MTG Cardsmith Community Forums
Tournament of Champions 2 Rematch (The game has begun)
This discussion has been closed.
Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Comments
Here is your first bottle of JÖØS, folks!
Step right up!
She takes one look at him, and knows exactly what to do (after all, how different can magic kittens really be from siege rhinos?). She cracks open a watermelon and douses the insides with the juice, then offers it to Dostran.
I will!
Another day began as the tower of Legorna started to shine brightly as the very first rays of the morning sun appeared from the ocean horizon. Many people had finished their morning routines early, for they had been promised sprays of blood within the arena of Trogon forest on midday. The first match of the renewed tournament was so close that Gyar's handler, Darian, could already hear the crush of a dying contestant's body in his mind. Even though he wanted to believe the witch would face such fate, he couldn't deny the dreadful feeling that Gyar's journey could end today. The wurm moved its head to its handler's direction, who had just stepped outside from his room.
"This is the day, Gyar. Your prey and everyone else will be in the Trogon forest. Let's show them the purest form of a hunt!"
The handler jumped on the back of the wurm, which then arose and slithered away from the residential buildings, towards the city gates. When both of them were on the fields of Legorna, Darian could see many people traveling on the road that led to the vast green forest not too far away from the city.
At the outskirts of the forest, Bab Yagara, Sylva, Pele, and Tai were traveling together to the arena's direction. The old witch was giving tips to the young girls on how to make people fall for them in battle, and perhaps on other situations as well. Yagara stopped talking when she saw one of the tournament hosts, Master Eetu, further ahead on the road. She hurried her pace and left the three girls behind without saying anything. A second later, Yagara was walking right next to the merfolk wizard, who didn't seem to pay her any attention. But the witch just smiled.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't curious about the people who control the magic of the world itself," the witch said in a creaking voice. "How did a young water feller such as yourself got into such practice?"
"It's a dry story," Eetu replied without looking at Yagara. But the witch didn't give up. She took a small bottle which was filled with orange fluid from her pouch, then offered it to the merfolk.
"Would a bottle of Hearty ol' Berry Juice loosen your lips? It's sweet, spicy, and could certainly help anyone to talk for hours!"
Eetu glanced at the bottle. "That would only do more harm than good to me."
Before Yagara could say anything, Sylva and Pele quickly ran from behind, then slowed down to walk between Eetu and Yagara, ending their conversation. Tai, who was sitting on Sylva's left shoulder, looked at the straight-faced merfolk.
"Master Eetu, we've heard that you've fought in this tournament many years ago. Do you have any tips which you would want to share with us?"
He snorted. "You should already know the only thing--"
Suddenly, the group heard as a girl's scream echoed in the woods, and they each looked at different directions, except Eetu. He quickly conjured a small water orb onto his right palm, gazed into it for a few seconds, then dismissed it as he started walking in a hurried pace deeper into the woods, where the road did not lead. Then a young boy in a raggedy clothes and a messy hair jumped out from a bush right in front of Eetu. The boy was breathing heavily while he was pointing behind him.
"H-help! My big sister is in troubl--"
"I know," Eetu said audibly and tapped the boy's left shoulder with his right hand as he passed him. Confused, the human boy just stared at the merfolk, then at Yagara, Sylva, Pele, and Tai as they followed him.
After a few seconds, the foursome saw as a teen, human girl in a long dress was limping through the woods while the sound of snapping twigs came from behind her. The girl was bleeding blood from her left leg, and when she saw the tournament host and the contestants, she fell onto the forest ground.
"Help me, it's coming," the girl whispered as she tried to get up in vain. Then a bush crushed down behind her and multiple heads of snakes hissed at everyone who had come to interrupt their meal. The contestants soon realized that the multiple snake heads belonged to a single creature; a boulder-sized hydra that thirsted for fresh blood. Before the contestants could do anything, Eetu reached his both hands towards the ravenous creature, and surrounded it with a blue aura, preventing it from moving. The same aura surrounded Eetu's hands, and as he closed his slender fingers into fists, all bones in the hydra's body crushed at the same time. Each head hissed in anguish before they fell dead onto the ground. After a few seconds of silence, Eetu looked at the contestants behind him, which he only noticed on that moment. Then he looked into Tai's tiny eyes.
