Lottery of Babylon posted:

Washout "Eye'm the Cutest!" Tom believes that you can "glass" the entire planet with nukes. I think he's just using glass as a general verb for "to nuke" at this point because he thinks that's how people who are actually in the military talk.

In the linked post, he also says that we can fight off aliens because obviously they'd go down and fight fair against ARE TROOPS on the ground (because there is no middle ground or alternative between "have firefights between infantry" and "GLASS EVERYTHING"), and that if bad aliens did arrive to hurt us then obviously there must already be a super-fleet of stronger good aliens who are also elves who got here first and will protect us so everything will be okay.

Lottery of Babylon posted:

Washout "Eye'm the Cutest!" Tom believes that you can "glass" the entire planet with nukes. I think he's just using glass as a general verb for "to nuke" at this point because he thinks that's how people who are actually in the military talk.

In the linked post, he also says that we can fight off aliens because obviously they'd go down and fight fair against ARE TROOPS on the ground (because there is no middle ground or alternative between "have firefights between infantry" and "GLASS EVERYTHING"), and that if bad aliens did arrive to hurt us then obviously there must already be a super-fleet of stronger good aliens who are also elves who got here first and will protect us so everything will be okay.

Arcsquad12 posted:

Didn't he also try to argue that a man with a sword would be able to defeat a man with a gun already pointed at them? And then then Martello, who was actually in the military, called him out on his bullshit?

What happened to Martello anyways? I think I saw him migrate over here after he got fed up with playing Devil's Advocate against the Porn defenders.

Arcsquad12 posted:

Didn't he also try to argue that a man with a sword would be able to defeat a man with a gun already pointed at them? And then then Martello, who was actually in the military, called him out on his bullshit?

What happened to Martello anyways? I think I saw him migrate over here after he got fed up with playing Devil's Advocate against the Porn defenders.

Arcsquad12 posted:

Didn't he also try to argue that a man with a sword would be able to defeat a man with a gun already pointed at them? And then then Martello, who was actually in the military, called him out on his bullshit?

Martello posted:

I mean, it really comes down to this. Do you really think, that even at a distance of six feet or so, a highly-trained swordsman could close that distance and hit me with a killing blow, before I can squeeze the trigger on my rifle?

Major Tom posted:

^ Yes.

Martello posted:

This from the guy who never actually got into the Army, let alone participated in actual combat. I was asking Exelixi, who at least claims to be a trained swordsman. Thanks for the input, though.

Major Tom posted:

With all due respect sir none, I actually made it into the Army. Not finishing training was not my choice. They ordered me out and like a good soldier I followed orders.

I. NEVER. QUIT.

Lottery of Babylon posted:

Found the thread. Major Tom was there, but didn't actually say all that much; the main person arguing with Martello was a troper I don't recognize called Exelixi, who felt that swords were superior to guns and had only fallen out of fashion because of "logistics".

There was this infamous exchange, though:





The best part is that the entire thread was just someone asking how to justify his demon-hunting sorcerer-slaying proud primitive alien hero using a sword instead of a gun, so any number of simple answers exist (e.g. "Demons are bulletproof, not swordproof", "It's a magic space-sword, shut up", "He's trained his whole life with a sword, he's never touched a gun in his life"). But no, the only solution is to prove that swords are always the best and guns suck.

Lottery of Babylon posted:

Found the thread. Major Tom was there, but didn't actually say all that much; the main person arguing with Martello was a troper I don't recognize called Exelixi, who felt that swords were superior to guns and had only fallen out of fashion because of "logistics".

Swan Oat posted:

Didn't they have this argument in It's Always Sunny?

sweeperbravo posted:

The middle East is a desert.... duh... didn't you ever watch The Mummy?

sweeperbravo posted:

I've mentioned it before, I'm sure it won't be the last time, this is the same site where someone sincerely asked whether it was possible to karate-chop someone's head off. Like whether if you got the angle or the speed right, you could take your hand and slice a dude. When presented with the physical logistics that plainly said "No" he kept coming back with "Well what if there was [convoluted condition]" Dude just really wanted to slap-chop some heads.

BKPR posted:

Does anyone have the post from the guy who didn't know how to have his hero win a battle because it wouldn't be realistic for the hero to have a fourth health potion in his pack, given his poor family?

BKPR posted:

Does anyone have the post from the guy who didn't know how to have his hero win a battle because it wouldn't be realistic for the hero to have a fourth health potion in his pack, given his poor family?

Puppy Dog Grinder 6870 posted:

So, at the end of Issue One of my current story, the main character has been injured by various fights with Mooks and also a Giant Space Flea From Nowhere. He then gets into a fight with the Big Bad (of issue one). My problem is that the main character doesn't have enough health potions to recover enough health to win this last fight. Furthermore, it's absolutely vital for the plot of future Issues that he win this fight, because he gets his Yandere girlfriend as a Random Drop at the end of the fight, completing the Battle Couple. So how should I fix the discrepancy?

