Stock
Money - $360.00
Plain Slice x24 ($6.00)
Choco Slice x4 ($8.00)
Vanilla Slice x4 ($11.00
Vanilla Cupcake x8 ($6.50)
Poison Slice ($75.00)
Alice wants to buy a Vanilla Cupcake.
Joseph wants to buy a Choco Slice.
Frost wants to buy two Plain Slices.
Pickles walks to the Pier. Still walking...
Dee shrugs.
Some time ago, my character went to the farmer's market to visit Katie and Sarah when they were still their own independent orange stall.
The rest of the farmer's market turned out to be really lame, except for one stall that notably sold poisonous mushrooms.
Since my character was feeling paranoid at the time, he ended up buying x3 caps of those mushrooms, implicitly to use against the orange stall sisters should they somehow turn against him.
However, they ended up finding no use over the course of the game and just sat there in the inventory until x2 caps were eventually sold off to buy equipment from one the day-end shops.
I guess one of us got bored and cooked the remaining cap into a cake slice.
Although they're likely not the same type of mushrooms speculated to induce the rage of historical berserkers, I guess Dee could use the slice as a catalyst to summon the spirit of one for future use in imbuing orange tree golems with autonomy.
Sell the stuff or something, I dunno.
I continue learning Encourage (7/20)
Stock
Money - $386.50
Plain Slice x22 ($6.00)
Choco Slice x3 ($8.00)
Vanilla Slice x4 ($11.00)
Vanilla Cupcake x7 ($6.50)
Poison Slice ($75.00)
Pickles arrives at the Pier, and he sees a person who looks like Shade, but has a cleaner coat and a better hat.
Dee can't use Poison Cakes to summon crap.
Teddy and Horsey can read Pickles' summoning guide if they want.
I ask this person if they're R. Grey or if they know where to find them.
Pumpkin begins wandering towards the piers.
Dee is out in the alley behind the shop, sledging away at the concrete covering the ground. He regrets not completing the task the season before, knowing that Katie's orange tree wouldn't be able to thrive in the winter, but the frozen earth does admittingly make the task much more manageable.
"Ya know, we should get some glass panes and temperature management back here," he yells back into the cake shop. "Turn this place into a greenhouse! Would be great for the orange dragons..."
"Eh." Katie said. "If you just get some dirt exposed then I can just plop this Instant Orange Tree down."
...... "Also, this alley doesn't look big enough for a greenhouse and I'm pretty sure that alleys were meant for walking through."
The shaded figure(#2) turns his head. "You must be the one they call Pickles. You may refer to me as Grey. If you want to help your cat Mischief, who has been in a magical coma. You can do something. I have an acquaintance of mine who likes to host these battles with familiars. Something that the modern society seems to put in some of their 'games'. The point is, if your familiars do battle with mine, I get paid an amount, and I'll heal your cat in return."
Pickles notices a wolf near Grey, with some strange black markings on it's fur.
"This is my trusty pet, Avery. He is extremely powerful, so you can bring as much familiars as you want. It'll start Tomorrow Night."
"By the way, the wizarding community has once shunned you for doing such a frivolous activity like selling cakes. But now that you've defeated Shade, they sent me to meet one of you. Shade is #4 on the List now. I am #3."
I ask Grey if we need to win against them or just battle them.
"Okay."
Dee proceeds to smash a sizable hole in the concrete with the sledge hammer.
Afterwards, Dee mans the cashier to keep himself busy while he ponders what to do in the meanwhile.
"You get a cut of my payroll if you win." Grey said to Pickles. "You should return to your shop now. Theres a strange person that will be looking for you. Some kid."
Dee finished murdering concrete. Theres some dirt. Katie places an orange Sapling on the dirt and it immediately turns into an adult orange tree, which starts bearing fruit.
"Thanks, Dee!"
Dee says something like 'No problem' to Katie and goes to man the cash register.
Jasper wants to buy one of everything.
(Matik, Teddy, and Horsey must be on vacation or something. In fact, assume that they are.)
I return to the cake shop and tell Dee about Grey's offer.
Pumpkin continues to wander.
Enchanted Punch (4/12)
Dee agrees to Jasper's request and sells him one of... everything. Including the Poison Slice.
"I probably shouldn't have sold him that... but hey, customer's orders!" Dee thinks to himself.
