dissenter: (Default)
2030-01-12 01:09 am
Entry tags:

hmd, contact.

ornithophobic(at)gmail(dot)com
[plurk.com profile] drnolicense (friends only)
doctornolicense (AIM)

comments are screened, ip logging is off and anon is enabled and all that jazz.  do let me know how i'm doing.

regarding plurk: if it's not obvious you're in my game or not a spambot, or i haven't added you first, just drop me a line here or something.

also, i'll add any wakfu fans. :J
dissenter: (Default)
2012-10-19 12:01 am

(no subject)

Alright, Soul Campaigners! Plotting for the rest of this month's events is underway, and this one is going under a cut because it's going to be big.

If it seems like a lot of information at once (because it is) please bear with us! A summary of all important information and a timetable of events will be provided if you just scroll all the way to the bottom. Should you have any further questions or need any clarification, you're more than free to ask in our usual sub-thread below. And so, without further ado...


The Nocturne Bazaar

Some of you old hats may remember the traveling carnival from way back in the game's history. Well that giant floating island is back in town, here to drop anchor on Friday, October 26th (the in-game date of April 3rd) and bring fun and games to Death City once more! Just hop on a floating gondola and make your way up to the festivities!

Events will remain very much the same, with only a few minor changes.
 
GAMES
Dunking Booth
Target Shooting 
Whack-a-Mole
Thrill Rides
Giant Slide
Torture-go-Round (not as horrible as it sounds.)
Goldfish Scooping
Tug-of-War
Oversized Foam Q-Tip Battles
Three-legged Races 
Beer Drinking Contests (not for the kiddies, sorry guys.)
Bumper Cars

OTHER
Cross-Dressing/Beauty Pageant
Fortune Telling (can be as wildly off-base, or as creepily accurate as you'd like it to be!)
Tunnel of Love
Bungee Jumping (off the island! Yikes!)
Haunted House
Bazaar Shopping
 
Unlike two years ago, when people created logs for their own events, there will be three logs provided for the carnival. Since the Cross-Dressing/Beauty Pageant and Tunnel of Love were so popular last time, they will be once again receiving their own logs. The third log will just be a catch-all for the rest of the activities people would like to play out!

Normally the carnival is a three-day event, but characters will only find themselves with two days at the most to enjoy themselves because...



The Third Madness Emitter

It's never that easy, is it? There have been rumors bouncing around the city that Shibusen has been having difficulty pinning down the last of three Madness Emitters that they've been working to destroy -- decoys in the form of high-level kishin eggs, moving signals, and further Witch interference are some sources of these troubles. But the real reason is that the enemy has been taking the fight to them. Surprise! Unbeknownst to the carnival folk of the Nocturne Bazaar, their floating island has secretly been hijacked to store a temporarily deactivated Emitter.

Halfway through the festivities on the second day, the Witches will reactivate the device, slowly but steadily ramping up a Madness Wavelength that'll soon start to affect the revelers.

What this means for you players is that you'll be able to choose what sort of carnival experience you'd like your characters to have! Would you like them to giggle through a haunted house like it's all just fun and games? Or would you like them to relive their greatest fears as if the bazaar's suddenly found a way into their minds? Do you want them to go on a simple thrill ride, or a metal death machine? Be creative!

So, to summarize, here is the basic log structure for all carnival-related events spanning the week of 10/26 - 11/1. Day changes will not be altered; time will pass as normal during this period.

Cross-Dressing/Beauty Pageant
This will take place only on the evening of the first day, and will be unaffected by the Madness.

Tunnel of Love, Main Carnival
These will both be logs covering the span of two days, and so you'll be able to indicate in a subject header on what day your thread takes place. Depending on when you set your threads, the setting may be significantly more or less sinister.

By the third day, the Witches will make their plans known, and there's where the next mission comes into play.



Mission 157

The enemy is pulling out all their stops and launching an all-out surprise attack on BREW's defenders who've been such a thorn in their side. They have no other aim than to cause as much death and destruction as possible!

The Emitter itself is located in the fortune-telling building, a large structure in the middle of the island. Early in the morning of the third day of the carnival, on Friday, November 2nd (the in-game date of April 5th,) Death the Kid will rally all available fighters for an assault on the assaulters and see the end of this weeks-long campaign.

The mission at a glance:
► Unlike the last two missions, Kid will only be allowing partnered pairs to join the assault on the island.
► As usual, this will be classified as a three-star mission.
► The medics will have their usual thread, and they are free to act as runners or back-up during the mission.
► Players are free to NPC their own enemies as usual! The only exception to this rule is if a Witch encounter is requested.

What can my characters expect to face?
► Intense levels of Madness -- though that's nothing new, right?
► Black Clowns. If you thought regular carnival clowns were awful, check out these guys.
► Oversized crow familiars that'll swoop down and attempt to carry fighters and drop them right off the edge of the island, not to mention the Witch that commands them. Very few pairs will be able to stand their ground against her; the only real option is survival. 
► Civilian presence, which has not been a problem on the last two missions. While the Witches are hostile, the residents of the island are not! And though many of them have taken refuge, there may still be stragglers in the streets. Characters will have to fight carefully and give innocents a chance to escape off the island...
► ... Because it's not exactly the most stable of battlefields. Buildings will shake, the ground will crumble, and as the fight drags on, pieces of the island itself will break off and shower the unlucky portions of Death City that happen to be below! Eventually the entire floating metropolis will go down in the desert, and pairs will be forced to escape on the gondolas on which they arrived.

Rewards:
3 Meister points / souls (for Meisters and Weapons, respectively.) Though there are no kishin eggs to be found on this mission, Shibusen will pull from their stock of souls to redistribute!
750D$ per person
Weapons may choose not to eat their souls, but they cannot be traded amongst each other.
In order for your characters to receive the rewards, you must at least provide a summary of what happened on the Mission Board. A direct link to the thread you should reply to on the Board will be provided in the comments below.

Those of you who play unpaired characters may wonder what there is for you to do during all this craziness... But don't worry! There's plenty of craziness to spare!



The City Invasion

The Madness Emitter is really only one portion of the Witches' assault on their real target: Death City and the people who live in it. While the strongest officially-paired partners will take care of the heart of the Witch force through Mission 157, it's up to the rest of the fighters to hold the line!

A log for the characters remaining in Death City will occur simultaneously with the log for Mission 157. Since the attack occurs on such short notice, they'll simply have to grab their closest friend (or the closest blunt object) and fight for their lives and their city!

What can my characters expect to face?
► Significant levels of Madness -- the barrier that Kid would normally keep up to protect the city won't be able to hold while he's helping with the fight. Hopefully some of that training you guys have been doing has paid off...
► Overlarge scorpions, spiders, and various armored arachnids. If you're not careful, you may also run into the Witch guiding them. Once again,characters will not be able to go toe-to-toe against her. Should they encounter her, escape would be the smartest option (but not the mostbadass one.)
► Black Clowns in some number. Though they'll be a very significant challenge for inexperienced pairs, there's a slim chance that they can be taken down...
► If characters happen to be fighting in the Outer Residential Quarter Three (containing the park, church, and hot springs), they may find themselves rained upon... By large pieces of island. Watch your heads! From there, they'll also get a nice view of the Bazaar crashing in the desert just outside the city limits.

Rewards:

3 Meister points / souls (for Meisters and Weapons, respectively.)
500D$ per person
Weapons may choose not to eat their souls, but they cannot be traded amongst each other.
While characters will not be officially joining a mission, a sign-up thread will be included on the Mission Board so as to properly track rewards for the Soul Tally. A direct link to the thread you should reply to will be provided in the comments below!



If You Read Only One Thing On This Post...
 
Still here? Great! Here are some summaries to hopefully make your life easier.

Timetable of events:
Friday, Oct. 19th (April 1st)
Carnival / Mission 157 coordination post
Cross-Dressing/Beauty Pageant IC signups

Tuesday, Oct. 23rd (April 2nd)
Cross-Dressing/Beauty Pageant OOC nominations

Friday, Oct. 26th (April 3rd)
Carnival log
Tunnel of Love log
Cross-Dressing/Beauty Pageant log for finalists + voting

Friday, Nov. 2nd (April 5th)
Mission 157 log
City invasion log
 
► During the in-game dates of April 3rd and April 4th, characters will be able to attend the carnival. The reactivated Madness Emitter will make the bazaar during all of April 4th seem far more sinister and corrupted than the day before.
► Mission 157 will occur with little notice on the morning of April 5th. Only paired partners may attend.
► During the Mission, all people who are required (or chose) to remain in the city will come under attack.
► The Mission will culminate with the destruction of the Emitter, the elimination or retreat of all Witch forces, and the evacuation of all island residents.
► The island will fall and crash just outside the city's walls and remain there.