The solutions I've thought of so far are:

*Increase the main character's number of starting health potions (but I don't think his family could really afford more, he is impoverished, after all)
*Have him find a Deus Ex Machina Infinity Plus One Sword by random luck (but it'd have to be a one-time-use item or else it'd mess up the battles in future issues!)
*Maybe the main character can keep grinding on random Mooks longer and get more health potions first?

Any help is absolutely appreciated; this story is really close to my heart.

Lottery of Babylon posted:

Major Tom's stated position on the Middle East was "nuke it all to glass, down to the last mud hovel".

Darth TNT posted:

Did you know Endless Conflict can only be found on the Darthwiki? Everything redirects over there. I've never looked at it before, but it looks like someone has been vandalising it. Or was he attempting humor?

Metal Loaf posted:

It's also the site where a guy boasted of "self-teaching himself to be a master swordsman" (with a broom handle) despite having "no training beyond a crapton of anime", and went on to explain how he was teaching his brother to use "small, nodachi-sized weapons".

Roland Jones posted:

cleaving through armored people (plural, at once)

Sham bam bamina! posted:

Well, of course. This is, after all, a Japanese sword.

a hero posted:

Name: Daniel Braddock, 2nd Commander of the 317th.

• Age: 17, And he'll be seventeen for a very, very long time.

• Personality: Daniel started off as basically a boyscout, someone naturally inclined toward leadership, regarded as a very nice neighborhood boy who helped out when able. While he is good at leadership, he does not really enjoy the responsibility, and does it chiefly because he knows he does the job well. He had never exactly been physically formidable, and felt that he contributed little to a group beyond telling people how to do things. This changed when he entered the spotlight in Book IV, which saw him as one of the people selected for a leadership role in the 317th, and who undertook the dangerous Initiation, which resulted in a change in Daniel's character. While he does now have a nasty temper (though really, that's common to the 317th), he has become more stoic, while giving his all on the frontline to do what he can for those he serves alongside. Despite his title, he very much prefers it when people call him by his name. Daniel views those under his command as people he has sworn an oath to defend, thus, he cannot stand the thought of being an "armchair general". While stoic as covered, he is also very perceptive and inwardly a thoughtful and contemplative individual with a kind heart. Daniel seems to deeply admire Matthew, both as a fellow leader, and as a person.

• Abilities: Daniel, even without the Powered Armor, is an extremely skilled fighter, well versed in multiple martial arts. He has developed a fighting style all his own involving a two sided pole axe he wields which is actually an old Magitek weapon called Aingrim. Another weapon he possesses is a Mana Hand-Cannon, which, while it has to be steadied vicariously and aimed at one place at a time, is extremely powerful. As a member of the 317th, due to the New Protocol Device, he has inherited a similar measure of Matthew's "above human abilities". Daniel's ace in the hole is a Spell he himself has worked on, a literal Death Glare that paralyzes people by acting on instinctual fear, while being separate from a similarly powered Accurse Eye, making him immune to Accurse Eye Prevention Measures. He is also an astute battlefield tactician, being skilled particularly in sudden attacks that hit in unexpected places.

• Weaknesses: His Achilles' Heel is his detest of treachery, which can make him behave irrationally. As far as he is concerned, he and the 317th are doing all they can to protect Sanfield, thus, people on the ground and not fighting shouldn't roll over for the Gibbs-Aligned Forces. It seems he especially has a difficult time controlling his temper ever since he was "Elevated".

• Goals: Protect Sanfield from external and internal threats, ensuring that the forces that attacked do not soon forget "the wrath that comes down from above."

• Motivation: His motivation is that he was constantly too weak to help his friends when he was normal, and after becoming Elevated, it is that he wasn't "good enough" to defend his girlfriend from harm when she was almost killed by a Summon Beast.

• Role in the story: The Lancer in Book IV.

• Backstory: Daniel grew up in a rather rough home, with a father he very rarely got along with, and a doting step-mother who...really liked him, lets put it that way. He otherwise was uninvolved with the Magic Side. Until the fateful day that the Gibbs-Aligned Army struck at Sanfield, and set up Green Wall to excise the Magic Users from the area. Daniel was one of those who stuck with Matthew, and fought even before he was Elevated, though without much success. That was until Matthew decided to use the New Protocol device left behind by Ein Woe. This resulted in great changes in Daniel and high command, and those who went through with joining Matthew's Army, the 317th.

