roads. Never mind tiny dirt tracks in the middle of woop-woop.

He grimaces. Jevek made him powerful enough to keep up with a normal Lantern in a fight without the empathic requirement, but he has almost no utility in other situations and he knows it. Best to move on.

"How long until they start letting you lose on Reach targets?"

Click to shrink...

Drawback of basically operating on manual controls for his powers. I suspect he's developed a few mnemonic shortcuts for certain techniques.

"About a week. He wants to get the new recruits used to their abilities, then find an ideal target so he can assess how best to use us."

An ideal target is a reasonable place to start, but depending on how he Jevek wants to use them a less than ideal target might be better. And even then, they'll have to outperform L.E.G.I.O.N. marines by a lot for them to be worth N.E.M.O.'s time. Because they can't hide like Darkstars and lack Lantern adaptability, so the marines are their competition when it comes to combat viability.

Click to shrink...

Problem is, once he's deployed them, the Reach will know they exist... A secret weapon is only effective as long as the enemy don't know it exists, after all.

"I'll look forwards to hearing how it goes." Hm. "Actually, your… Faster than light travel. Are the Reach interdicting it?"

He grins. "No. No. We can fly right past their defenses. Attack them anywhere."

Click to shrink...

Can they haul ships along with them, though? Single operatives can't exactly occupy a planet, after all.

I raise my right forefinger. "Until they work out how it happened and block you. The first attack has to count, and you have to have a way to get away again."

"It's super-telekinesis. The only way to block it is to have someone who's better at telekinesis, and they don't have anyone like that. All the martians are back on Mars and Adam Blake is in Vega."

Click to shrink...

I seriously doubt the Reach haven't run across psychic species before. And an Effigy can only protect themselves as long as they can think to.

"We don't have a full list of every species that they've exterminated and we certainly don't have a list of every species that they've had dealings with. I wish you all success, but don't get overconfident." I think he's rolling his eyes but the flame effect makes it hard to tell. "Ah, what species are compatible with… Becoming an Effigy?"

"Everyone we've tested it on. Apparently it even works on Reach tissue samples." He shrugs. "We've got no problem recruiting anyone who wants to join. And we're immune to just about every form of mind control they use."

Click to shrink...

That's very interesting. How did Jevek develop this process, again?

I smile. "Maybe don't recruit reachians anyway."

"What-? No, we're not-." He shakes his head. "Look, I've got work to do. Catch you later."

He turns away and flies off at speed.

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Ah... Attempt at humour failed. I suppose OL can't ace every social roll he makes.

Huh. I suppose that it's good to know that he's alright. But the whole 'Effigy' thing… It seems to be a villain thing, if I'm not being a little unfair there. It would work really well if deployed en masse on a population with almost no combat capacity, as it would immediately make them a lot more dangerous. But in a situation like this… The war just doesn't involve that much direct combat close to our civilian populations. The Reach are focused on mind control, with extermination being a long term side effect. And with the only being able to destroy…

Click to shrink...

They're a weapon, not a toolset. In that respect, they'll always be second-class to a Ring. But being able to do their thing without having to feel a certain way does make them efficient at it. On the other hands, there may be extremely long-term side-effects that haven't shown up yet...

I suppose that the at-will FTL has some utility at least.

My ring flashes.

Click to shrink...

Honestly, it could be a clever back-up option for some Lanterns.

"Answer?"

Ah, not a message. Just data. And… Ah. Not unwelcome news. Richard Madoc did not survive the Anti-Life. Nothing ironic, just beaten to death by someone in the prison he was housed in. It's unlikely that we'll ever know who, and honestly it's not that important.

I don't think I'll mention it to Calliope. She either knows or doesn't care.

Click to shrink...

Good riddance to bad rubbish. If she knows, she probably toasted his death and moved on. Not like she'd have gone to Hades' realm to check that he's been properly judged. And that assumes he'd have ended up there anyway.

Hm. I can feel Orange Lanterns focusing on self-reflection. It gives their connection to the orange light a distinct feel, less… Grabby. Perhaps I'm being unfair, but I hope that neither Ragnar or Zartok make the same breakthrough that Xalitan did anytime soon. I'm pretty sure that they'd both want a fight to the death, and I don't particularly want my Corps to be the sort of organisation where that happens. Perhaps it's my fault for offering exactly that to both of them, but…

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On the other hand, Death is not exactly the threat to you that it is to other people, OL. Prepare a clone ahead of time, make sure you shunt into it if they win, and let them have the position they wanted.

Xalitan appears next to me, and I don't notice any of the disorientation that accompanies some form of teleportation.

"You got the hang of it, then?"

