R4M5 Jojolity Delibs

Judge Arjuna (Extra)

Jojolity

Starting once more with Villu, there is a quote that comes to mind: "There you stand: the good man doing nothing. And while evil triumphs and your rigid pacifism crumbles into bloodstained dust, the only victory afforded to you is that you stuck true to your guns." The stability that Villu strives for is an inherently destructive one - the control he exercises over the battlefield is solely for the purposes of quelling the (well justified) righteous wrath of Blake and Angelino, seeking peace without seeking answers. To Villu, stability not merely a goal in and of itself, but the *only* goal worth pursuing, even to the ruin of everything else. This gets through very well in the strategy, with Villu more than willing to trade blows in pursuit of pacifying his opponents as he tries to regain control over his sanctuary. Villu is above all else a man who knows what it is to be stable, and it shows in how deliberate and measured every technique feels, both in concept and in execution. A very respectable **9.**

As for Blake and Angelino, dynamic is certainly how I would describe the plan as stated. It chooses to break down and close in, to use pressure in both a literal and metaphorical sense to act as a direct challenge to whatever stability Villu claims to uphold. There are points where it does feel slightly shunted into the flavor, but the flavor is all excellently done. Using the literal sword as foil to the metaphor of the sword gives a strong overall backbone to mechanics, using the sword primarily for its support capabilities rather than as an instrument of death. I think a **8** is well-deserved here, given how compelling of a narrative is put forth, even if it does feel slightly disjoint at times.

Judge Krishna (Surface)

For jojolity, I'll go ahead and give Villu an **8**. I think Villu's devotion to his nonstandard KO and doing as little physical damage as possible is very fun, but for me there's a strong aspect of "what would he have done differently" that prevents me from giving this a higher score. Villu is ultimately using his special mechanic the way it was intended to be used and using his weapons in a way he probably would've done anyways- if he had gotten, say, "honor your wife!" it's not like he'd be trying to cleave Blake's head off. I struggled hard between a 7 and an 8 for this, but ultimately decided on an 8 if just because it's well-woven into the strat and there's an argument for how he also represents his stagnancy through a locking down of options.

For players, I'll give a **7** jojolity. I'm not quite as compelled here as I've been with other embody jojolities; I see the point with the shifting of the stage and the constant movement, but they feel more like a smattering of thematic elements then anything actually involving a cohesive thesis around dynamism. I think the movement is executed on quite well, but I think a lot of that effort goes into their Quality more then it does their actual jojolity score.

Judge Vyasa (Snek)

For Jojolity, starting with the players, I think that this does a good job at refuting what Villu stands for in general, showing how he has turned a blind eye, using the Sky Halo to force his vision to dwell where they want it to, while punishing him for looking away from what matters (Blake charging him with a cool sword). Once again, this is great writing that clearly engages with the themes and the narrative, which I love to see!

I can see the way the general plan compliments dynamism, constantly pressing in and keeping on the move (such as with Angelino’s pillar dashes). I can also see how the narrative expresses dynamism through Blake and Angelino’s will to change. This leads to some great strategic and story moments alike! However, I think this jojolity is less cohesive on the whole, and splits some of its focus between countering Villu’s philosophy and expressing the jojolity. Still, it’s good work! You get an 8!

As for Logic, sadly I don’t have enough time to write you a recipe introduction. But I look at this strategy, and I look inside my heart, and the question I ask myself is ‘is this as good as either of the matches I aced jojolity in’? While the creative writer in me was unsure about the ‘here’s the way I’m doing jojolity’ right at the top, the philosopher in me respects a clear, and well-laid out thesis that you proceed to spend the rest of your strategy arguing for without fail.

What really answers that question for me is the fact that temperance is essential to your strategy. Everything you do is part of this core tenant of stability. I suppose you could argue that you could have been more physically stable, but by maintaining control over self, arena, and opponent, you ensure total stability. You cannot be caught off guard if the men you’re arguing with never have a chance to fight on their terms. As always, one of Villu’s strongest weapons is his control over the narrative, and every action he does contributes to the thesis of temperance. Plus, the narrative writing only furthers this effort, showing the importance of this stability to the way Villu conducts himself at all times during this engagement.

One of the best things you can do in a work of philosophy is make sure every argument ties into your thesis, and you achieve that here. You have put so much love and thought into every aspect of this strategy, and it shows. Once again, you get a 10.