• Relevant Tropes:
•The Ageless: The truth of the High Commanders' abilities - the New Protocol Device altered them to such a degree, they will not age very much if at all. Three hundred years in the future, Daniel looks exactly the same.
•All of the Other Reindeer: Even now, among the refugees and normal people of Sanfield, there are those who view the 317th as inhuman supersoldiers who are becoming as nasty as what they're fighting.
•Ancestral Weapon: Aingrim, passed down a group of Viseilian Slayers for centuries, and now passed down to Daniel by the last of their order.
•Angst? What Angst?: He tries to ignore his internal issues as best he can, so that he doesn't become morose and angry, and through those emotional states, more prone to The Fall, his personal Nightmare Fuel.
•Attack! Attack! Attack!: Once his men are in place, Daniel prefers aggressive tactics to subversion and other methods.
•Badass In Charge: Daniel is a leader, and very much the biggest badass in the 317th except Matthew.
•Berserk Button: treachery, killing civilians, being Elijah Gibbs, and using Mind Magic.
•Beware the Nice Ones: Though the entire 317th fits it, Daniel is, like Matthew in this regard, exemplary. He is fond of poetry and reading, encourages people through kind words and heavily encourages self-betterment, and is an older brother to the younger recruits. Do not hurt his friends. Seriously.
•Bishounen: Before the New Protocol, not so much; he was more a thin, nerdy looking kid. After? He is very consistently described as being very handsome.
•Brainwashed: Daniel is given a scare of such by Dr. Ambientus, who states the Protocol device programmed the brains of the 317th to be loyal to Matthew and to quickly attain a measure of his fighting prowess. the brainwashing part is mostly false, though the skill transmit part is true.
•Bruiser with a Soft Center: Despite being a powerful Magic Knight and a stoic, he is a caring individual who gave an Ill Girl her wish - she wanted to fly, so he gave her a ride in his arms.
•The Combat Pragmatist: Very pragmatic in combat, including suddenly using his Death Glare mid-fight while his opponent is distracted trying to keep up with him.
•The Comically Serious: During comedic situations, he usually takes things literally, or he voices a teasing statement in his usual serious tone.
•Contemplate Our Navels: Daniel indulges in this at times, though not often, as he has an "anchor".
•Death from Above: The tactic he knows best, simply having his men fly in the cloud layers, and then suddenly fly down and let loose havoc. "We have wings. They don't."
•The Determinator: He never gives up. This guy just doesn't know the meaning of the word surrender.
•Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: He manages what most thought was impossible - killing an incarnation of Lord Eclipse. It was really awesome. Kalvin saw it coming...and could do nothing at that point.
•Dynamic Entry: Against a goddamned mecha-tank thing when it was going after his girlfriend.
•Dysfunction Junction: The 317th High Command is...rather dysfunctional, mostly due to being affected by conditions transferred over oddly from Matthew. Consider that Daniel here is in command together with these individuals; ◦Daniel
◦Miles
◦Adrian
◦Samuel

•Emotional Bruiser: Deep down, despite the stoicism, and he lets it show in Not So Stoic moments. When a few rescued individuals shared their stories, Daniel cried a bit alongside them.
•Famed in Story: In the future, there are a large number of mythical stories about Daniel and the older members of the 317th. A large number of them are based on fact, but highly exaggerated. Whenever these stories are being told, count on Miles looking amused and teasing his friend about it.
•Flight: His Powered Armor gives him what is called ZX Wings, which let him fly. They're not made of tissue, rather, they're Mana. One resident even asks him how it feels to fly.
•Genius Bruiser: Best exemplified by the following quote as he basically rips through Arland Doss' magic and brutally curbstomps him. ◦"You assumed we required the right wind currents, you assumed that magic required correct local conditions, you assumed and assumed even past the time you saw the truth. You went forward with standard procedure even when we dropped down on you and blasted the spearhead of your attack to pieces. Its over, you bastard!"