There's a lot to talk about here, so please make sure to indicate what your characters will be doing on each day when you put together your plotting threads! Thank you for your patience, and happy plotting!
dissenter: (Default)
2012-02-02 10:12 pm

permissions.

ooc.
Backtagging
Please do.
Threadjacking Also, please do.
Fourthwalling Best to ask me first.

action.
Fighting/Injury Sure thing. Qilby's better in a fight than he looks though, so don't be looking for an easy target of an old man. Let's just talk about specific injuries beforehand!
Killing No, unless we've specifically talked about it.
Telepathy/Mind-reading Generally won't be a problem, but I'd like to have it run by me first. Nothing says he'd be protected against it ICly, but there're some things I'd like to keep secret OOCly. :J

relations.
Hugging Sure. It won't be the best hug you've ever received, but he tries, for having one arm.
Flirting If your character is, by some remote possibility, into him...
Kissing and beyond Kissing: see above, but don't expect a real salacious reaction. Beyond? I'd rather not. Oh my God, he's old.

portals and other powers.
All Eliatropes can create portals to use for travel, combat, and simple convenience. By coaxing forth a passageway through dimensions, Qilby can send not only himself places, but others as well. To the uninitiated, however, this is a bit of a stomach-turning experience. People unaccustomed to dimensional travel (or just the feeling of suddenly not being where you thought you were going to be) often feel nauseated, even feel the need to throw up after coming out the other end of one.

Eliatropes also have the ability to breathe in Wakfu -- life force -- and siphon it off other living things to use for their own benefit. As they need this energy to make portals and... Well, live, it's rather a good thing.

Please let me know if you'd rather Qilby not teleport your character places. He knows how it feels for new people, and will let them know about it beforehand, but this is more in the event that something dangerous or surprising (or both) occurs without time to react and he needs to get someone out of harm's way.

Same goes for draining life force. If he really needs it, he'll certainly ask your character beforehand -- no space vampires here. It'll only be in the event he requires a lot of energy to do something. But let me know if there's a special case that requires this not to be brought up at all.
dissenter: (m'appeler votre altesse.)
2012-02-02 10:05 pm
Entry tags:

character relations.



To be added.
dissenter: (Default)
2012-01-31 10:37 pm

qilby's first fanfiction.


Eliatropes were born very far from here. Very, very, very far away. Up there, beyond the sky, there are other worlds... Other stars... And their number is infinite, just like grains of sand in the desert. We gave a name to it all: the Krosmoz. Where does the Krosmoz start? Does it have an end? No one knows. There is so much left to discover. As for our world, ah... Yugo... If only you could remember the auroras tinged with Wakfu, the scent of flowery oceans, and the dragon's song.

We lived in symbiosis with the dragons. That harmony was such, that our races were united from birth. Our people were governed by the Council of Six, the first six to be born. But... I should instead say the twelve. Chibi and his dragon brother Grougaloragran were the most inventive of us all. Together, they created the Eliacube. Mina and Phaeris were gifted with wisdom, and they solved all the quarrels that could divide their brothers. Glip and Baltazar had a passion for teaching, and they passed learning and knowledge to our children. Goddess, how pleasant it was to watch Nora and Efrim play innocently in the flower fields. And you, Yugo and Adamaï, the two adventurers, always in search of thrills, defenders and protectors of our people... What a pride for me and my sister Shinonome to be king and queen of such brilliant people.

But one day, another civilisation attacked us. They coveted our magic science. They were... The Mechasms. No negotiation was possible. Their only goal was destruction. Our world was threatened with extinction. We fought for our survival. The only solution was to flee. Thanks to the power of the Eliacube, we created a ship allowing us to navigate among the stars: the Zinit. This was a jump into the unknown, a desperate odyssey in pursuit of a new haven. Our wandering in the Krosmoz lasted years. From empty planets, we took the necessary Wakfu to fuel the Eliacube and propel the ship, jumping from world to world, further and further...

And so, we finally found this world. It... Was bursting with life. Every inch of it was imbued with Wakfu. After a few years, our civilization managed to rebuild itself. Thus began a new era of joy and prosperity. But once again, fate tormented us. One of the Mechasms, known as Orgonax, picked up our trail. And war ensued again! Orgonax wreaked havoc. He seemed indestructible. Despite our valour, it was impossible for us to beat him. Many perished trying, including my dragon sister Shinonome. Together, the Eliatrope adults sacrificed their Wakfu to put the children out of harm's way, sending them in a dimension out of space and time. And you two, against my will, you did the same with me, thus saving my life. To this day, I don't know if you did it because I was your king, or because of the wound that Orgonax inflicted me.
dissenter: (Default)
2012-01-26 11:42 pm
Entry tags:

APP => [community profile] ataraxion

CHARACTER INFORMATION
Name: Qilby
Canon: Wakfu
Original or Alternate Universe: Original
Canon Point: Just after leaving through the portal from the Sadida Kingdom (with Adamaï and Grougaloragran in tow); prior to S02E20.
Number: 087

Setting:
Reference materials are a toughie. Being a multi-media foreign canon, information about it is spread out among many sources. To start, here is the hub for English fan-translations of all Wakfu-related media. This is the woefully-outdated English Wikipedia page and if you can read French, this one is far more thorough and specifically about the TV series. TVTropes has a mostly up-to-date page on the show, and Qilby in particular has a short entry on the Characters page -- currently listed under "Allies," but this will probably change sometime. I couldn't tell you why it hasn't already. Finally there's really only one source for the game Islands of Wakfu (from which nearly all of my pre-TV series history is drawn) and that is the official site.

Wakfu takes place in a fantasy realm known as the World of Twelve, inhabited by twelve races who've adopted the visage, abilities, and blessings of their respective gods and goddesses. The world, the universe, is suffused with Wakfu (the energy of life and creation) and its opposite, Stasis (pure destructive force.) Think of it like the Force in Star Wars. Wakfu is contained in all living things and most of the races of the World of Twelve can manipulate Wakfu to perform magic-like feats: anything from controlling time, to healing wounds, to charging a sword with flame.

The few great nations of the World have on-off conflicts but as of yet, there is a tenuous peace following the cataclysmic flood called Ogrest's Chaos (named for the ogre who supposedly cried so much the ocean levels rose.)

There is one race not completely accounted for in the World of Twelve, however, and that is the Eliatropes. These people, with their portal-making powers and advanced technology, were closely tied to the ancient dragons but apparently vanished ten thousand years ago. The Eliatropes are gone, but very few dragons live today and remain yet a mystery.

The series begins as the last remaining Eliatrope, Yugo, embarks on a quest to find out more about his latent powers and learn the secrets of his true family.

History:
A very, very long indeterminate amount of time ago on a planet very, very far away, six human children were born out of six dragon eggs, each with bonded dragon siblings. These were the first of their kind, the first of the race that would come to be known as the Eliatropes. Though these six would not be the only Eliatropes to come, they were the most special: upon the death of both human and dragon siblings, their life force would return to their original egg (known as a Dofus) and a cycle of rebirth would begin. Thus, the first Eliatropes became the race's immortal leaders and guided their people since their inception.

The leaders, Eliatrope and dragon, ruled with wisdom and fairness and each to their own strengths. Yugo and Adamaï were the daring explorers, always going out on adventures and discovering new lands. Chibi and Grougaloragran brought forth many wondrous creations, including the Eliacube which all Eliatropes would carry. Glip and Baltazar took it upon themselves to endow the people with knowledge. Mina and Phaeris, gifted with wisdom, settled disputes and dealt justice. Nora and Efrim were the picture of freedom and innocence. And finally, Qilby and his sister Shinonome spearheaded scientific progress, not only joining Chibi in invention, but curing maladies and working tirelessly on ways to better their race.

These leaders, as the Council of Six -- or Twelve, depending on how you look at it -- were devoted to following the Way of Wakfu. Wakfu is the energy in all living things, an endless, immortal, ever-flowing life-force. It was not unlike the Council themselves, in many ways. It ensured that nothing ever truly perished. Over the course of many years, their beliefs would evolve and they would, at one unknown point, discover a Goddess to place their faith in. To live the Way of Wakfu was to live in harmony with the beasts and flowers the Goddess created, and to worship her, the ultimate reality. To them, Wakfu was her "ever-flowing mane," to which all things returned when their material form was consumed.

But it's Qilby's story we're interested in. It's important to note that, among his peers, he was particularly special in that he was the only one that could remember his previous lives. Through the millennia, he would accumulate a vast memory... A "gift" that he would eventually come to find a curse.

In his time as part of this Council of Six, Qilby gifted his people with many inventions. He helped Chibi create the Eliacube, a sort of personal Wakfu-powered device that all Eliatropes carried. He created the Wik-Fi Network, which allowed people to communicate over long distances by interfacing their Eliacubes with special flowers called Manolias. Over the course of many lives, he constantly worked on ways to cure any disease that plagued his people. Qilby was as curious as he was innovative, too: he spent many years collecting one of every species of animal on his planet for study or some unspecified eventuality. The habit would continue as the race would travel to other planets, but that's a later story.

When it comes to the early, early history of the Eliatrope people, not much is known. It's not clear when exactly Qilby decided to do what he did, but it's not unreasonable to think that it was motivated by the adoption of this Goddess the Eliatropes would come to revere so much... You have to remember that Qilby remembers everything since the beginning of his race's history, and so it's likely only he knows the truth behind their theology.