"Oh, that's cool," Dee replies to Pickles. "Sounds a bit sketchy, but it's not like it'll put us in any immediate danger."
"You may borrow Tugarin for the fight if you want. Though, I should probably establish that 'telepathic communication link' first..."
Dee whistles his orange dragon into the room and puts one hand on xer head while hovering the other in a jazz hand over his own, making what can be described as a 'grandpa face' in concentration.
"There! Communications established. Now I can watch the show from my mind, maybe even direct Tugarin if the rules allow so."
Dee then telepathically asks Tugarin for what xe's always been wanting to say to him, now that they can directly communicate with each other.
Money - $493.00
Plain Slice x21 ($6.00)
Choco Slice x2 ($8.00)
Vanilla Slice x3 ($11.00)
Vanilla Cupcake x6 ($6.50)
Timothy walks into the store, wearing shades. "Where's Pickles?"
I wave to Timothy.
Pumpkin begins walking back towards the cake shop.
Enchanted Punch (5/12)
Hey Dee... Tugarin doesn't have a brain or a tongue, so he couldn't communicate with you if xe wanted to.
And Tugarin is genderless, so call xer a he if you want.
But if orange dragons lack a central processing unit, then what is it that drives their actions?
Orange Dragons are animated from Dark Magik and live if Pickles stays active.
They're just like some generic RPG monster.
Actually you know what Dee Shut Up this is my game don't question my forum game logic!
Jasper comes back into the shop, holding the Poison Slice. You notice a bit of the cake is missing. "This is fly agaric! I want a refund!"
Pickles reads a book and tells Dee that Fly Agaric is some poisonous mushroom.
So basically they're soulbound or whatever to me?
Neat?
I say hello to Timothy, since they don't seem to have noticed me wave.
Enchanted Punch (6/12)
“Yes, I know what fly agaric is,” Dee whispers back to Pickles. “I've come to know of them when reading up on Norse berserkers.”
“But that means the slice isn't lethal at all. Just a psychedelic at best, since only a single cap was used to make it...”
Dee suddenly turns to confront Jasper.
“So you've come to regret your decision?” Dee sternly says aloud to Jasper. “You did order one of everything after all...”
“However I can not refund you,” Dee then points to the missing bit of cake. “Because the slice you're trying to return is not whole.”
~~~~~
“So all of the orange dragons are soulbound to Pickles,” Dee repeats the revelation to himself. “This will complicate things.”
Dee's Big List of Oran(g/j)imancer Things To Do:
"Pickles, I've been waiting for this for 22 months!" Timothy says.
Sarah recognizes Timothy's face, and says: "Hey... I remember you... You're that kid that tried scamming the cake shop two year ago."
"Shut up!" Timothy yells. "Pickles, I want to challenge you to a One-on-One duel! Fists only!"
Dee notices that Jasper replied with: "Okay I'll be right back-" and then leaves the shop.
List of Dee's crap
Gain Tugarin's soulbind from Pickles (Done.)
Elevate Tugarin to sapience (What is sapience?)
Master 'Orange Shaping' (How will that work?)
Figure out how to control Tugarin's size so that xe may be used as a flying mount (That would probably take a bunch of researching.)
Study 'Mana Fixation' (Mana is for skrubs, we just use Action Points.)
Summon a warrior spirit (That sounds too generic.)
Research 'Familiarcrafting' (Meh, Pickles has two familiars, so I guess you can, too.)
Become a demon (That's probably not gonna happen.)
I can still summon an imp for you, Dee.
That "become a demon" thing is, odd...
I ask Timothy why they want to fight me so much.
Enchanted Punch (7/12)
Timothy just wants to rival fight you.
"Because! When I first met you, I knew you'd be my Rival!"
(Done.)
It was that easy?
(What is sapience?)
Basically, giving Tugarin the ability to think; a conscience. Your explanation gives me the impression that the orange dragons are automatons of sorts, and thus incapable of acting outside of instinct.
This action serves to make Tugarin's bond with Dee more significant, xer being his primary familiar.
Dee is supposed to fulfill the role of a beastmaster now.
(How will that work?)
Orange Shaping is the ability to control the physical form of oranges, running on the logic of using magickal energy to fuel cellular growth.
Because of the malleability of wood, most manipulations will be done by forcefully growing oranges into trees and working on them from there. But that's not to say Shaping can only be applied to wood; a fruit can easily be turned into a fragmentation grenade, for example.