•Good Is Not Soft: He will absolutely not hesitate in battle, and he uses any means necessary in a fight.
•Heroic Willpower: He has an insane reservoir of it.
•Heterosexual Life-Partners: Daniel and Miles are close friends, had been ever since high school. Even in the far future, the two still command the 317th together.
•Hidden Depths: At first, he seems like a rather serious and angry young man, but quickly, we see that he has good reason to be like that, and is inside a lot nicer than his demeanor would suggest.
•High Altitude Battle: He is an expert in these.
•Hopeless War: At first, it seemed the Army Elijah had assembled was simply too numerous and too well equipped. Then the enemy Humongous Mecha, magic constructs and summons come in, and that, together with The Fall results in a bleak atmosphere between incredible moments of awesome that act to occasionally break it... until things start to go right.
•Iron Woobie: He has gone through a lot as 2nd Commander, and has seen more than his fair share of horrors, but he remains mentally steeled for the sake of those around him. Matthew even says that "Daniel is the most courageous man I know."
•It's Personal: The segment of the army that joined Gibbs' side made it personal when they invaded Sanfield and massacred peaceful protestors.
•Knight Templar: he edges on it at times, such as instructing his men to recite how they killed a cadre of Gibbs-Aligned soldiers near refugees who were sympathetic to Gibbs' Army's cause. See It's Personal for why he is so committed to destroying the Elijah Gibbs Aligned Army.
•The Lancer: To Matthew. However, unlike most Lancers, he really looks up to The Hero, and doesn't hold the conflict ball in regards to him and his leadership.
•The Leader: His role, in a way. He leads alongside Matthew, and there are numerous point of view chapters from random members of the 317th that paint him this way.
•Mildly Military: Played with - while Daniel himself prefers to be called by his name, it is evident that they really are a group of soldiers now, and while some adjust better than others, Daniel admits to Matthew he is uncomfortable with how things have changed so quickly.
•Morality Chain: The 317th's officers and soldiers are encouraged to cultivate relationships and enjoy a relationship with a girlfriend or boyfriend. Why? So they have something to remind themselves of their humanity, and tether them to the world. Daniel himself has a girlfriend who he is very steady with.
•Nice Guy
•Not Himself: His personal Nightmare Fuel, the Fall, which was a manifestation of the split personality of Matthew as translated by the New Protocol Device. As he puts it; "I-I've seen the eyes of The Fallen. They...they're not who they once were. They want to die atop a mountain of corpses."
•Not So Stoic: After his old friend Eric starts to go through the Fall, Daniel's stoicism breaks and he starts trying I Know You Are In There Somewhere Fight.
•One-Man Army: He at one point flew right for a strong point in the Gibbs army, and some enemy soldiers joked that "he's seriously not flying in alone, is he?" Oh yes he is. He single handedly broke down a stronghold, sent them routed out of there, and even had enough fight left after Humongous Mecha and Summon Monsters to defeat three Archdemons of Azekred.
•Our Angels Are Different: Despite his troops' appearances, he denies that they are angels in any way. They're basically surface-air free transit troops, with the wings chosen for aesthetics and because the original founder was extremely religious. Daniel himself, out of all of them, with his white and gold armor and shiny wings, looks like a paragon of the heavens.
•Powered Armor: Notably, all the armor comes in differing types. Some of it prioritizes defense, others favor speed augmentation, but all of them let the 317th fly through a rain of bullets with no worries, have a very high Natural Augment Factor, and come with a Majitek Shield and a Hand Cannon. Daniel's armor is Grandis Avail Type, reserved for one of the higher ups, and which combines good factors from all the other types for one incredible armor.
•Power Gives You Wings: The ZX Wings are made of Mana, extend from the back, and look like Winged Humanoid angel wings. However, they are capable of things no natural wings are capable of, and are relatively recent Majitek.
•Razor Wind: By swinging his pole axe really hard, he can send out blades of Mana-laced wind. These things can do a ton of damage.
•Reasonable Authority Figure: While still affected by the Cursed with Awesome / Blessed with Suck nature of the 317th, he's the closest they have to this.
•Red Oni, Blue Oni: He seems like the red oni to Miles' blue oni. Seems that way, at least...
•Rousing Speech: He insists he is not very good at this. The rest of the 317th would disagree; his speech before their third battle rekindled their fighting spirit, and reminded them of what they're fighting for.
•Shoot the Dog: Nobody really had a solution for the young woman sealed inside one of the Mecha-Tanks, and Matthew couldn't bring himself to kill her. We then hear a blast, and see a hole in her chest where her heart was. We then see a sobbing Daniel with a smoking Hand Cannon.
•Sword and Sorcerer: He is the Sword, so to speak, and Miles is the sorcerer.
•True Companions: The High Command of the 317th are all really good friends, and knew each other before things went bad.
•Understanding Boyfriend: To his girlfriend.
•Unstoppable Rage: He has actually carved his way through a line of enemies during the heat of it, and that was Tranquil Fury mode, basically tossing foes around left and right, tearing the barrel off a tank and beating the guys inside to death with it, and terrifying General Arland Doss into wetting his pants.
•Vitriolic Best Buds: With Shin, group strategist. Daniel cannot stand Shin's constant Shout Outs to video games, tabletop RPG's and manga, and is always scolding him...the two are actually the best of friends.

also a hero posted:

• Name: Miles Lanefordt

• Age: 16

• Personality: Miles, initially, was just as much a push over and shy, withdrawn type as he was when he was a normal individual, mostly due to his backstory and abusive parents basically pounding the self worth out of him. It looked like he was given the most boring job in the entire 317th, and he was not looking to go anywhere. That was when things happened, and he was caught up in a fire fight with a couple of the Eternal Slayer's Gristle-Drinkers. In the process, he lost himself to The Fall, killed one of them with his bare hands, and was thrown around by Lord Eclipse for his trouble, and had a building collapse on top of him. Inside there, he was inundated with the psychic pressures of his friends and allies outside being mutilated and hurt and all but dying, about to give in to despair. He has never forgotten that day - and after he freed himself, he personally saw to it that the battle was won. Miles has, ever since, been a man of "control", he feels he must control himself, lest his rage overtake him again. Despite his cheery and tease-happy demeanour since his return, it is made evident several times he is not someone you want on your enemies list. He fits Beware the Nice Ones extremely well, being one of the most welcoming, helpful individuals in the 317th, and never once raising his voice during shouting matches in certain meetings. He feels a strong kinship especially with the younger members of the 317th and despite his introversion, he feels it is his responsibility to make sure they go in well informed. He feels that his job is one of tremendous importance, and as such takes it seriously. He also feels he is basically "the conscience", serving as a reminder of the fact that The Fall permanently alters people and those around them, and that it should not be taken lightly, as well as making sure Daniel doesn't go beyond the pale in their efforts against the Gibbs Army and their supporters. Beware the Quiet Ones also applies, in that he still prefers to be in his library reading things. He has, though, shown occasional lapses of control when his Abusive Parents reappeared, and he was tempted to use his new found strength to repay them for years of brutal treatment and then some. He, however, contented himself with ensuring they never spoke to him again via one of Shin's plans.

• Abilities: Miles is one of the most surprisingly Badass of the 317th - while his defensive abilities are not as developed as, say, Daniel's, his offensive strengths are through the roof. He is the chief magic caster in both close range and long range spells, including in using Spellbooks filled with Things Man Was Not Meant to Know. And the fact he can read them casually says a lot about his mental strength. His spell list includes some pretty gruesome ones, including Blood Boil - does exactly what you'd expect - and others of its ilk. He can even automatize his Tomes Of Eldritch Lore, making them fly around and release anything from blasts to tentacles, rather like Attack Drones. His personal weapon is a Magitech "Battlefield Scythe", which has a blade made of Mana, which can extend. He carries sixteen Mana Producing Spell Cores on his person, to ensure he can always perform his duties. His armor is also specifically insulated against curses.

• Weaknesses: While he can dish it out, defensively, he's not quite as high level. While his armor can deflect basic arms fire and its built in shield is pretty tough, the stronger forces at Elijah's disposal result in Miles having to do a lot of dodging. While his armor is built to allow maneuvering around in spell slinging environments, it is less resistant against physical threats.

• Goals: First it was to prove he is not his parents, and then it became to guarantee the safety

• Motivation: At first, it was the abuse his parents put him through that made him decide to do something good with his life, and then it was having to listen to the cries and despair of his allies that made him get back up, and go Beyond the Impossible.

• Role in the story: He takes a lot of traits of both The Smart Guy and The Big Guy.

• Backstory: Miles starts the story as the much abused son of two small business owners, and with a Jerk Jock of a big brother bully. He got kidnapped and used as a ransom bait by Nebiros, and was almost killed during the Roman Forces' raid on Central High. He then also almost got killed by a terrorist bombing by the forces of then-villain Hector Gibbs. Just when you think his life cannot get worse, it pukes something else up. His brother would essentially torment him over not having a masculine body, and forced him to stay awake at odd hours. During Book IV, from one perspective, things are about to get a whole lot worse. From another perspective, well, mostly Shin's, things are about to get awesome. He decided to show he is not his father's son by advocating for and volunteering for Matthew's 317th when it was created, and traveling down to the New Protocol Device, whereupon he discovered how it worked and what it did. When he was affected by it, however, he was left awake for around a week down there while the other recruits dreamed or something, and yet, despite this, he took advantage of his condition and sent word around via a number of systems inside New Protocol, warning people above ground about where the Military Forces would attack next. All while New Protocol was turning him into a Super Soldier, and thus, putting him through tremendous pain as his body altered and warped. It is surprising he exited the Device much the same person - though he was assigned to simply mind the works of art and culture that were left in Sanfield, most especially art works Parallaxus collected from the Old-Dawn Verse. However, during one particular attack, Caine's Sorcerers summoned two of the stronger monsters affiliated with Shiryu the Eternal Slayer called Gristle-Drinkers. Due to this, Miles was trapped beneath a building once one of the Sorcerers took notice of him and other Fall Afflicted doing more damage than they should have for "individuals cursed by the False Device's Madness". Miles was then forced to listen to the sounds of battle, and the despair of his allies as the Gristle-Drinkers rampaged. And finally, he gathered his willpower and suppressed the Fall through sheer Heroic Resolve, emerging from the wrecked library and making a one man charge to rescue Novices who were being menaced by Spell Fire from the Sorcerers of Caine. He charged through the field to rescue them, tearing through a Gristle-Drinker personally, forcing his armor to work by charging its circuits with his own Internal Mana. And when his legs would no longer carry him, he would power himself with his rage. In the end, none of the Sorcerers of Caine on the field that day survived, nor did the other Drinker. From that day forward, he was given a much higher position and trusted with a larger number of duties, though his Rank formally did not change. He has ever since been supporting and assisting his friend Daniel in the field, while taking care of a large number of Tomes of Eldritch Lore.