Before discussing what it was he did, however, there's one last major event that requires mention: the attack of the Mechasms led by Orgonax, a race of machine-like beings intent on destruction. It's implied that Orgonax has a storied past with the Eliatropes, and that they may not have always been enemies. In any case, the Eliatropes were unable to defend themselves and were forced to flee with their dragons in a spaceship-fortress known as the Zinit.

Many, many years would be spent in the Zinit, hopping from planet to planet and taking the Wakfu they needed to power their ship. Eventually, they would come across a planet called the World of Twelve, where Wakfu, the series, takes place. The World was but in its infancy at this point, and the gods and goddesses but children. It was, however, brimming with Wakfu and even bore a resemblance to their home planet, and so the Eliatropes decided to settle down and rebuild their civilisation. A new era of peace and prosperity began, and the Eliatropes fell into complacency.

It's not certain by any means, but I believe it's at this point that the Eliatropes found their Goddess. One day Chibi came down from the Zinit after an afternoon of meditation, and brought the Goddess and their new religion with him. From then on he was known as a Prophet and King, and Zinit became a sacred mountain. Again, details on this point of Eliatrope history are scarce, but one thing's for sure: Qilby's probably the one who best knew the truth of what was really going on.

That's probably why he would begin to cultivate a suspicion of the true nature of this deity. He was already a scientific mind, given to inquisition and hard facts. With this new Goddess came restrictions, secrets, and mystery. No one was allowed in Zinit where the Goddess supposedly resided. Qilby couldn't sit down and take things on blind faith... And so at some point he decided to break down the barriers and taboos. This included undergoing research into the yang to Wakfu's yin: the pure destructive energy known as Stasis, which the Eliatropes had strictly forbidden abuse of.

Qilby eventually came to believe that the way the Eliatropes were now living was a lie. He'd never got over the fact that they were forced to flee from the Mechasms in the first place, that they didn't avenge their fallen brothers and sisters. And even now, he hated that they lived a sedentary lifestyle. To him, Wakfu was endless motion. Eliatropes were "supposed to move, supposed to feed on other systems and progress, forever and ever." He also held a deep resentment over the fact that after King Chibi died it was not him -- the innovator and scientist who'd so improved the lives of his people over and over again -- that was picked to be King... But Yugo. It's implied that Qilby spent many lives trying to "convince" Yugo and Adamaï that they were keeping the Eliatropes in a simulacrum of paradise, and consistently failed each time. Yugo's latent possession of the throne was likely just another blow to his pride.

And so the day came when Qilby couldn't take living a lie any further. It's unclear how they found the Eliatropes once more, but it's possible/likely that Qilby was the one that led Orgonax and the Mechasms to his new home. As the invaders converged on the World of Twelve, Qilby paid a visit to King Yugo. No one knows exactly what transpired during this meeting, but word eventually got out to the other Eliatropes that Qilby had killed the King and revealed himself a traitor to his people. His motives and actions during and following this time are unknown. While the other Eliatropes tried to find a way to get to safety and Grougaloragran found Yugo and Adamaï's Dofus for safekeeping, Qilby attempted to climb Zinit to "expose the parody that is [the] Eliatrope Goddess." He stayed in Zinit long enough to leave behind a recording in which he contemplated his choices, attempted to rationalise them, and then asked for forgiveness and understanding from whomever viewed it. It's unknown what exactly happened next, but at the very least he managed to get in a tussle with Phaeris and have his left arm ripped off. Not long afterwards, he was somehow sealed in his own Eliacube.

Meanwhile, the Eliatrope children were herded into a portal and sealed away in a location between time and space until the day came when they could be released. It's not clear who exactly faced Orgonax alone at this point, but the final confrontation ended in his destruction and the total disappearance of the Eliatrope race. The World of Twelve, however ravaged from this short conflict, lived on.

Ten thousand years would pass before the events of Wakfu, the series. Yugo, finally reborn, would go on a quest to learn the secrets of his true family. He would find Grougaloragran and his young brother Adamaï. He would fight a time-manipulating madman known as Nox who'd come into possession of an Eliacube, and who'd been hunting dragons' Wakfu for years. Grougaloragran would die by Nox's hands, but Yugo and company would retrieve his Dofus for safe-keeping. After a long battle, Nox would be defeated and Yugo would reclaim the powerful Eliatrope artefact that'd driven the villain so insane...

And it would take some time for Yugo to gather up the courage to attempt it, but he and his brother would eventually experiment with the Eliacube. The result of this is the hatching of Chibi and Grougaloragran's Dofus (producing a baby Eliatrope and dragon) and Qilby's release from his Eliacube (producing an old one-armed man.) Qilby, on his part, is absolutely fucking terrified to see little thirteen-year-old Yugo and promptly passes out from exhaustion.

After a little recovery and finding out this is ten thousand years in the future and that Yugo and Adamaï remember precisely nothing of their previous, murderous meeting with him, Qilby sorts himself out and proceeds to tell an excellent piece of Eliatrope fanfiction in which he was the wise and benevolent King of everyone. He tells the story of Orgonax and how Yugo sacrificed himself to save Qilby and the rest of the Eliatropes by sealing them away. And he says that, if Yugo and co. can retrieve his Dofus (containing his sister Shinonome) hidden halfway across the world, then he'll have enough energy to reopen portal-space and free their people. Yugo is the happiest kid on the World of Twelve at this point.

Of note is the fact that baby Grougaloragran hates Qilby and takes any chance he can get to either try and bite his remaining arm off or set his hat on fire. Qilby takes it in good humour and chalks it up to black dragons, especially Grougal, being particularly possessive of their companions and no one seems to think twice about it...

Yugo and co. (minus Adamaï, who's on babydragonsitting duty) set off on their Dofus quest and of course it only takes them a day or two to get lost in another dimension: the world of Rushu, lord of the demon-like creatures known as Shushu. Luckily Adamaï senses Yugo's disappearance and he and Qilby, with much effort, manage to open a portal to this other dimension and free the gang.

The protagonists continue on their merry way. Meanwhile, back in the Sadida Kingdom where Qilby is staying as guest, a meeting of all the leaders of the world's races and nations convenes. They've all come to hear from the long-lost Eliatrope King, see the young dragon Adamaï, and discuss how to manage the sudden, imminent reappearance of a thirteenth race. Things seem to go well at first and Qilby tells the story of his people, but when questioned reveals that the Eliatropes will number in the several tens-of-thousands: a practical invasion, in the words of the now panic-stricken world leaders. It doesn't take long for the meeting to spiral into childish bickering, especially over the fact that the Sadida Kingdom was keeping Qilby and his Eliacube for themselves. All the nations want access to that power. Silent throughout the argument, Qilby is not happy, not happy at all.

And so afterwards, coming to a decision, he takes the Eliacube and convinces Adamaï to leave the Kingdom with him -- they've outstayed their welcome, as far as he's concerned. Plus, he's got something to show the young dragon. Although apprehensive at first about leaving in secret so suddenly, Adamaï agrees, takes Grougaloragran, and helps Qilby open a portal to locations unknown...

[This is point from where I'll be taking him from for the purposes of playing in Ataraxion, but it's worth elaborating on the very important canon following it.]

The portal opens far away, in the heart of the long-abandoned Zinit. Qilby shows Adamaï around, how the ship is powered by the Eliacube. They walk down a hallway decorated with frescoes depicting the history of the Council of Six. Throughout all this, Qilby acts strangely -- making odd, morbid jokes and laughing heartily at Adamaï's assumption that he's homesick (he'll "never set foot back there...") He relates to the dragon his powerful memory, how he's the only one out of the Council who can remember his past lives. And then they come to Qilby's private laboratory.

It's creepy as all hell, full of the hundreds of species of animals he's collected and preserved. He mentions that there's one world, dimension rather, that he's recently taken interest in: the Shushu realm. Adamaï's pretty overwhelmed/creeped out over all this and Qilby isn't even done yet: he finally reveals that he -- they -- plan to leave the planet soon. The World of Twelve is not theirs, and it barely holds enough energy to even get the Zinit off the ground. But, asks Adamaï, won't taking that energy destroy the planet? Response: of course not! It'll just be a little... Ravaged.

And then Qilby goes full villain mode. Showing his true colours, he laments that Yugo and Adamaï are just always so stubborn and that nothing ever changes with them from life to life. He reveals that the reason he didn't go retrieve his Dofus himself is because Phaeris -- who'd divested him of his arm ten thousand years ago -- guards it, and that he's nevertheless got another plan to get what he wants without using Yugo. A fight ensues in which Qilby demonstrates just what an adult Eliatrope is capable of. High as a fucking kite off Wakfu (and the fact that he doesn't have to pretend to be an old man anymore) Qilby is too much of a match for baby Grougal and Adamaï: he knocks the former out and puts the latter in a coma, draining him of his Wakfu. Afterwards, he acknowledges that if two young dragons gave him that much of a fight, he would be no match for Phaeris by himself.