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And the young man seems to take to it well. I'm guessing OL could feel the slight shudder in the universe as he reformed, and thus wasn't caught off-guard...

"Yes. I think so. I visited Onigar, and a moment later I was here. And my constructs remained strong around her, even when she-."

He stops talking.

Click to shrink...

...No conspicuous lipstick stains, I hope. Upside, he can make booty calls visit his lady whenever he needs to.

"When she distracted you? When you felt another emotion?" He nods awkwardly. "That's another nice benefit. Even in combat you can feel other things without your constructs weakening. Focusing makes them stronger…"

I shrug, and he nods.

Click to shrink...

Good man, not embarrassing him about it. After all, OL's done the same thing with Jade occasionally, I'm sure.

"That will be helpful. Illustres, now that I am enlightened, what is my next assignment?"

"Up to Dox, I suppose. Let's go and ask him."

Click to shrink...

Since they are still members of a military force, no matter how high their rank is to allow them the freedom to pursue their own affairs...

Excellent to see Xor has truly mastered the use of the Orange Light. One less pressure on OL, and a new strategic option for Dox and the NEMO command to make use of. Now, Jevek... How did he come up with the Effigy process, again? Especially when it's so successful on any species it's tested on? Sounds a little too good to be true, really... I'd be watching for falling footwear.

 

[Jirachi]

He grimaces. Jevek made him powerful enough to keep up with a normal Lantern in a fight without the empathic requirement, but he has almost no utility in other situations and he knows it. Best to move on.

Click to shrink...

I guess that's a no for non-burning non-zero range TK. A shame. I wonder if he can phase, since that works off of telekinesis... Might be an issue if he can't, given that Scarabs seem to be eager to use that sort of thing, and having this sort of super combatant that can't touch them would be... awkward.

An ideal target is a reasonable place to start, but depending on how Jevek wants to use them a less than ideal target might be better. And even then, they'll have to outperform L.E.G.I.O.N. marines by a lot for them to be worth N.E.M.O.'s time. Because they can't hide like Darkstars and lack Lantern adaptability, so the marines are their competition when it comes to combat viability.

Click to shrink...

I guess another question is how incompatible effigying is with being a Lantern or a Darkstar or a marine, and how scaleable it is. The darkstars were having a problem with getting compatible people with the ability to face e.g. Scarabs, but if essentially anyone can get the augmentations and gain the ability to fight a scarab... That might be worth it for a sacrifice in their ability to do plain sight stealth. I remember Adam Blake saying that telepathy doesn't work well with other mind altering powers, but I don't think the Effigy package includes that, so maybe it's fine? Uninterdictable-no-seriously-for-real Lanterns could be a huge advantage too, assuming there's no self-image incorporation problem there.

"I'll look forwards to hearing how it goes." Hm. "Actually, your… Faster than light travel. Are the Reach interdicting it?"

He grins. "No. No. We can fly right past their defenses. Attack them anywhere."

I raise my right forefinger. "Until they work out how it happened and block you. The first attack has to count, and you have to have a way to get away again."

"It's super-telekinesis. The only way to block it is to have someone who's better at telekinesis, and they don't have anyone like that. All the martians are back on Mars and Adam Blake is in Vega."

"We don't have a full list of every species that they've exterminated and we certainly don't have a list of every species that they've had dealings with. I wish you all success, but don't get overconfident."

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I have to assume it's possible to at least slow it by using some form of spatial stabilization, if telekinetic effects are so comparable to some other space manipulating effects. Still, this is a pretty big edge that you don't want to waste recklessly. Plus, Reach do have FTL interceptors for this sort of thing but it's still a real large advantage.

I think he's rolling his eyes but the flame effect makes it hard to tell. "Ah, what species are compatible with… Becoming an Effigy?"

"Everyone we've tested it on. Apparently it even works on Reach tissue samples." He shrugs. "We've got no problem recruiting anyone who wants to join. And we're immune to just about every form of mind control they use."

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Not ominous at all! Makes me worried about capturing and reverse engineering risks more then when I assumed it was something that relied on human weirdness. Honestly, I'd be a bit scared of using this without more of a plan then they seem to have against a 'no u' counterattack here.

Huh. I suppose that it's good to know that he's alright. But the whole 'Effigy' thing… It seems to be a villain thing, if I'm not being a little unfair there. It would work really well if deployed en masse on a population with almost no combat capacity, as it would immediately make them a lot more dangerous. But in a situation like this… The war just doesn't involve that much direct combat close to our civilian populations. The Reach are focused on mind control, with extermination being a long term side effect. And with the only being able to destroy…

I suppose that the at-will FTL has some utility at least.

