R4M2 JoJolity Delibs

Barry Burton (Judge Archerous)

Jojolity

As for Jojolities, I’ll be brief. I found both narratives present in their respective strats to be quite engaging. Kid’s reflection of his past brushes with violence resonated very well. His actions throughout the match speak to their influence on his psyche. He’s no longer afraid to be in danger, he’s accepted it, embraced it, for better or for worse. Sulka, during the match,  offers a grand showing of their captivating presence. Every decision they make oozes with a sense of godhood, from choosing to stay behind in battle, letting their pawns do the dirty work for them, to confidently proclaiming their right to rule Rakinnagarh and its people. They put on a dramatic performance, fitting for one who’s about to ascend. I think both teams did excellent, thus I’m giving both Jojolities an 8. Well done!

Joseph Frost (Judge Flamechar)

“Embody your apotheosis!” — in other words, asking for the character’s ‘ascensions’. Sulka does not deem the effort worth entering the museum and embodies the controlling god they wish to be; however, King running deep with the sea metaphors as they resolve themselves deeper and deeper I feel holds more weight in both flavor and mechanics, giving him an **8** to the would be god’s **7**.

Christ Redfield (Judge Alphamon)

The theme of our JoJolity- for both teams this time around- is ‘Embody Your Apotheosis’, which, in layman’s terms, means ‘embrace and act as what you consider your ultimate destiny’, or something of a similar nature. Reach the highest highs through it all, and all.

Anyway, let’s get back in the saddle with Composition Feigns Compassion!

As I’ve said before, Kid is here to drown a would-be god. He’s up to his guts in swamp, and if not standing on lilypads above guts-high water, and he’s doing it all with 1 END and a heart pounding out of his chest and into his ears. What can he say, if not, ‘I’m used to it’.

To that end, Kid is front-and-center for the majority of (and depending on plays, or how the audience perceives the match, the entirety of) the match, fending off walls of zombies with guts-high water, a massively strong stand, ranged artillery from behind, and a whole lot of heart. Or, more importantly, training.

Kid’s been here before, physically and mentally. Maybe not this exact same situation, but the approach, the facets of character writing, and the mechanical monologues point to the fact that he’s been through this. The challenges he’s overcome prepared him for this, with every step leading to the next.

Honestly, if this one were a straight-up brawl, I’d be putting all of my money down on Kid. Where it’s not, I have to dial it back and give y'all a 7, good job!

Now you’ll catch me sliding back across my wonderful new desk to bring you live news about Heat of the Roment! That Sulka is back out on the street again, doing crimes and trying to attain godhood- ah, what a scamp!

To bring up a point I made in my Quality delibs, Sulka’s plan here- to stand outside or keep himself as far from the crux of the plan appears, at first, to be somewhat against our previous outings, but then it hit me: This is the image of what he wants to be, isn’t it?

This is a cold, unfeeling god watching the inevitable, planning from the back and simply letting it happen. This is a being already playing at having ascended, by simply leaving the task to complete itself before intervention is needed.

Of course, though that may be the intent, it tends to hamper itself not with the very direct interventions of meteors or other powers- the ‘blessings’ given to the ‘followers’- but with the weight of the plan itself.

It feels like this narrative- if it is the main thread- wasn’t fully integrated and adopted into the writing. It does feel like it occurred naturally, mind, but it feels like it came about because of the early sections of the strat, rather than as a deliberate stroke.

I feel like this section, too, deserves a 7.