And so, after tossing Grougal in a prison for later... use... he hops on over to the Shushu realm through a portal of his own, now effortless, creation. He offers a deal to Rushu: if the demon lord agrees to help him kill Phaeris, he'll open a portal to the World of Twelve for the Shushu to go through and destroy and ravage to their black hearts' content. Though Rushu knows that this is all a little fishy, he's got nothing to lose and the promise of imminent pillage is too good to pass up. The two strike a deal, and the invasion is set for a few days from then.

It's pretty darn likely that Qilby's only planning to use Rushu as a distraction for both Phaeris and Yugo so that he can grab his Dofus and drain the planet's Wakfu in peace. But only time, and the last four episodes of the series, will tell...

Personality:
Qilby is, first and foremost, a scientist. Described as "a brilliant but fragile mind," he is inquisitive, thorough, and sceptical. Gifted with great intelligence, he's used his talents to invent devices to better the lives of his people. His immortal status also grants him a unique foresight, knowing that he'll always have more time to improve his work during lives upon lives for all eternity. He plans for the future like, for example, how he collects one of every now-extinct species he encounters on any planet in the event he'll figure out how to clone. The sky would be the limit but, well, Eliatropes broke that barrier long ago, man.

There's one caveat to his immortality, however, and it's one unique to him: he's the only one out of the Council of Six who can remember his past lives. This means he's also got millennia upon millennia of experience under his belt (or giant hat, if you will.) While this may sound like a gift, it's truly a burden: although there are the good moments and memories, he also has the responsibility of carrying the knowledge of all his people's past mistakes while watching them repeat them or try to cover them up in the present. For a man who has deep pride and a strong sense of cultural identity, this is undoubtedly painful.

And so, it's after thousands of years of this that he seems to have taken it upon himself to learn the "true way of Wakfu." A dissident, he'd challenge conceived notions of Eliatrope life: both philosophical and religious. Lack of faith in the Goddess would eventually become a lack of faith in his own fellow rulers; he'd grow to detest "the secrets, the taboos," and quietly seethe about it. Knowing that outright confrontration rarely got the results he wanted, he'd resort to subtler methods of rebellion. He'd explore the various taboos and even conduct forbidden research on Stasis, pure destructive energy. These are all likely reasons he was never King -- which happens to be an extremely sore point for him. As mentioned before, he takes great pride in his capabilities, and craves recognition for it. Recognition he never felt he got, apparently. He grew very angry after being left out of Chibi's will -- all his worldly possessions went to Chibi's lover, Mina, and the throne went to Yugo. It was really no secret how buttmad he was over this.

In any case, imagine that happening century after century after century since the beginning of time with no end in sight: seeing what he considered weaknesses bringing down his people, attempting to call them out, quarreling with his family and destroying relationships, and ultimately failing to do anything of note. Over and over and over again. It's little wonder he went mad.

Qilby eventually came to the realisation that the way of Wakfu was to remain in motion, "feeding on other systems, and progressing forever and ever." This is a belief influenced not only by his status as immortal, but by the original teachings of prophet Chibi who he rather admired. He would come to loathe the sedentary lifestyle his people had adopted following their excommunication to the World of Twelve, and he hated the fact that they never went back to avenge their fallen brethren. He would hold a disdain for people who couldn't come to decisive action, who couldn't mobilise, for years to come.

Qilby's ultimate motivations and goals revolve around bringing his people back and convincing them to follow his "real way of the Wakfu": to hop from planet to planet, draining them dry of Wakfu and forever progressing ever further into the endless Krosmoz. His belief in this philosophy is so strong, that he'd even resort to murdering the other members of the Council of Six (even as children) and attempting to usurp the throne in order to see it realised. He doesn't enjoy feeling the "need" to kill his family: it's mostly just frustrating. But it's a necessary step towards Eliatrope (and personal) greatness, as far as he's concerned.

It's good for him that all his lives and experiences have given him plenty of practice lying. You kind of need to be a good actor when you've become a rather maniacal, egotistical, murderous mess; otherwise, how would his family ever trust him life after life? He's even taken to hiding his true appearance, using one far less sketchy: the brown-haired, spectacled, gentle old man on all the Eliatrope frescoes with his sister, depicting the pride of their people. As this Qilby, he's wise, charming, and well-spoken: the picture of the King he always wanted to be. Even telling bald-faced lies, he can orate with proper regality. Charismatic, he's quite a nice storyteller, and is curious about the world he's been newly reintroduced to. Not a few people have been impressed with what he's experienced and the stories he has to share. He's the kind of guy you couldn't ever imagine being angry or vindictive or at all manipulative.

Beneath, however, is a man who's seen too much and been let down far too often, and who has become needlessly cruel in his search for power. A once-great mind has been twisted into a cunning, nearly Machiavellian machinist, like he's got his fingers in everything. Entire civilisations, planets, and lives are merely footsteps towards greater Eliatrope power. Limits mean nothing to a guy who's lived for millennia and whose technology and magic has surpassed anything anyone else has done. A comfortable arrogance has hold of him; he doesn't have any trouble laughing at himself and his own mistakes in battle when he knows he's ultimately the one at-ease, the one in control. A nimble trickster, he relishes toying with his opponents and showing off what he can do.

Qilby is a contradiction. He may be his people's greatest ally, or their worst enemy. He's worthy of pity or fright, of admiration or disgust. There are still many questions about him left unanswered, but one thing's for certain: while once he had noble intentions, he's gone awry and is now willing to do anything to restore his people to their former glory. Because as far as he can tell, he's the only one that can.

Abilities, Weaknesses and Power Limitations:

Abilities
  • Portals! All Eliatropes can make portals. They can be big! They can be small! They can transport you, your friends, or even redirect your enemies' attacks! There really are too many imaginative uses of portal magic to describe. But in general: portals require free hands and Wakfu. More Wakfu is required for portals over especially long distances. Unlike the portals of the eponymous Portal game series, Eliatrope portals can be conjured in mid-air. One specific trick that sees a lot of use is by conjuring a portal inside a portal, you make a portalception concussive laser beam. It's pretty rad.
  • Wakfu manipulation! Wakfu is the energy of life and creation -- kind of like the Force in Star Wars. Most races in the World of Twelve have the ability to manipulate their own intrinsic Wakfu and turn it into powerful attacks, but thousands of years prior to that Eliatropes took the control of Wakfu and turned it into an art form. They can leech energy from external sources -- plants, animals, even other people -- and use it for their own ends. With training, they can even see it, using a kind of Wakfu vision. Qilby, being an adult Eliatrope and master in his own right, can accomplish particularly difficult feats of Wakfu manipulation: drawing on multiple power sources to make a portal to another dimension, for example. Apart from energy or combat, Eliatropes use Wakfu for many mundane applications: including writing and visual storytelling.
  • Stasis manipulation! Not much is known about Stasis -- it was forbidden for Eliatropes to study it past necessity. Qilby, however, said fuck that and researched this "anti-Wakfu" behind everyone's back... Basically the act of destroying something living generates Stasis, it's purple where Wakfu is blue, it's pure destructive energy where Wakfu is life force, and it's considered some bad, bad shit. Using Wakfu to augment attacks is powerful enough, but using Stasis is deadly.
  • Wakfung! The portal-aided martial arts style unique to the Eliatrope people. Basically just your standard kicky-punchy, but with the ability to portal your punches and kicks every which way. Attacks can also be augmented with Stasis: creating knockback energy fields, frickin' lasers, and more. Although you wouldn't know it by looking at him, Qilby was allegedly a Grand Master of Wakfung, contributing maneuvers (with awful names) that were taught to initiates when there were still initiates to teach.
  • Smarts! Qilby was the scientist of his people and he and Eliatrope inventor/prophet/king Chibi performed the bulk of innovation that the race is known for. He created the Wik-Fi network which allowed Eliatropes to communicate through special plants. He had some hand in the creation of the Eliacube which all Eliatropes carry. Again, he performed plenty of dangerous, forbidden research on Stasis. He's cured dozens of diseases. And he devoted a crapton of time to collecting things: he's been keeping samples of extinct animals locked away in his lab for... Reasons.
  • There's also the matter of his "real form..." Turns out Qilby's only been pretending to be a old one-armed man. With an infusion of Wakfu, he takes on a sinister, vaguely clownish appearance, stops wearing a shirt, grows a new arm made of Wakfu, and has his capabilities multiply exponentially. He can create many portals at once and shoot beams of Wakfu out of his scary arm. He can make a Wakfu scythe capable of doing damage to the physical form or to an enemy's Wakfu itself. He's very acrobatic. Also gains the power of awful laughter. And he's one of the weaker Eliatrope leaders.
Weaknesses
  • He's really really old. Old as balls. Like any other old man, he wears out easily, isn't especially mobile without using his portals, and Qilby in particular was never much of a fighter compared to his brothers and sisters. His strength had always lain in his intellect and cunning.
  • Lost an arm, presumably during the second Mechasm invasion before he was sealed away (an angry dragon bit it off...) Obviously he's an easy target on his left side, and it leaves him only one hand for making portals. And I imagine that this'll be an issue when trying to do most complicated tasks... Like operating a communicator, to use a completely irrelevant example.
  • Hubris. Arrogance. You know how intelligent people who know they're intelligent always make the biggest mistakes? His fall hasn't been shown in-canon yet, but when it is, it's going to be big and it's going to be awful. There has not been a single major villain in this series that hasn't seen a horribly tragic defeat. It seems he can't tell a story without throwing a lie in there somewhere and it looks like he's making a habit of double-crossing powerful people. The season won't end well for anyone involved...
  • Not to mention the fact that he remembers every one of his innumerable previous lives -- he himself admits that this is more of a burden than a gift. This little quirk of his has undoubtedly contributed to his latent madness and ongoing obsession with reclaiming his people.
Power Limitation Suggestions
  • NOTE: In Ataraxion, Wakfu and Stasis shall simply be Generic Life/Destructive Forces (and from here on out, any mention of Wakfu/Stasis should be read as these Generic Forces.) Life force can be found in small amounts in plants, in larger amounts in critters, and in the largest amounts in humans (especially particularly-powerful ones.) He'll be able to draw from these sources, but not without IC/OOC permission in the latter's case, of course.
  • Portals shall simply have their energy requirements bumped up a few notches, so that portal-spamming is discouraged. The number of portals he'll be able to comfortably have up at once is four, and it'll be exponentially harder to maintain four portals than two, for example. Consistent use of his powers for more than ten minutes will start to become taxing. Normal portal-creation range is up to 40 yards, but with a significant amount of help/energy (takes his Eliacube and a dragon in-canon) he can open a portal to an area he's been before, however far away. Attempting to get into a restricted area with them will earn him a good, long blacking out.
  • He'll retain the harmless "fluff" abilities (writing, little projections, etc.) as well as his Wakfu-vision letting him find potential sources of energy to leech off of. This latter point may be important considering I'm going to nerf Qilby's natural Wakfu regeneration and require him to occasionally recharge -- especially after a lot of work. Going from exhausted to full on his own would take an hour. Overdoing himself can result in burnout, requiring a cooldown period of, say, six hours.
  • The act of destroying living things will generate Stasis that Qilby can use to augment his attacks at the price of a greater energy cost. The capabilities of Stasis aren't well-defined, but as far as Eliatropes go it's seen most use by using it to add an extra (purple) punch to punches.
  • He will retain his Wakfung skills, however hampered by the fact that he's old and has one arm.
  • Qilby's intelligence will thankfully not diminish. If he can use and manipulate Wakfu, he can continue to create and invent. It'll be a matter of materials available to him and how much Wakfu he can spare. Also, hello Xenobiology Division: you've potentially nabbed yourself a guy who collects species for fun and profit.
  • Hoo boy. Making the transition from nice old man to awful mad clown scientist required a healthy supply of Wakfu in the series and I'm going to raise that amount quite nicely in Ataraxion. Should the day come where he ever turns villain for all to see, he's going to need a lot of energy, having to squirrel it away in his Eliacube over time like he's saving for evil retirement. Even after that, his ability boosts will be limited to getting his Wakfu-arm-scythe, being able to use his powers for more than 10 minutes at a time, and a healthier body that won't wear out after a little physical exertion. No making portals to other dimensions with the greatest of ease, for example. Obviously going full-villain would be crossing the Rubicon in terms of how the game sees and reacts to him and I'd only ever consider doing this for Major Plot Reasons -- and thus not without consulting the mods first.
Inventory:
One Eliacube. Among other things, it's a personal record device, the interface to connect to the Wik-Fi Network (when it existed) and a sort of battery that can store Wakfu for later use -- all in a little box that fits in the palm of your hand! Qilby's been around the block with these things for a few ten thousand years so he knows little tricks like turning it into a flying owl automaton. It's unknown what the use of this is besides looking cool perching on your shoulder and making it so you don't have to carry it around in your pocket, but I'd say that's reason enough.
Eliacubes run off of Wakfu. Qilby's had a lot of Wakfu stored in his for a really long time, but upon arrival on the Tranquility, it'll be completely drained and inoperative until its supply is somehow replenished.
In addition, considering the potential difficulty in operating a communicator while having only one arm, I'd like to request that he eventually be able to tinker with the Eliacube once he's got it running again and bake in some of the comm's functions in an interface that better suits him. Until then, he'll flub his way through it with good humour.

His only other possession shall be his hippie space Jesus outfit, including that magnificent hat. I understand a hat of this size and class may be classified as a dangerous weapon, but I'm humbly requesting that you make an exception so its majesty is not diminished in any way. It'd be a real shame.

The clothing is mostly because, even though he's in pretty good shape for being over ten thousand years old, I don't think anyone wants to see an old man in a jumpsuit.

Appearance: Le photo reference.

Rather tall, he matches heights with even the larger characters in the series -- at least six feet, I'd say. Thin, gaunt, "well-preserved" is how one character put it. Has a constant lazy, tired look about him though it doesn't extend past his expression: he otherwise carries himself regally, straight and tall. Looks like a guy you couldn't ever imagine getting really angry; has a face made for gentle smiles and warm looks. Missing his left hand, possibly the whole arm. It's not really certain. Eliatrope clothing is full of secrets, after all... And no secret is as big as the one concerning what's under that giant hat so characteristic of the race's fashion.

As far as Eliatrope hats go, Qilby's is especially impressive and it could probably eat a smaller person alive if they weren't careful.

However, it appears as if the kindly old man look is a cover for his "true" appearance.

Le second photo reference.

... In which he's pale-skinned, covered in skeleton-like tattoos, and is terrifying and shirtless. Also, using energy stored in his Eliacube, has replaced his left arm with a construct made of Wakfu and some armour plating. And he's barefoot, since evil doesn't wear shoes.

Age: Très très très très old. His current body's got at least 10,000 years on it, and his mind and memory have lasted millennia upon millennia of rebirth cycles.
dissenter: (doh ho ho.)
2012-01-19 12:51 am
Entry tags:

APP => [community profile] soul_campaign

((Note: the original app was written before the season finale. As such, several minor details in the history section are incorrect -- like me saying he was stuck in his Eliacube as opposed to the Blank Dimension. Correcting/finishing the history section is an ongoing project for me!))

[ CHARACTER INFORMATION ]
Name: Qilby
Age: Many millennia because of rebirth cycles; appears in his 50s.
Gender: Male
Canon: Wakfu
Timeline: Just after leaving through the portal from the Sadida Kingdom (with Adamaï and Grougaloragran in tow); prior to S02E20.

Character History:
A very, very long indeterminate amount of time ago on a planet very, very far away, six human children were born out of six dragon eggs, each with bonded dragon siblings. These were the first of their kind, the first of the race that would come to be known as the Eliatropes. Though these six would not be the only Eliatropes to come, they were the most special: upon the death of both human and dragon siblings, their life force would return to their original egg (known as a Dofus) and a cycle of rebirth would begin. Thus, the first Eliatropes became the race's immortal leaders and guided their people since their inception.

The leaders, Eliatrope and dragon, ruled with wisdom and fairness and each to their own strengths. Yugo and Adamaï were the daring explorers, always going out on adventures and discovering new lands. Chibi and Grougaloragran brought forth many wondrous creations, including the Eliacube which all Eliatropes would carry. Glip and Baltazar took it upon themselves to endow the people with knowledge. Mina and Phaeris, gifted with wisdom, settled disputes and dealt justice. Nora and Efrim were the picture of freedom and innocence. And finally, Qilby and his sister Shinonome spearheaded scientific progress, not only joining Chibi in invention, but curing maladies and working tirelessly on ways to better their race.

These leaders, as the Council of Six -- or Twelve, depending on how you look at it -- were devoted to following the Way of Wakfu. Wakfu is the energy in all living things, an endless, immortal, ever-flowing life-force. It was not unlike the Council themselves, in many ways. It ensured that nothing ever truly perished. Over the course of many years, their beliefs would evolve and they would, at one unknown point, discover a Goddess to place their faith in. To live the Way of Wakfu was to live in harmony with the beasts and flowers the Goddess created, and to worship her, the ultimate reality. To them, Wakfu was her "ever-flowing mane," to which all things returned when their material form was consumed.

But it's Qilby's story we're interested in. It's important to note that, among his peers, he was particularly special in that he was the only one that could remember his previous lives. Through the millennia, he would accumulate a vast memory... A "gift" that he would eventually come to find a curse.

In his time as part of this Council of Six, Qilby gifted his people with many inventions. He helped Chibi create the Eliacube, a sort of personal Wakfu-powered device that all Eliatropes carried. He created the Wik-Fi Network, which allowed people to communicate over long distances by interfacing their Eliacubes with special flowers called Manolias. Over the course of many lives, he constantly worked on ways to cure any disease that plagued his people. Qilby was as curious as he was innovative, too: he spent many years collecting one of every species of animal on his planet for study or some unspecified eventuality. The habit would continue as the race would travel to other planets, but that's a later story.

When it comes to the early, early history of the Eliatrope people, not much is known. It's not clear when exactly Qilby decided to do what he did, but it's not unreasonable to think that it was motivated by the adoption of this Goddess the Eliatropes would come to revere so much... You have to remember that Qilby remembers everything since the beginning of his race's history, and so it's likely only he knows the truth behind their theology.