"You want a tip? Kill your opponent as fast as possible. Now go, the match is about to start."
Bab Yagara grinned in excitement as she walked back to the road and then to the arena's direction. Pele, Sylva, and Tai followed her a few seconds later after staring at the hydra's body. As they were walking away, they could hear the injured girl talking to the tournament host.
"Thank you... We were attacked when me and my brother were taking a shortcut to the arena... I don't know why that thing was roaming around here. This part of the forest has been peaceful for a long time... Is my brother alright!?"
"Calm down. Nothing has happened to your brother. Now lay still, I will come back with a healer..."
Soon, the sound of the forest's leaves blown by the wind and the song of birds echoed around the girls. Even though Sylva was looking around the forest in awe, Tai was somewhat grumpy.
"I could have healed that girl with my powder..."
"Now now, my dear," Yagara said while she raised her wrinkled finger. "It's best for you to save as much power and powder as you can for your match than waste them helping nobodies!"
A moment later, Bab Yagara was standing in front of many wooden benches, where the audience was. That part of the forest didn't seem to have any birds unlike elsewhere, but it was just as gorgeous to the eye. While the central arena was a fine work of architecture, the Trogon arena only consisted of the curved benches, which were pointed towards the forest's heart, indicating that any match fought in the forest could turn into a game of cat and mouse. Gyar went to its position in the middle of the forest opening, and so did Yagara. Gyar's handler took a seat next to the other present contestants, and looked at the row, where the hosts were. Nathan, Clementia, Killian, and the elven host were present, alongside with a new face; a middle-aged man with a long, blonde hair and a short beard. He had a plate armor decorated with animal engravings and furs. Once the midday sun was positioned in the sky, the knight walked onto a wooden podium in front of the audience, then turned to look at them.
"Welcome, everyone! Today we have walked to this forest, which has given strength to us all, even to our fighters, to witness the start of this tournament! They will need that strength as now two of them stand ready before us all to fight until one of them falls! But, heh, as we all know; our heroes will never die as long as we have faith in them!"
The people of Legorna repeated the same saying at the end. Then the man raised his left hand towards the wurm.
"A wurm, who has shared many adventures with its caring handler; Gyar, Consuming Hatchling!"
Gyar shook its body as a way to warm up while the people clapped. Then the loud knight raised his right hand to the witch's direction.
"An old shaman, who seeks to regain her youth; Bab Yagara, Ancient Witch!"
The people, especially those who were drinking something, cheered for the old lady, who cackled silently. Then the speaking man finished his speech.
"Let the first match of our tournament begin!"
@Everyone - Due to a certain event around this time of each year, I must visit a group of humans and feast with peculiar food they have to offer. I might not be able to post the conclusion of this match within a couple of hours, so don't be shocked when that happens.
@KorandAngels - You can always share your spirit powers through the multiverse to help Bab Yagara!
Well, it's now or never for Yagara to feel the old magic and rise up once again
yes.
absolutely.
...exquisite!
Year after year, It tried to come back. And every time, It was pushed back again by the angelic guard that she was part of. But their numbers endlessly dwindled, unlike the Enemy's. And so Onara, one of the greatest Gatekeepers, was tasked with finding help in any form. The Tournament had been an opportunity to find what the multiverse had in store in terms of champions. Determined, Onara had signed up, in hope of finding powerful souls to put an end to the Enemy, and closing the Dreadgate once and for all.
She sighed. By staying alone on a rooftop, with doves and chilly gusts of wind as her sole companions, she wasn't going to be able to gauge anyone, and least of all have them take up her cause.