• Relevant Tropes:
•The Ageless: Much like Daniel, Miles does not age during three hundred years.
•Almighty Janitor: His job, Exemplar Librarian, does not sound like one that would demand a lot of respect. However, within the 317th, his orders are regarded very highly up, and his services are extremely valuable due to the amount of Tomes recovered after battles with the Gibbs Aligned Soldiers.
•Arch-Enemy: He takes a very personal umbrage with The Gaean, ending with him chopping off The Gaean's arm. It was mostly because The Gaean paralyzed one of the Sergeants almost permanently, as well as assisting Elijah in kidnapping someone close to him and being so drat happy when he's murdering people.
•Attack Drones: The Tomes of Eldritch Lore act like this during battle.
•Badass Bookworm: Most often seen silently reading a book...except probably, that book was written by an Eldritch Abomination. He is also the most tactically astute of the 317th, able to keep up with their strategist, Shin, quite well.
•Battle Aura: During his one man charge, one Mana Sensor says she sees a massively powerful aura around him, which we see as a light red aura around him that doesn't look all that bad...at first.
•Berserk Button: Abusive parents, purposefully targeting weak people, and mind control / indoctrination that would make people seek death.
•Beware the Nice Ones: Polite, quiet and serene all describe him. Which makes his acts in battle even more astounding. ◦Beware the Quiet Ones: He fits this as well, being a rather quiet seeming individual during most of his down time.

•Big Brother Bully: He had one, well, until big brother tried to pick on Miles after the New Protocol Device was done. Miles caught a punch, and all it took was tightening his grip to make big bro realize he had just made a horrible mistake.
•Big drat Heroes: He arrives to help Matthew when Jackson White's Celestial Memory activates, and results in the formerly powerless villain turning into a quite powerful one, enough to beat Matthew down. Miles' arrival turns the tides, and forces Jackson / Devastate from the field.
•Bishounen: Even when he was just a bookworm, Miles was described consistently as being effeminately appealing looking. After becoming a member of the 317th, he became quite the desired bachelor, to his surprise.
•Black Comedy: Shin and Miles' Plan to make the Abusive Parents go away.
•Bruiser with a Soft Center: Hits hard on the battlefield...and is a soft spoken reader and enthusiast of the arts off the field.
•Casual Danger Dialogue: During the Raid on Green Wall Section 3, Miles and his group, together with Brandon's Team, joke around for a little while on their transport, and even as they descend toward the Raid Site, they banter back and forth. Its stated that this is how these soldiers cope with the occasion.
•The Conscience: To Daniel, preventing him from going too far in the direction of a Knight Templar during the fights with Sanfield's occupiers.
•Cycle of Revenge: Is very wary of it, in reference to Daniel and his antagonism toward Malevolent.
•Dark Is Not Evil: Black armor, a scythe, and a reputation as The Dreaded...and when not on the job, is a nice, quiet young librarian.
•Death from Above: He and his Honor Guard use this tactic during the Battle of the Outskirts to surprise attack Devastate and Malevolent.
•Death Glare: He is mentioned to be really freaking scary when he's glaring. Just the glare was enough to make a soldier spill the beans on what Elijah was up to.
•Determinator: What he cannot do on the power of his internal rage, he does with sheer determination.
•Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: Apart from the noted Gristle-Drinker slaying, he also personally fought Silmarill...and sent him running back to the Realm of the Gods, all on his own.
•Dissonant Serenity: During his one man march to rescue his friends, nothing phased him, and he remained largely stoic and serene.
•The Dreaded: Is viewed with fear by the Gibbs forces ever since his famous Foe-Tossing Charge. To the point that the Gibbs forces ascribe a higher order supernatural force to him. A view point he is happy to cultivate. Even some of his own allies admit they're a little scared to look at him some of the time.
•Elite Mooks: Up to Eleven and good guy versions in the Honour Guard, the personal troops who take orders directly from Daniel and Miles. They're highly valued by both, and Miles despite his quietness considers them all good friends.
•Enemy Within: Miles feels it a lot more intensely than anybody else does, primarily because he "overcame" it, resulting in a constant feeling like it is going to surge up over him again. He can, however, use The Fall as what amounts to additional resolve to stand up when he couldn't just a minute ago.
•Foe-Tossing Charge: His most famous act was one of these. "Within that instant, Miles did not suppress his fury - he forced it to obey him and carry him forward."
•Friendless Background: Before Daniel, Adrian / Aaron and Matthew, Miles simply had no friends all the way up to his high school years.
•The Gadfly: He acts like it sometimes, mostly teasing Daniel.
•Guile Hero: Very smart young man, and an astute tactician.
•Heroic Resolve: At times, it is all that keeps him standing, when he pushes himself on the battlefield.
•Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Daniel, especially. Miles and Daniel were always very close friends, and the dire circumstances have not dimmed their friendship.
•Honest Advisor: One of his roles aside from being a Leader. He basically tells Daniel whenever his plans veer too close to Knight Templar or if they have a flaw in them or two. And he does it without regard for Daniel's ego.
•I Did What I Had to Do: He tells himself this to keep himself going in the face of having to shoot some dogs. "I don't like what I do. That's the difference. I see the necessity, for the people dear to me. You just have a barrel of laughs." -directed at someone trying to pull Not So Different on him-
•Lightning Bruiser: One of the soldiers in the tank felt something lightly descend and stand atop the framework on top, beyond the scope of the cannon. Before any of them could think of a response, a red hot Mana blade penetrated through layers of powerful tank armor, bisecting the head of the commanding officer inside before ripping out through the front. And then the individual was gone, the grim reaper having claimed his victim. ◦ Though, Miles is more power and force than he is defense. As demonstrated above, his scythe can rip through tank armor like a hot knife through butter, and his spells regularly down fighter jets. However, against a dedicated physical fighter up close with defenses, he's less effective.