Before discussing what it was he did, however, there's one last major event that requires mention: the attack of the Mechasms led by Orgonax, a race of machine-like beings intent on destruction. It's implied that Orgonax has a storied past with the Eliatropes, and that they may not have always been enemies. In any case, the Eliatropes were unable to defend themselves and were forced to flee with their dragons in a spaceship-fortress known as the Zinit.

Many, many years would be spent in the Zinit, hopping from planet to planet and taking the Wakfu they needed to power their ship. Eventually, they would come across a planet called the World of Twelve, where Wakfu, the series, takes place. The World was but in its infancy at this point, and the gods and goddesses but children. It was, however, brimming with Wakfu and even bore a resemblance to their home planet, and so the Eliatropes decided to settle down and rebuild their civilisation. A new era of peace and prosperity began, and the Eliatropes fell into complacency.

It's not certain by any means, but I believe it's at this point that the Eliatropes found their Goddess. One day Chibi came down from the Zinit after an afternoon of meditation, and brought the Goddess and their new religion with him. From then on he was known as a Prophet and King, and Zinit became a sacred mountain. Again, details on this point of Eliatrope history are scarce, but one thing's for sure: Qilby's probably the one who best knew the truth of what was really going on.

That's probably why he would begin to cultivate a suspicion of the true nature of this deity. He was already a scientific mind, given to inquisition and hard facts. With this new Goddess came restrictions, secrets, and mystery. No one was allowed in Zinit where the Goddess supposedly resided. Qilby couldn't sit down and take things on blind faith... And so at some point he decided to break down the barriers and taboos. This included undergoing research into the yang to Wakfu's yin: the pure destructive energy known as Stasis, which the Eliatropes had strictly forbidden abuse of.

Qilby eventually came to believe that the way the Eliatropes were now living was a lie. He'd never got over the fact that they were forced to flee from the Mechasms in the first place, that they didn't avenge their fallen brothers and sisters. And even now, he hated that they lived a sedentary lifestyle. To him, Wakfu was endless motion. Eliatropes were "supposed to move, supposed to feed on other systems and progress, forever and ever." He also held a deep resentment over the fact that after King Chibi died it was not him -- the innovator and scientist who'd so improved the lives of his people over and over again -- that was picked to be King... But Yugo. It's implied that Qilby spent many lives trying to "convince" Yugo and Adamaï that they were keeping the Eliatropes in a simulacrum of paradise, and consistently failed each time. Yugo's latent possession of the throne was likely just another blow to his pride.

And so the day came when Qilby couldn't take living a lie any further. It's unclear how they found the Eliatropes once more, but it's possible/likely that Qilby was the one that led Orgonax and the Mechasms to his new home. As the invaders converged on the World of Twelve, Qilby paid a visit to King Yugo. No one knows exactly what transpired during this meeting, but word eventually got out to the other Eliatropes that Qilby had killed the King and revealed himself a traitor to his people. His motives and actions during and following this time are unknown. While the other Eliatropes tried to find a way to get to safety and Grougaloragran found Yugo and Adamaï's Dofus for safekeeping, Qilby attempted to climb Zinit to "expose the parody that is [the] Eliatrope Goddess." He stayed in Zinit long enough to leave behind a recording in which he contemplated his choices, attempted to rationalise them, and then asked for forgiveness and understanding from whomever viewed it. It's unknown what exactly happened next, but at the very least he managed to get in a tussle with Phaeris and have his left arm ripped off. Not long afterwards, he was somehow sealed in his own Eliacube.

Meanwhile, the Eliatrope children were herded into a portal and sealed away in a location between time and space until the day came when they could be released. It's not clear who exactly faced Orgonax alone at this point, but the final confrontation ended in his destruction and the total disappearance of the Eliatrope race. The World of Twelve, however ravaged from this short conflict, lived on.

Ten thousand years would pass before the events of Wakfu, the series. Yugo, finally reborn, would go on a quest to learn the secrets of his true family. He would find Grougaloragran and his young brother Adamaï. He would fight a time-manipulating madman known as Nox who'd come into possession of an Eliacube, and who'd been hunting dragons' Wakfu for years. Grougaloragran would die by Nox's hands, but Yugo and company would retrieve his Dofus for safe-keeping. After a long battle, Nox would be defeated and Yugo would reclaim the powerful Eliatrope artefact that'd driven the villain so insane...

And it would take some time for Yugo to gather up the courage to attempt it, but he and his brother would eventually experiment with the Eliacube. The result of this is the hatching of Chibi and Grougaloragran's Dofus (producing a baby Eliatrope and dragon) and Qilby's release from his Eliacube (producing an old one-armed man.) Qilby, on his part, is absolutely fucking terrified to see little ten-year-old Yugo and promptly passes out from exhaustion.

After a little recovery and finding out this is ten thousand years in the future and that Yugo and Adamaï remember precisely nothing of their previous, murderous meeting with him, Qilby sorts himself out and proceeds to tell an excellent piece of Eliatrope fanfiction in which he was the wise and benevolent King of everyone. He tells the story of Orgonax and how Yugo sacrificed himself to save Qilby and the rest of the Eliatropes by sealing them away. And he says that, if Yugo and co. can retrieve his Dofus (containing his sister Shinonome) hidden halfway across the world, then he'll have enough energy to reopen portal-space and free their people. Yugo is the happiest kid on the World of Twelve at this point.

Of note is the fact that baby Grougaloragran hates Qilby and takes any chance he can get to either try and bite his remaining arm off or set his hat on fire. Qilby takes it in good humour and chalks it up to black dragons, especially Grougal, being particularly possessive of their companions and no one seems to think twice about it...

Yugo and co. (minus Adamaï, who's on babydragonsitting duty) set off on their Dofus quest and of course it only takes them a day or two to get lost in another dimension: the world of Rushu, lord of the demon-like creatures known as Shushu. Luckily Adamaï senses Yugo's disappearance and he and Qilby, with much effort, manage to open a portal to this other dimension and free the gang.

The protagonists continue on their merry way. Meanwhile, back in the Sadida Kingdom where Qilby is staying as guest, a meeting of all the leaders of the world's races and nations convenes. They've all come to hear from the long-lost Eliatrope King, see the young dragon Adamaï, and discuss how to manage the sudden, imminent reappearance of a thirteenth race. Things seem to go well at first and Qilby tells the story of his people, but when questioned reveals that the Eliatropes will number in the several tens-of-thousands: a practical invasion, in the words of the now panic-stricken world leaders. It doesn't take long for the meeting to spiral into childish bickering, especially over the fact that the Sadida Kingdom was keeping Qilby and his Eliacube for themselves. All the nations want access to that power. Silent throughout the argument, Qilby is not happy, not happy at all.

And so afterwards, coming to a decision, he takes the Eliacube and convinces Adamaï to leave the Kingdom with him -- they've outstayed their welcome, as far as he's concerned. Plus, he's got something to show the young dragon. Although apprehensive at first about leaving in secret so suddenly, Adamaï agrees, takes Grougaloragran, and helps Qilby open a portal to locations unknown...

[This is point from where I'll be taking him from for the purposes of playing in Soul Campaign, but it's worth elaborating on the very important canon following it.]

The portal opens far away, in the heart of the long-abandoned Zinit. Qilby shows Adamaï around, how the ship is powered by the Eliacube. They walk down a hallway decorated with frescoes depicting the history of the Council of Six. Throughout all this, Qilby acts strangely -- making odd, morbid jokes and laughing heartily at Adamaï's assumption that he's homesick (he'll "never set foot back there...") He relates to the dragon his powerful memory, how he's the only one out of the Council who can remember his past lives. And then they come to Qilby's private laboratory.

It's creepy as all hell, full of the hundreds of species of animals he's collected and preserved. He mentions that there's one world, dimension rather, that he's recently taken interest in: the Shushu realm. Adamaï's pretty overwhelmed/creeped out over all this and Qilby isn't even done yet: he finally reveals that he -- they -- plan to leave the planet soon. The World of Twelve is not theirs, and it barely holds enough energy to even get the Zinit off the ground. But, asks Adamaï, won't taking that energy destroy the planet? Response: of course not! It'll just be a little... Ravaged.

And then Qilby goes full villain mode. Showing his true colours, he laments that Yugo and Adamaï are just always so stubborn and that nothing ever changes with them from life to life. He reveals that the reason he didn't go retrieve his Dofus himself is because Phaeris -- who'd divested him of his arm ten thousand years ago -- guards it, and that he's nevertheless got another plan to get what he wants without using Yugo. A fight ensues in which Qilby demonstrates just what an adult Eliatrope is capable of. High as a fucking kite off Wakfu (and the fact that he doesn't have to pretend to be an old man anymore) Qilby is too much of a match for baby Grougal and Adamaï: he knocks the former out and puts the latter in a coma, draining him of his Wakfu. Afterwards, he acknowledges that if two young dragons gave him that much of a fight, he would be no match for Phaeris by himself.