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Yeah. If nothing else, I could see it being useful as a tool for running away and mental defense given to MVPs.

Hm. I can feel Orange Lanterns focusing on self-reflection. It gives their connection to the orange light a distinct feel, less… Grabby. Perhaps I'm being unfair, but I hope that neither Ragnar or Zartok make the same breakthrough that Xalitan did anytime soon. I'm pretty sure that they'd both want a fight to the death, and I don't particularly want my Corps to be the sort of organisation where that happens. Perhaps it's my fault for offering exactly that to both of them, but…

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You really do reap what you sow, OL. Still, IIRC we've already seen that Ragnar just wants to prove his superiority during the whole Citizen ship in Reach space, so here's to hoping it won't come to that. EDIT: Citation.

Lantern Zartok and I both want to kill the Illustres. Or rather, have both stated that we will. Having reflected on it at length, I don't think that I do want to kill him; not specifically. Beat him as proof of my skill and supremacy, yes. But unlike Zartok I didn't kill my former swordmaster when I was done with my training.

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[Lord Ernest]

How did he come up with the Effigy process, again?

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If memory serves, he studied the Ancient/Burning Martian that the Illustres sent to Maltus all the way back. With the info on Burning Martian biology, he came up with the process to provide the same or similar powers to others. I don't recall how he found Mr. van Wyck, though, or why it's still compatible with other species.

 

[Jirachi]

If memory serves, he studied the Ancient/Burning Martian that the Illustres sent to Maltus all the way back. With the info on Burning Martian biology, he came up with the process to provide the same or similar powers to others. I don't recall how he found Mr. van Wyck, though, or why it's still compatible with other species.

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Mr. Wyck was a rando on Earth with minor telekinetic powers that made him a bit more compatible with the process - don't think it was detailed beyond that, though it doesn't seem like there would have been much more needed then a scan of earth with that in mind at some point. Haven't heard anything more about the why of the compatibility of the completed process.

 

[Mr Zoat]

disorientation that accompanies some forms of

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Thank me, corrected.

 

[WereDragon]

"It's super-telekinesis. The only way to block it is to have someone who's better at telekinesis

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I wouldn't trust a Malthusian to make that statement, let alone a barely educated test subject/living weapon.

Huh. I suppose that it's good to know that he's alright. But the whole 'Effigy' thing… It seems to be a villain thing, if I'm not being a little unfair there. It would work really well if deployed en masse on a population with almost no combat capacity, as it would immediately make them a lot more dangerous. But in a situation like this… The war just doesn't involve that much direct combat close to our civilian populations. The Reach are focused on mind control, with extermination being a long term side effect. And with the only being able to destroy…

I suppose that the at-will FTL has some utility at least.

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I would rate it as at least equal to the Danner formula as a general upgrade.
Perhaps Conner could make use of it?

 

[Mr Zoat]

I wouldn't trust a Malthusian to make that statement, let alone a barely educated test subject/living weapon.

I would rate it as at least equal to the Danner formula as a general upgrade.
Perhaps Conner could make use of it?

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If he wanted to be turning into a red man with a white on-fire mask for a head... Probably?

 

[Steelplaza]

Wyck, Wyck... Ah, yes. Effigy. Been a while since we saw him last. Presumably getting a solid grip on his powers and proving himself mentally stable. Presumably OL is waiting for Xor to get the hang of Greediporting.

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Considering one of the things Effigy managed in that wiki entry is "create three independently operating bodies that go on separate rampages" I'm guessing that there's probably a lot of unexplored depth to his abilities. When he seems to be creating flame constructs, I suspect what he's doing is something more like splitting off portions of his flame body and remotely controlling them before allowing them flicker out. Sort of like if he was a living lantern construct (made of fire).

 

[Neruz]

Effigy is on fire, and as everyone knows when you are on fire you can do fire magic.

 

[Ardy]

The continuity bits in this chapter are what I love this fic for. Kudos.

 

[Stsword]

Considering one of the things Effigy managed in that wiki entry is "create three independently operating bodies that go on separate rampages" I'm guessing that there's probably a lot of unexplored depth to his abilities. When he seems to be creating flame constructs, I suspect what he's doing is something more like splitting off portions of his flame body and remotely controlling them before allowing them flicker out. Sort of like if he was a living lantern construct (made of fire).

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He might be able to do such here or perhaps Zoat altered the power levels to suit his own preferences and/or needs of the story.

Like the Darkstars I doubt would need much help if Zoat incorporated the Mark 2 suit Ferrin Colos got which allowed him to manipulate gravity to such an extent that he could redirect energy blasts to play the "Why are you hitting yourself?" game.