Being the backbone skill of Orangimancy, it is imperative that Dee masters Orange Shaping immediately. But at the moment, however, Dee really sucks at it.
(That would probably take a bunch of researching.)
And it will! I'm trying to replace the motorbike in order to free up an equipment slot. I still want Dee to use a Ballistic Shield alongside his Cutlass and Revolver.
(Mana is for skrubs, we just use Action Points.)
The idea is for Dee to have a meter separate from AP that is necessary for utilizing his more powerful arts; like maintaining summoned familiars (so that he can't feasibly field more than two familiars and break the game), maintaining his Ascended form (I'll explain what this is later), or using raw magicks (big fiery explosions?). How it works is that the meter will start at zero at the beginning of a battle, and has to be charged by planting “nodes”: orange plants that draws energy from the environment by being, well, plants.
These nodes then give an increment of mana at the start of every turn once planted. Whether the amount given by the nodes stack additively or multiplicatively will be left up to game balance, as well as if Dee should have his own innate charge rate.
Nodes are not invincible, however, and can be targeted and destroyed by enemies to impede Dee's charge rate.
Considering costs, skills that use mana will still have an AP cost alongside their MP cost, the ratio of which will vary with each skill's purpose and utility; all summoned familiars will have the same upkeep cost that takes a decent amount of MP at start of every turn; while Ascension will start with a high activation cost and continues with an upkeep cost that is equal to that of summoned familiars.
(That sounds too generic.)
Don't worry, “warrior” only applies to their combat abilities. They're all rather wacky in concept and personality.
Explaining what Dee seeks to accomplish with his “Familiarcrafting”: Instead of creating new souls to inhabit his familiars similar to the orange dragons, Dee seeks to summon the spirits of powerful warriors to bind to Orange-Shaped bodies instead.
By doing this, he avoids having to raise his familiars like he does with Tugarin, but because of the method being used, Dee is required sustain their physical bodies with mana as the ghosts themselves are incapable of maintaining the body as a created soul would.
Dee is planned to acquire four spirits in total, but as I've said before, he wouldn't be able to have more than one summoned at a time during a battle under most circumstances.
I actually plan to have Dee summon his first spirit very soon, he just needs to acquire an ancient battleaxe head first. Of course, Dee wouldn't be able make use of the spirit as he has yet to mastered 'Orange Shaping' to even begin crafting familiars, nor would he suspect the spirit he summoned of being warrior in the first place. The spirit will act as an NPC until then.
(Meh, Pickles has two familiars, so I guess you can, too.)
But of course.
(That's probably not gonna happen.)
Yeah, it's planned as more of an endgame thing. The explanation is that Dee realizes the incompatibility of his body with his magical arts and seeks to recompose himself with dark energy, essentially becoming a demon.
Dee knows the risks involved in the process and won't pursue Transcendence (as I like to call it) until he gains a strong grip over his Orangimancy. I actually have a mentor in store for guiding Dee; a character from his backstory, but like the pursuit itself, he won't be introduced until then.
Upon reaching Transcendence, Dee will gain access to the 'Synchronization' skill set and the 'Ascension' ability. 'Synchronization' will allow Dee to use Orange Shaping with his own body, as well as give him the ability to combine with Tugarin for combination skills; while 'Ascension' is a powerful self buff in which Dee overcharges his body with energy to assume a stronger form.
Is that what's gonna happen with Dee, then?
I guess I'll just sit back here being a support character, then.
So AP stands for Action Points? I thought it was Attack Points.
I continue learning Encourage (8/20)
I can probably give you an imp if you want one, Zephiroth.
I ask Timothy why he think's I'm his rival.
Enchanted Punch (8/12)
"Enough of vacationing."
I block off Timothy with the laser spear.
"I'm not agreeing that you are charging towards our boss because you suddenly thought up that Pickles is your rival. That is UNACCEPTABLE and stupid, of course. Now listen up kiddo, because if you continue in Pickles' direction, I will give you such a punch, you won't realise that you will be on the other side of the planet. U n d e r s t o o d ?"
I look at Timothy, while being very intimidating.
Timothy punches Matik in response, with Matik trying to punch Timothy. Matik's punch was deflected for some reason. "Pickles fight me I am your rival1!1!1"
Teddy is able to read Pickles' summoning guide if he wants.