•Limited Social Circle: Before things happened, Miles did not have very many friends. After, he still prefers less noisy activities. He also functions as part of this for Adrian / Aaron, who otherwise would have no friends at all in the 317th, given his...job.
•Magic Knight: Tears things up in person just as easily as he would shooting them to pieces from a distance.
•Mercy Kill: He has to mercy kill a young woman who was part of a Love Triangle with him and his girlfriend well before she was his girlfriend. She was basically hooked up to a Mecha Tank and used as a human battery, and had no choice but to march forward against Miles and his forces. This incident led him to swear to kill Elijah Gibbs.
•Older Than He Looks: in the future, much older than he looks.
•One-Man Army: With the Tomes, his personal skill, and his research into many magic types, he fits the role well. During the middle days of the fight for Sanfield, Elijah had to send 30 men just to keep Miles busy.
•Poke in the Third Eye: He "rewards" one of Gibbs' spies for his psychic spying on the 317th by giving him "a light poke in the third eye". We see the spy screaming as blood pours out of his eyes and ears. drat. ◦ Yes, that constitutes "light" as far as Miles is concerned. Do not mess with this guy's friends and new family.

•Powered Armor: Curse-Warded Centurion's Armor. Made to ensure he can do his job as a magic slinger, as Curse Type attacks are otherwise a very powerful weapon in a mage's arsenal.
•Power Gives You Wings
•Psychic Powers: His allow him to take stock of things in a nearby area he cannot readily see, and detect when people are psychically spying. He also uses these powers to, at one point, collapse a section of a building.
•Red Baron: He is noted to have many nicknames ascribed to him, all of them very unpleasant sounding. One of the kindest is "The Blood-Soaked Reaper."
•Red Mage: In addition to powerful offensive magic, he can bolster the abilities of those close to him and heal injuries.
•Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: When one Fat Bastard affiliated with Gibbs sells his forces out due to fear of the 317th and other, more greedy desires, Miles takes the time to mentally inspect him before seeing the guy literally sold out his mother for a quick buck. The bastard is simply left alone where he was picked up...oh, wait, there was a Charge of the Fallen directed in that area just two minutes away...
•Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right: In one short story, Miles ignores direct orders from a general of the Esper Association when those orders called for him to abandon a town of people wherein the majority of the citizens were descendants of and subject to the mind control of creatures that remind one of Deep Ones of the Cthulhu Mythos. He manages to make a magical circle that banished the souls of dead Eldritch Abomination's, and for a benefit, this act of benevolence also led to a contingent of the people of this town deciding to help out later.
•Shoot the Dog: he does a lot of morally dubious things to protect the people under his protection.
•Sinister Scythe: His weapon of choice. Its classic weakness is amended by having the blade be made of Mana. It is also shown to be very effective against swords.
•Squishy Wizard: Played with - it is only relative to the strength of what he's fighting. In distanced battles with other Magic Users, he's functionally immune to curses due to his armor, giving him a MASSIVE advantage against a lot of enemies, as well as giving him resistance to spells. However, his armor wasn't made for fighting against close quarters foes.
•Stoic Woobie: Despite his difficult life, he has shown himself to be very stoic and not the type to agonize over the past.
•The Most Dangerous Video Game: He contends with one together with Shin during one short story, a horrifying encounter wherein the Game pulled "the darkness of people's souls" into the Game, incarnating it as "Shadow Giants". Ultimately, the main villain of the game emerges into the world, and takes a form reminiscent of Lilith.
•Took a Level in Badass: Considering his earlier appearances were simply "student held hostage" and "person running", and then in Book III as an observer...yeah, definitely. He went from bystander to a very active combatant.
•Tranquil Fury
•Unflinching Walk: During his Foe-Tossing Charge. And nothing stopped his brisk stride forward, not the soldier who he dismembered with his bare hands, not the tank which he destroyed with its own barrel...
•Unstoppable Rage: One of his "power sources".

