Lawman

"Keep away from me, you freak!" Alice Prime hissed as her shots ricocheted off the DoAE's helm and breastplate; so sturdy was its construction that even the rounds from a hand cannon with the stopping power to put down bears did nothing to him, as it charged at her with a speed that belies its massive, armour-clad frame. "Hang in there, boss! Just a little more, nya!" Alice Alpha called out to Alice Prime, as the Prime tried to keep a distance between herself and her adversary; but she could only drag her injured body so far, and her opponent was easily gaining on her. "I refuse to just call it quits..." Meanwhile, lying forgotten in a wrecked shop display, a cat girl's broken body stirred, a pair of red eyes giving off a sinister glow in the unlit store. Alice Beta had to consider herself lucky... that Ógurligr smashed her right into a furniture shop, and while his blow did a number on her, the couch at the display window cushioned her fall - turning what might've been a one-hit kill into a blow that only left her half-dead. Raising her hands, the orange-yellow arcane markings would appear over her right arm and the right side of her face as she conjured a pair of fireballs in her hands, lobbing them onto the floor right beneath her feet, just as Ógurligr raised his massive mace to strike Alice Prime. With a fiery explosion, the injured cat girl would be sent flying through the air like a feline cannonball... all the while screeching the famous chords from Ride of the Valkyries. "Take that!" Alice Beta exclaimed as she performed a flying claw swipe (a fly-past slash, think something like an iaijutsu slash - only with claws) at the DoAE's arm that held the mace, hoping to throw him off-balance to cause his swing to miss Alice Prime. "Flame Geyser!" Alice Prime exclaimed the name of her spell as she lifted a hand, causing a column of flame to shoot up from where Ógurligr stood, engulfing him in flames; maybe his armour might be able to deflect blades and bullets... but she wonder if it can dissipate heat well? Or would he end up baking inside his armour? Meanwhile Alice Alpha would smirk evilly as her limit break attack was ready, now she just needed the other two to provide that opening of opportunity... @HollowCipher @Hurttoto @Thotification

I'm posting later today.

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me!" Alice Prime exclaimed as Santa revealed he had more minions up his sleeve; first reindeer - now elves, lots and lots of them! And the Alice's would find themselves staring up at what appears to be a Daddy of All Elves, being far larger than rest of its brethren and clad in armour, it towered over the cat girls. And with a swing of a tree trunk-like arm, Alice Beta would find herself swatted across the chest and sent flying like a rag doll before crashing into a store window across the street. "Well, damn," Alice Prime muttered as she realised that the DoAE seemed to have its sights strictly on her, ignoring her copies. "You'll see that I won't go down so easily!" she hissed as she reloaded her gun, moving back as she fired at its head and face; a naught effort for sure, as it was armoured from head to toe. However, the cat girl still had one more trump card left. "Yes, come after me, nya..." she thought as a smirk crossed her face as she noticed Alice Alpha from the corner of her eye, the arcane marking lighting up all over the right side of her face and right arm. "Nya, let's nuke the bugger..." Alice Alpha thought as a snarling column of flames engulfed her; starting from her feet and reaching twenty feet into the air like a fiery tornado as she began charging up her ultimate spell. She would have to hope that the Prime was able to keep the DoAE busy and stay out of harm's way until she gets her Phoenix Flare charged up! @HollowCipher @Hurttoto @Thotification

This is actually why I prefer to plan out my fights outside of my Valucre RPing experiences. Normally me and my partner agree on the outcome, so what remains is how we get to that outcome. But ultimately how we get there matters less than we get there. So yeah, think of it as being something like pro-wrestling. Failing that, if we're going in raw and unscripted, I tend to operate under this particular framework to keep things fair and hopefully, mutually enjoyable. Minimise on or better yet, eliminate the use of "multiple choice scenario" posts. Basically the sort of combat post that goes along the lines of "I perform move X, and if my opponent blocks I follow it up with move Y; if my opponent ducks I instead follow up with move Z." Essentially presenting a "multiple choice" scenario to your opponent where the choices you present are the only logical responses their character can have (and all of them lead to the same result), and that Taking A Third Option will just make them look like an ass. Avoid combo spams. Basically pulling off those long, elaborate combo attack chains that clearly carry the intent that every blow is meant to connect - cause if the opponent somehow blocks or counters mid-combo in their reply it makes them look like a dick for "sequence-breaking". As a basic rule of a thumb, I never make more than 3 actions in a single post. (Barring any sort of system that determines how many actions a character can take based on a die roll such as Roll 12) Exercise reciprocality. Learn to give and take; and I generally believe that your partner will be more incentivised to have their character take a fall if you'd do likewise. Plus, from the perspective of an outside observer it makes the fight seem more unpredictable and exciting when the tide of battle dynamically shifts back and forth between both sides. It's my belief that no player character should be made to look weak/useless if their writer doesn't will it. (I mean, that's technically what fodder NPCs are for, right? Of course unless the writer's intent is that this particular character is intended as a jobber) Might be just me, but I think having one's character look strong can still make for a fun and satisfying RP experience even if they ultimately lose the fight. I.e. They lost, but put up one hell of a struggle before going down, that or they were dominating the competition, but got showed up by an upset victory from the underdog, etc - the possibilities are limited only by one's imagination. Communication is God. Even if you and your partner hadn't come to a mutually accepted resolution, it's no excuse to not stay in contact OOC throughout the thread's lifetime to work out the various minutiae, such as at what point does the tide of the battle turn on your favour, or vice-versa, and how does it happen. I.e. Say my character attempts their finisher move, but your character rolls out of the way at the last minute, and at this moment a window of opportunity presents itself for your character to capitalise on. I suppose on my end, rather than view it as an informal debate as @Haelikor puts it, I prefer to see it as negotiating a deal that ultimately benefits all involved parties. I.e. Winning would probably be a secondary or even tertiary concern if both sides ultimately got to look strong and/or competent, so a win-win situation if you ask me. Because from past experiences, when one or the other approaches RP combat through a win-lose lens, more often than not it winds up being a lose-lose situation. Like sure, your character has won; but congrats now the other writer hates your guts and will never thread with you in the future. Which IMO, is really not worth it. The RP world may seem big, but it's also smaller than most give it credit for - one can't afford to just burn every bridge whenever they disagree with someone. And that's my humble opinion.