Dee calls the black market to sell him a Ballistic Shield.
I ask Timothy if he's really that mad about the crayon.
Pumpkin walks in and sleeps on the floor.
Enchanted Punch (9/12)
"Enough."
I throw Timothy out of the cake shop.
(Welcome back Matik! Will you be continuing TechPlay? You haven't updated it in a while...)
Dee patiently wait for Jasper to return.
Jasper comes back with the poisoned cake Slice. Surprisingly, it's in one piece, as if the piece was never missing at all. "Can I have a refund now?"
Timothy was successfully thrown out of the cake shop!
Day End
Pickle Shield - Pickles learns Shield.
Pickle Murder - Pickles learns Counterattack.
Pickle Boost - Pickles learns Uppercut.
Shop
Special Cake Mix - ($5.00)
Deluxe Chocolate x3 - ($11.00)
Deluxe Vanilla x3 - ($16.00)
Deluxe Jam x3 - ($21.00)
Dragon Star - ($200.00)
Unknown but tranquil effect.
Ballistic Shield - ($77.50)
A shield that can be held in one hand. Can take ranged attacks easily.
Light Magik Rune - ($55.50)
Allows you to turn items into Cards, and also to combine Cards.
(I buy the Ballistic Shield; as well as the Dragon Star, Light Magik Rune, x3 Deluxe Jam, x3 Deluxe Vanilla, and x2 Special Cake Mix because we have so much money at the moment.)
Dee gives Jasper a profoundly confused look.
"You know what, I am not even going to ask."
Dee hands Jasper his $75.00 back, then takes the Poison Slice into the storage room for analysis.
Inventory
Money - $55.00
Plain Slice x21 ($6.00)
Choco Slice x2 ($8.00)
Vanilla Slice x3 ($11.00)
Vanilla Cupcake x6 ($6.50)
Poison Slice ($75.00)
Special Cake Mix x2
Deluxe Vanilla
Deluxe Jam
Light Magik Rune
Dragon Star
Estcher's Hat
TwatTek Laser Spear+ (Matik)
Reprisal Card (Matik)
Dual Leech Blade (Pickles)
Blade Drop Card (Pickles)
Heal Card (Pickles)
Knuckleduster (Teddy)
Peacemaker (Dee)
Fancy Cutlass (Dee)
Ballistic Shield (Dee)
Standard Motorbike (Dee's Deliveries)
Jet Collar (Mischief)
Beretta 9mm (Katie)
Dee's analysis of the Poison Slice reveals that it was never eaten from.
Pickles spots Grey standing outside, so he goes to talk to him. "Huh. I thought you would've started that optional rival battle with that kid. Now that you've forfeited wasting your own time, we can start the arbitrary familiar battle now if you want. Or you could just wait until tomorrow."
I kinda want to learn Pickle Murder just for how silly it sounds, but Pickle Shield sounds more useful so I'll learn that.
I test the Light Magik Rune by using it to turn a plain slice into a card.
Tell Grey sure.
The Light Magik Rune didnt work on the place Slice. I mean, how could it? It's so plain.
Pickles learned the Shield ability. It reduces Physical damage done to the character for several turns. If you wanted a letter to go with it than it can be P.
Grey teleports Pickles and himself to another dimension.
All the familars are already in that dimension. "You expected something flashier, didnt you? No. People just bet on us while we're being recorded by a device."
Avery jumps in front of Grey. "Start."
The familiars are buffed with some of the powers of their masters.
Charley, Shadow Fiend
MShield (2)
HP - 48/48
AP - 3/3
Tugarin, Orange Dragon
HP - 36/36
SP - 18/18
AP - 4/3
Pumpkin, R. Citrus Dragon
Shield (2)
HP - 36/36
AP - 3/3
Mark, Orange Dragon
Haste (2)
HP - 32/32
AP - 6/4
Avery, Runewolf
Vigor (3), MagicUp (3)
HP - 99/99
AP - 4/8 (+3/turn)
(Passive) Charge Action - Max AP is doubled, but regenerate 25% less AP every turn.
(8 AP) Snapshock - Cuts every enemy's health in half.
(8 AP) Attrition - Drains the health of every enemy.
(8 AP) Dangerous Roar - 60% to Intimidate each enemy individually.
(4 AP) Bite - Attacks an enemy with sharp fangs.