And so, after tossing Grougal in a prison for later... use... he hops on over to the Shushu realm through a portal of his own, now effortless, creation. He offers a deal to Rushu: if the demon lord agrees to help him kill Phaeris, he'll open a portal to the World of Twelve for the Shushu to go through and destroy and ravage to their black hearts' content. Though Rushu knows that this is all a little fishy, he's got nothing to lose and the promise of imminent pillage is too good to pass up. The two strike a deal, and the invasion is set for a few days from then.

No sooner do Yugo and co. arrive on the Crimson Claws Archipelago than do Qilby and Rushu and a few thousand shushu make their appearance. It's an all out war between Yugo; his friends; Phaeris; and the navy of the nation Sufokia, and Qilby; Rushu and his forces; and a possessed Adamaï now grown to monstrous proportions. The whole army situation is a surprise even to Qilby, and after being accused of leading Rushu into a trap it doesn't take long for him to call the demon lord a cretin and admit that no matter what happens, the world will be destroyed soon enough anyway.

He makes off to a quiet place to observe the carnage from afar, and is finally joined by Yugo shortly thereafter. They share a friendly reunion between brothers. All is brought to light: Qilby let the Shushu invade, he's been lying to Yugo all along, he only sent them on a quest so he could take back the Eliacube without resistance, and once he's reunited with his dragon sister Shinonome, he'll rise up to lead his people once more. A short fight ensues, and it's only thanks to Phaeris that Qilby's killing blow is prevented.

An Eliatrope and a dragon versus another Eliatrope is no fair, though, so Qilby's joined by his own ally: the shushu-possessed Adamaï. The fight's taken underground, to the heart of the island, in caverns overgrown with stasis crystals. Phaeris attempts to delay Qilby from reaching his sister and Dofus, but it's too late: he's already there. Yugo's unable to stop him from grabbing the egg, but with some newly-awakened powers he's more than ready to try and stop him from doing anything more.

Another fight breaks out -- while Adamaï keeps Phaeris occupied, Qilby does battle with Yugo once again. Even with the latter's newfound strength, he's no match for the far more experienced Eliatrope. Qilby takes the opportunity to deliver his Villainous Speech. It goes on for some time, in between delivering beatings to Yugo, but the gist of it is that the Eliatrope council are immortal; they exist on a far grander scale than other beings, and that Qilby believes they're wasting their full potential by not exploring the secrets of the universe, even at the cost of planets.

With renewed vigor/anger, Yugo counters with his Heroic Speech and another, even shorter, fight breaks out and is ended. Armed with the Eliacube, Qilby's simply too powerful. But yet another killing blow is prevented -- taken, even -- by Phaeris; Qilby doesn't seem to mind and continues to make potshots at the fallen dragon while Yugo shields him. He doesn't even care when Adamaï breaks free of the shushu's control -- "that idiot was sticking out like a sore thumb in this final act." For the third time, Qilby's readying himself to kill his brothers but to his chagrin it seems that he can't do this without something interrupting him.

A collapsing cavern is nothing to a guy that can simply evade using a portal, and so after reappearing, taking out the offending creature, and retrieving his Dofus from the rubble, he finally commences opening the portal to the dimension where his people are sealed away. Obviously, Yugo interrupts, and tackles Qilby through the portal.

The two tumble through portal space and land in the world that was Qilby's home -- prison -- for ten thousand years: the Blank Dimension. It's awful. It's clear now that Yugo sealed Qilby away here ten thousand years ago, not to save his life, but to punish him for his betrayal. Qilby gives Yugo the grand tour of the place, which basically consists of yelling at him about how awful it was. It is, however, a necessary stop on the road to the Eliatropes' dimension and it's only the Eliacube that prevents him from getting lost. He offers to take Yugo along to watch while he liberates his people; afterwards, he'll get to spend some time of his own in the Blank Dimension. A few thousand years, see how he likes it. Threat made, they fly on through the next portal and emerge in...

...A bizarre world, consisting of many small planets floating in space. The Eliatrope children are indeed there, and so is their guardian, the dragon Baltazar. While he's pleased to see his king, Yugo, Baltazar is less happy about Qilby being there -- the latter's already ensured that the Eliatrope childrens' parents died, and now it seems he's there to deprive them of their new home as well. Qilby, of course, claims he's simply there to retrieve his people so they can fulfil their destiny of sailing the Krosmoz. Baltazar would rather die than join him; Qilby says he can arrange that.

It's while Qilby's choking the life out of the dragon that Yugo delivers his second Heroic Speech. Qilby attempts to put Yugo down, but since he's the protagonist, he gets right back up and, for the first and last time in the series, removes his hat to reveal what's beneath.

The rest of the Eliatrope children follow suit and join Yugo in attack; at this point, Qilby's lost some of his cool and says that if everyone's so intent to be against him, he'll leave alone with his sister and suck the life out of planets on his own. The children launch a combined attack which very nearly overwhelms Qilby, but he's just barely too powerful. Before he can counterattack, however, he's interrupted by the voice of his sister in their Dofus. He goes to her, glad to finally speak to her again after so many centuries, but she tells him that all of this must stop and blows up in his face.

He plummets to the ground, losing his Eliacube and his power in the process. He crawls to retrieve it, but is blocked once more by Yugo. It seems as if he's about to fight him for it, but he's interrupted yet again by Shinonome -- Qilby begs her to help him, but she only asks if all this violence isn't really doing the Eliatropes more harm than good, if it is all really worth it?

Qilby breaks down: yes, it was worth it for him. None of the other Eliatropes could ever understand what his burden was like, having to remember everything. They die and forget, but he has to live the same existence endlessly, over and over. Over the course of millennia, the Eliatropes' world had become too small for him. Yugo has no sympathy. Qilby flies at him in a rage, but is swept back into the Blank Dimension. He begs Yugo for mercy -- he can't go back there for another ten thousand years or beyond, he'll go insane, all alone -- but is abandoned. As Yugo says, he's already insane and alone.

Character Personality:

Qilby is, first and foremost, a scientist. Described as "a brilliant but fragile mind," he is inquisitive, thorough, and sceptical. Gifted with great intelligence, he's used his talents to invent devices to better the lives of his people. His immortal status also grants him a unique foresight, knowing that he'll always have more time to improve his work during lives upon lives for all eternity. He plans for the future like, for example, how he collects one of every now-extinct species he encounters on any planet in the event he'll figure out how to clone. The sky would be the limit but, well, Eliatropes broke that barrier long ago, man.

There's one caveat to his immortality, however, and it's one unique to him: he's the only one out of the Council of Six who can remember his past lives. This means he's also got millennia upon millennia of experience under his belt (or giant hat, if you will.) While this may sound like a gift, it's truly a burden: although there are the good moments and memories, he also has the responsibility of carrying the knowledge of all his people's past mistakes while watching them repeat them or try to cover them up in the present. For a man who has deep pride and a strong sense of cultural identity, this is undoubtedly painful.

And so, it's after thousands of years of this that he seems to have taken it upon himself to learn the "true way of Wakfu." A dissident, he'd challenge conceived notions of Eliatrope life: both philosophical and religious. Lack of faith in the Goddess would eventually become a lack of faith in his own fellow rulers; he'd grow to detest "the secrets, the taboos," and quietly seethe about it. Knowing that outright confrontration rarely got the results he wanted, he'd resort to subtler methods of rebellion. He'd explore the various taboos and even conduct forbidden research on Stasis, pure destructive energy. These are all likely reasons he was never King -- which happens to be an extremely sore point for him. As mentioned before, he takes great pride in his capabilities, and craves recognition for it. Recognition he never felt he got, apparently. He grew very angry after being left out of Chibi's will -- all his worldly possessions went to Chibi's lover, Mina, and the throne went to Yugo. It was really no secret how buttmad he was over this.

In any case, imagine that happening century after century after century since the beginning of time with no end in sight: seeing what he considered weaknesses bringing down his people, attempting to call them out, quarreling with his family and destroying relationships, and ultimately failing to do anything of note. Over and over and over again. It's little wonder he went mad.

Qilby eventually came to the realisation that the way of Wakfu was to remain in motion, "feeding on other systems, and progressing forever and ever." This is a belief influenced not only by his status as immortal, but by the original teachings of prophet Chibi who he rather admired. He would come to loathe the sedentary lifestyle his people had adopted following their excommunication to the World of Twelve, and he hated the fact that they never went back to avenge their fallen brethren. He would hold a disdain for people who couldn't come to decisive action, who couldn't mobilise, for years to come.

Qilby's ultimate motivations and goals revolve around bringing his people back and convincing them to follow his "real way of the Wakfu": to hop from planet to planet, draining them dry of Wakfu and forever progressing ever further into the endless Krosmoz. His belief in this philosophy is so strong, that he'd even resort to murdering the other members of the Council of Six (even as children) and attempting to usurp the throne in order to see it realised. He doesn't enjoy feeling the "need" to kill his family: it's mostly just frustrating. But it's a necessary step towards Eliatrope (and personal) greatness, as far as he's concerned.