A little slice of life RP might be just what I'm looking for come to think of it. :3

I imagine Alice presently rents a cheap apartment somewhere in Casper, Terreneus. Being an offworlder, it's probably considered a good bargain for her - she basically take contracts as a mercenary to pay for the rent and her daily necessities.

"Whaddya know, fastball special worked!" Alice Prime remarked as she walked with Alice Beta's assistance - placing her arm around the shoulders of her copy for support as she joined up with Alice Alpha who licked the blood off her claws as she stepped over Comet's remains, emptying a few more rounds into the carcass for good measure. Who would've thought a bunch of reindeer would've made such deadly adversaries? Then again, considering that they were able to pull Santa's sleigh across the sky it was for sure that these were no ordinary ruminants. Still, from the looks of it it would seem that they'd triumphed against the odds; but greater challenges remain. Alice Alpha would glance over at the reindeers' master - now that they'd dealt with the minions it was time to confront the big boss. "Awww, who's gonna pull your sleigh now?" Alice Beta remarked with a mocking tone, pointing to the grisly remains of Comet and Dasher behind her. "Careful, don't forget how casually he just caught a bullet," Alice Prime warned. "I think with three of us plus the others against one of him without his minions, I have confidence, nya," Alice Alpha purred, before staring at Santa with a demonic grin as she bared her claws, while Alice Beta reloaded her gun and pointed it at Santa. "Your move, creep." @Hurttoto @Thotification @HollowCipher

Posting tomorrow

"Thank you for your assistance," Kristall nodded as Selena cast her healing spell upon her, the aqua-haired girl feeling some of her vigour returning as she propped herself up on her sword - things seemed to have gotten quiet over at this side; as it appears that the Twistlings had abandoned attacking those in her quadrant to seek new targets elsewhere. "No telling if more enemies may show up, but it looks like they could sure use our help over there," she remarked as she pointed in the direction of where the Twistlings are now - having joined up with the remaining Chhitten pack to fight against the defenders. So she found herself being presented with two options - to stay put in her current position in case more enemies showed up to assault the wagon, or head over to where the fighting was currently at its fiercest to bolster her allies. "With the way the enemy seemed to be consolidating their forces, signs point that their numbers are thinning," Kristall added, hazarding a guess that for the enemy to consolidate their numbers in a singular attack force rather than spread themselves out, it was a sign that they were running out of reinforcements. "So one more push it shall be then," and with that she would sprint over to where the Twistlings and Chitten pack are to lend her assistance to her allies. @jaistlyn @Dolor Aeternum @Tyler @zackrobbman @P.N.See

Rolling d12 for Kristall at Claiming The Furthest Point

"Yay, go me!" Alice Alpha cheered as Dasher lay dead thanks to the combined efforts of herself and Alice Beta. Unfortunately, now was not the time to treat themselves to some roast venison just yet, as the reindeer known as Comet remained active, dodging the fireballs from Alice Prime before countering with its own barrage of fireballs space rocks. "Protect the Prime!" Alice Beta shouted to Alice Alpha, who gave the other neko a curt nod as the dimensional rifts began opening above them, positioning themselves by the Prime's left and right. "Remember playing House of the Dead, nya?" Alice Prime asked. "Makes me think of the final phase of the Magician boss fight where he starts spamming fireballs from the sky," Alice Alpha replied. "Only one way to deal with them..." "Shoot em down!" the three of them exclaimed in unison as they delivered their own barrage of gunfire and fireballs at the incoming meteors, looking to blow them up in midair, taking aim wherever a rift opens up and firing the moment a meteor emerges from said rift. "We got you covered, go get him!" Alice Prime shouted to Alice Alpha as she and Alice Beta held their ground to shoot down the incoming meteors, while Alice Alpha would make a mad dash towards Comet, hoping that he would be too busy attempting to bombard the other two nekos to fail to notice the third one charging towards him in an attempt to get into melee distance. "And now!" Alice Alpha would throw a fireball onto the ground right behind her, using the explosion of her own projectile to hurl herself right at the meteor-summoning reindeer as she flew at Comet with her high-frequency claws extended, and should she fly within reach, the neko would perform an X-shaped slash with both sets of claws at its neck, looking to sunder flesh, sinew and possibly even bone. @HollowCipher @Hurttoto @Thotification

I'm still around.

Just when I thought rainy season in Singapore was over, it's been weeks of overcast skies and showers again...