(3 AP) Pounce - Knock an enemy down, with a slight chance of stunning them.
Teddy and Horsey can consult Pickles' book of summoning for a familiar.
"That's a mystery best solved later," Dee thinks to himself in regards to the Poison Slice.
Dee then checks on the status of the infinite orange tree growing in the back alley, and asks Katie what is the story behind her trees.
If you are really tired of fighting crap then you can withdraw to cut Avery's health.
A knight walks into the room. He looks intelligent. He takes off the helmet and says:
Hello. I would like to join. Will you accept?
Ask anything you want, i will try to answer.
You forgot about some of the stuff Dee bought by the way.
I test the Light Magik Rune by using it to turn a vanilla cupcake into a card.
I hand Mark an application.
Last question is a bit outdated, since we've already beat Shade, so you can probably skip that one.
Charley uses Metal Cyclone.
Pumpkin continues to nap.
What are we going to do about Mark now?
^I believe you have command over all of the familiars for the duration of the fight, sir.
And just to let you know Markelu, we already have a character named "Mark"; an orange dragon belonging to Matik. So I suggest you pick a name that avoids confusion.
1. Markelu. You can call me Elu.
2. Okay
3. Fighting against intruders with all my heart
4. I have a magical spell that shoots out a fireball that deals fair damage.
5. Good
6. Good
7. ...
Okay Elu, you're hired. Because we hired everyone.
We're never going to call you Markelu because that's too similar to Matik's orange dragon which was named Mark.
Charlie uses Metal Cyclone. -9, -8.
Mark is loafing around.
Pumpkin is loafing around.
Tugarin fires a stream of orange juice at Avery. -15.
Avery stays patient.
Charley, Shadow Fiend
MShield (1)
HP - 48/48
AP - 3/3
Tugarin, Orange Dragon
HP - 36/36
SP - 18/18
AP - 4/3
Pumpkin, R. Citrus Dragon
Shield (1)
HP - 36/36
AP - 3/3
Mark, Orange Dragon
Haste (1)
HP - 32/32
AP - 6/4
Avery, Runewolf
Vigor (3), MagicUp (3)
HP - 99/99
AP - 7/8 (+3/turn)
Dee researches what Deluxe Jam can be used for.
He also asks Katie how she got her infinite orange trees.
~~~~~
“Welcome to the workforce, sir Elu!” Dee warmly greets the newcomer. “Judging by your description, it looks like you're going be our third shop guardian.”
“We seem to be cycling through those lately,” Dee casually adds. “The other two guards, Matik and Horsey, have gone missing ever since our clash with the Shade Wizard, Estcher.”
“Matik did however returned to us and dealt with a 'minor annoyance' to the shop, but he disappeared yet again shortly after...” There was a hint of melancholy in Dee's voice.
“Anyways!” Dee suddenly brightens up. “Your application tells us that you're bringing nothing else but a fireball spell and the armor upon your back.”
“Well, you can't exactly guard the shop without a proper weapon! Here, take this.”
Dee hands Elu a duplicate of his Cutlass.
“Not very knightly, but it will do until you acquire something more of your tastes.”
“Also, don't be afraid to ask any questions! I'll be glad to explain anything you need to know.”
Katie responds to Dee's question. "Well, I'm not exactly sure, but I think I got it from my grandma when I was little."
I don't think we need another bulky melee character.
If he wants he can be a Wizard or an Operator.
Raz is tired of waiting, and leaves.
"Whats this?" Sarah said. She picks up an envelope on the orange selling counter. "Huh... When did this get here?"
...Guess i'll be a Wizard then.
I find a device that can go to the internet and try to find something useful.
"Mind if I meet with your grandmother, then?" Dee replies to Katie.
Dee then asks Sarah who the envelope was addressed to.
"Oh, try using the Light Magik Rune with Estcher's Hat," Dee suggests to Elu. "What results may prove a very useful Wizarding item."
Teddy finally wakes up.
Teddy asks Sarah to just read what it says on the envelope because that probably makes sense.
I say hi to Elu.
So, will Elu's ultimate skill be re-learning Dark Magik?
I see two books on the counter: one is a strange book with weird symbols on it, the other is a big red book that says "SUMMON GUIDE" on it.
I ask which one the summoning guide is.
I continue to learn Encourage (8/20)
Shoutout to Simpleflips.