It's good for him that all his lives and experiences have given him plenty of practice lying. You kind of need to be a good actor when you've become a rather maniacal, egotistical, murderous mess; otherwise, how would his family ever trust him life after life? He's even taken to hiding his true appearance, using one far less sketchy: the brown-haired, spectacled, gentle old man on all the Eliatrope frescoes with his sister, depicting the pride of their people. As this Qilby, he's wise, charming, and well-spoken: the picture of the King he always wanted to be. Even telling bald-faced lies, he can orate with proper regality. Charismatic, he's quite a nice storyteller, and is curious about the world he's been newly reintroduced to. Not a few people have been impressed with what he's experienced and the stories he has to share. He's the kind of guy you couldn't ever imagine being angry or vindictive or at all manipulative.

Beneath, however, is a man who's seen too much and been let down far too often, and who has become needlessly cruel in his search for power. A once-great mind has been twisted into a cunning, nearly Machiavellian machinist, like he's got his fingers in everything. Entire civilisations, planets, and lives are merely footsteps towards greater Eliatrope power. Limits mean nothing to a guy who's lived for millennia and whose technology and magic has surpassed anything anyone else has done. A comfortable arrogance has hold of him; he doesn't have any trouble laughing at himself and his own mistakes in battle when he knows he's ultimately the one at-ease, the one in control. A nimble trickster, he relishes toying with his opponents and showing off what he can do.

Qilby is a contradiction. He may be his people's greatest ally, or their worst enemy. He's worthy of pity or fright, of admiration or disgust. There are still many questions about him left unanswered, but one thing's for certain: while once he had noble intentions, he's gone awry and is now willing to do anything to restore his people to their former glory. Because as far as he can tell, he's the only one that can.

Character Abilities you would like to expand on further:
  • Portals! All Eliatropes can make portals. They can be big! They can be small! They can transport you, your friends, or even redirect your enemies' attacks! There really are too many imaginative uses of portal magic to describe. But in general: portals require free hands and Wakfu. More Wakfu is required for portals over especially long distances. Unlike the portals of the eponymous Portal game series, Eliatrope portals can be conjured in mid-air. One specific trick that sees a lot of use is by conjuring a portal inside a portal, you make a portalception concussive laser beam. It's pretty rad.
  • Wakfu manipulation! Wakfu is the energy of life and creation -- kind of like the Force in Star Wars. Most races in the World of Twelve have the ability to manipulate their own intrinsic Wakfu and turn it into powerful attacks, but thousands of years prior to that Eliatropes took the control of Wakfu and turned it into an art form. They can leech energy from external sources -- plants, animals, even other people -- and use it for their own ends. With training, they can even see it, using a kind of Wakfu vision. Qilby, being an adult Eliatrope and master in his own right, can accomplish particularly difficult feats of Wakfu manipulation: drawing on multiple power sources to make a portal to another dimension, for example. Apart from energy or combat, Eliatropes use Wakfu for many mundane applications: including writing and visual storytelling.
  • Stasis manipulation! Not much is known about Stasis -- it was forbidden for Eliatropes to study it past necessity. Qilby, however, said fuck that and researched this "anti-Wakfu" behind everyone's back... Basically the act of destroying something living generates Stasis, it's purple where Wakfu is blue, it's pure destructive energy where Wakfu is life force, and it's considered some bad, bad shit. Using Wakfu to augment attacks is powerful enough, but using Stasis is deadly.
  • Wakfung! The portal-aided martial arts style unique to the Eliatrope people. Basically just your standard kicky-punchy, but with the ability to portal your punches and kicks every which way. Attacks can also be augmented with Stasis: creating knockback energy fields, frickin' lasers, and more. Although you wouldn't know it by looking at him, Qilby was allegedly a Grand Master of Wakfung, contributing maneuvers (with awful names) that were taught to initiates when there were still initiates to teach.
  • Smarts! Qilby was the scientist of his people and he and Eliatrope inventor/prophet/king Chibi performed the bulk of innovation that the race is known for. He created the Wik-Fi network which allowed Eliatropes to communicate through special plants. He had some hand in the creation of the Eliacube which all Eliatropes carry. Again, he performed plenty of dangerous, forbidden research on Stasis. He's cured dozens of diseases. And he devoted a crapton of time to collecting things: he's been keeping samples of extinct animals locked away in his lab for... Reasons.
  • There's also the matter of his "real form..." Turns out Qilby's only been pretending to be a old one-armed man. With an infusion of Wakfu, he takes on a sinister, vaguely clownish appearance, stops wearing a shirt, grows a new arm made of Wakfu, and has his capabilities multiply exponentially. He can create many portals at once and shoot beams of Wakfu out of his scary arm. He can make a Wakfu scythe capable of doing damage to the physical form or to an enemy's Wakfu itself. He's very acrobatic. Also gains the power of awful laughter. And he's one of the weaker Eliatrope leaders.
Character Weaknesses you would like to expand on further:
  • He's really really old. Old as balls. Like any other old man, he wears out easily, isn't especially mobile without using his portals, and Qilby in particular was never much of a fighter compared to his brothers and sisters. His strength had always laid in his intellect and cunning.
  • Lost an arm, presumably during the second Mechasm invasion before he was sealed away (an angry dragon bit it off...) Obviously he's an easy target on his left side, and it leaves him only one hand for making portals. And I imagine that this'll be an issue when trying to do most complicated tasks... Like operating a communicator, to use a completely irrelevant example.
  • Hubris. Arrogance. You know how intelligent people who know they're intelligent always make the biggest mistakes? His fall hasn't been shown in-canon yet, but when it is, it's going to be big and it's going to be awful. There has not been a single major villain in this series that hasn't seen a horribly tragic defeat. It seems he can't tell a story without throwing like forty lies in there somewhere and it looks like he's making a habit of double-crossing powerful people. The season won't end well for anyone involved...
  • Not to mention the fact that he remembers every one of his innumerable previous lives -- he himself admits that this is more of a burden than a gift. This little quirk of his has undoubtedly contributed to his latent madness and ongoing obsession with reclaiming his people.

[ SOUL CAMPAIGN SECTION ]


What abilities will your character retain in Soul Campaign?
Preeeeeetty much nothing save for his intelligence/knack for invention. And hypothetically his knowledge of... How to fight... If he wasn't like mega old and creaky everywhere.

He still has his magnificent hat though. And yeah, I count that as an ability.

What weaknesses will your character lose or gain in Soul Campaign?
He's lost a load of power/potential so he'll be forced to lay low, play it safe. Has also lost his "mystical" status as the alleged king of a race everyone thought was dead. Like, girl, that ain't impressive in Death City. No one will be bending over backwards to kiss your kingly butt.

Reassuming his true appearance and capabilities required a healthy amount of energy back home, so it's not really a possibility in this new Wakfu-free world.

Also his Eliacube? The one chock full of thousands of years worth of collected energy? Probably the most important device an Eliatrope can own? Busted. Inactive. Empty of Wakfu. A useless hunk of maybe-metal. This will be a little upsetting and by "a little" I actually mean "very."

The wish Death the Kid made to the BREW in 2009 was to “rescue Death City and stop the waves of Madness from overtaking the world.” By whatever means necessary. Pretend you are the BREW. Why would you choose to bring this character to Death City?
Raw determination and devotion to a cause, most likely. Qilby's spent whole lives protecting his people from interlopers and trying to better them. Even if his methods can be... Questionable, to say the least, no one can deny that he's been in the business of whole-hearted loyalty for a really goddamn long time. If you give him something to believe in, he'll pursue it no matter how long it takes. He's got a lot of time, being you know, immortal.

And Qilby's middle name is "whatever means necessary."


[ MEISTER ONLY SECTION ]


Why is your character a Meister and not a Weapon?
Primarily for OOC reasons. I think it'd be fun to try and see how he can manage trying to appear harmless, trying to get Certain Things (you know it, mods) done, and just simply trying to survive in a warring world. Having to be the arguably more-physical half of the partnership will push him to his limits: an aggravating situation, secretly or not-so-secretly.

ICly, I suppose you could say he is very much more the "active" type as opposed to the more passive Weapon (not to say passivity undermines the importance of the Weapon's role in any way whatsoever!) It's even part of his deeply-ingrained philosophy he's willing to murder people over! Wakfu -- life -- is endless motion. Stillness is sin. Be ever-moving, ever-active...

What is your character’s Meister Ability?

Soul Portal: Able to use up soul energy to create small portals that can redirect hostile attacks. Only two may be created at once: one to take in, one to spit out. The ability can be used only as long as the Meister's energy can last. Improving resonance allows the pair more control over the ability, and can improve its capabilities. In addition, the better the resonance and the more advanced the level of Meister, the larger and further away the portals can be made.
The portals can only be created and used to randomly redirect hostile attacks through resonating with a Weapon until the Meister hits two-star. Once the Meister hits two-star, he/she can create small portals to deflect hostile or friendly attacks wherever desired, at a higher cost of his/her energy, and can begin to use this ability independent of a paired Weapon. A three-star Meister will be able to travel through the portals they've created.


[ SOUL INFORMATION ]

Describe your character’s soul with six adjectives.
Nationalistic, driven, wilful, inquisitive, inventive, cunning.

What does your character’s soul look like? Be creative.
Can't make an omelette without reaping a few souls...