XboxPants posted:

In the past few days, I've learned a few things. First, I learned who the real-world Fast Eddie is. Then I stumbled into this thread and found that the founder of TVTropes chose to name himself after this person.

Darth TNT posted:

Sounds rather generic, also doesn't seem like the enemy is much of a threat.

Pierson posted:

Scrolling past that on a mobile is an amazing experience (I stopped actually reading it after the first paragraph). Is there an actual story that goes along with that encyclopaedic tone or is this the guy's entire output?

Soulcleaver posted:

Literal Nazis are the only real-life villains allowed on TV Tropes. Still technically against the rules, but not even the most depraved Troper is going to defend Josef Mengele.

Regalingualius posted:

You realize you just provided the set-up for someone to prove you horribly, horribly wrong, right?

Darth TNT posted:

Sounds rather generic, also doesn't seem like the enemy is much of a threat.

Roland Jones posted:

Basically, these are real-life giant anime swords; some samurai literally had other people help them draw these things because they were too loving big to quickly unsheathe on one's own. It is about as far from a small sword as you can get. TVT's master swordsman here has no idea what the gently caress he's talking about. It'd be unsurprising but Japanophilia is usually one of the few areas they at least manage to be generally accurate about.

Troper Tales/Dual Wielding posted:

No formal training beyond watching a crapton of anime, but I've trained both myself and my younger brother (who is surprisingly skilled for a six year old...he uses that size to his advantage) to swordfight. I taught him basic tactics, and allowed him to develop his own style. We currently differ, as he uses a full blown broomstick(I don't let him near the actual models...), and I counter with my shorter, nodachi-sized weapons. Very simple tactic, though effective, really. Parry, thrust. Win.

Metal Loaf posted:

Heh, I actually went and did a Google search for "troper tales dual wielding" and the third result was a post I made about fifty pages ago where I posted the same thing. Here it is again:


I can't help it; this is probably my second favourite Troper Tale I've read.

As I believe I mentioned last time I posted it, I'm not sure whether I like "No formal training beyond watching a crapton of anime" or "I counter with my shorter, nodachi-sized weapons" better.

Pierson posted:

Scrolling past that on a mobile is an amazing experience (I stopped actually reading it after the first paragraph). Is there an actual story that goes along with that encyclopaedic tone or is this the guy's entire output?

Finisher1 posted:

I'm not sure which would be more pathetic: if this troper tale were STDH, or if this guy actually did "train" himself how to sword fight by watching a crap ton of anime.

Sham bam bamina! posted:

I'd think that ostensibly losing to a six-year-old would be the most shameful part in either context.

Metal Loaf posted:

Heh, I actually went and did a Google search for "troper tales dual wielding" and the third result was a post I made about fifty pages ago where I posted the same thing. Here it is again:

Troper Tales/Dual Wielding posted posted:

No formal training beyond watching a crapton of anime, but I've trained both myself and my younger brother (who is surprisingly skilled for a six year old...he uses that size to his advantage) to swordfight. I taught him basic tactics, and allowed him to develop his own style. We currently differ, as he uses a full blown broomstick(I don't let him near the actual models...), and I counter with my shorter, nodachi-sized weapons. Very simple tactic, though effective, really. Parry, thrust. Win.

Sham bam bamina! posted:

I'd think that ostensibly losing to a six-year-old would be the most shameful part in either context.

LordZoric posted:

Oh yeah, that guy. Some of his stuff was posted earlier in the thread too. I can't figure out if it's an unwritten story or some half-baked Mutants and Masterminds campaign. Either way I like that one of the first things he wants you to know about him is that he's a diagnosed sociopath.

Hammurabi posted:

Darth TNT posted:

Sounds rather generic, also doesn't seem like the enemy is much of a threat.

LordZoric posted:

Oh yeah, that guy. Some of his stuff was posted earlier in the thread too. I can't figure out if it's an unwritten story or some half-baked Mutants and Masterminds campaign. Either way I like that one of the first things he wants you to know about him is that he's a diagnosed sociopath.

quote:

The Sociopath: A diagnosed sociopath, I was usually prone to blame my own problems on other people, I lack empathy (this part is slowly being dealt with), I find it difficult to form complex emotional bonds beyond a certain point, and I have some talent in emotional manipulation. However, I recognize this problem exists for me, mainly because its caused me a lot of trouble growing up.

quote:

Lack of Empathy: Par the course.

Metal Loaf posted:

As I believe I mentioned last time I posted it, I'm not sure whether I like "No formal training beyond watching a crapton of anime" or "I counter with my shorter, nodachi-sized weapons" better.