Spreading her silver-white wings, she gracefully bound into the sky, and back-flipped to dive straight towards the street below, landing with the lightness of a feather, her azurite plate armor chiming softly. Realising the early townsfolk were giving her quizzica looks, she flicked her left hand dismissivly. Her armor vanished, replaced by flowing blue and white robes, hiding her folded wings under delicate silk. Her heavy warboots gave place to light sandals, and her sword shrank into an ornemental dagger that she hid in her right sleeve. Flashing a dazzling smile at the beffudled onlookers, the angel walked down the main street, towards the city gates and the days main attraction : the Trogon forest. She knew the contestants would gather there to watch the first duel between the ancient witch Yagara and the enormous wurm Gyar. By going there, she not only planned to spectate the epic duel, but also to seek companionship amongst the other contestants: loneliness was starting to weigh on her. And she didn't need extra weight: the burden of her duty was heavy enough.
I use a lot of raw mana to make a juice maker to help your witch make juice.
I'm definitely using her again in another card.
_____________________________________________________
Arena:
As the middle-aged man announced the start of the match and was walking back to his seat, Gyar roared loudly, indicating the beginning of the wurm's hunt. Yagara kept her distance. The ancient witch slowly walked sideways towards the nearest tree while keeping her staff ready and her eyes focused on the large opponent. When the wurm burrowed below the forest ground within seconds, Yagara cackled and poked the ground with the butt of her staff. On that moment, the staff and the tree behind Yagara were surrounded by an orange aura for a few seconds.
"Ol' will-o-wasps, come out from my staff. Enemy is below the tree, now make sure it will flee!"
Countless tiny balls of green light poured out from the tip of the witch's staff. They began floating into the cracks of the old tree, and after a moment, the were all inside the tree. The people in the audience could hear as Gyar was right below Yagara, burrowing its way up until it would emerge from the ground and swallow the witch. Yagara stood still, and after a moment, the sound of burrowing ceased. It only took a tiny moment until Gyar was moving underground again, but it changed direction and only its head emerged from the ground many meters away from the witch.
Gyar's handler, who was sitting at the edge of his seat, could see as the wurm was in trouble. The roots of the tree, where the will-o-wasps now resided, were wrapped around Gyar, and some of them had impaled its hide. The wurm wriggled in pain as the will-o-wasps floated from the roots into its wounds. Each spirit orb stung the beast once before vanishing, but they just kept coming. Eventually Gyar broke loose from the roots and was rolling on the ground in hopes of crushing the remaining will-o-wasps on its body. Yagara laughed roughly, then she walked towards the squirming opponent while digging something from her pouch. When she took a glass bottle full of red powder, she looked at the wurm, which had destroyed the last will-o-wasp. But Yagara didn't mind that.
"Young sweethearts gave this to me. Logically, I'll use it to only destroy something that was never beautiful; you!"
The witch threw the contents of the bottle into the air, then pointed at Gyar with her staff while muttering something. The red powder turned into blood-red smoke and it quickly surrounded Gyar. It caused the wurm to cough blood and make the wounds bleed even more. Yagara smirked when the smoke faded and saw the wurm's condition. She wasn't surprised when the wurm roared and prepared to charge at its prey. Yagara turned around and ran extremely quickly as the wurm was chasing her. When the wurm was about to swallow the witch, she jumped through a narrow gap between two large trees and heard as the enormous creature was stopped by them. Gyar's teeth were stuck in the trees, and it couldn't close its mouth. The scene gave Yagara an idea. She took another bottle from her pouch. It was identical to the one she had offered to Master Eetu right before the match, but this one contained liquid of darker tone.
"I know just the right cure for your suffering!"
While snickering, Yagara threw the bottle at Gyar, and it shattered when it contacted the wurm's teeth. Fragments of glass and liquid spread everywhere in its mouth. Anguished roar came from Gyar, but it kept pushing through the two trees. Suddenly, Gyar's teeth broke free from the trees and it jumped at Yagara, whose smile faded as quickly.
The liquid strengthened it that much!?
Splinters of wood flew around the two, and Yagara wasn't fast enough to dodge Gyar's fangs. They dug into her throat, and when Gyar hit the ground, the impact moved its head up, causing Yagara to fly many meters away. The two damaged trees behind Gyar started to fall, and when they crashed onto the ground, silence surrounded the arena. Leaves slowly fell from above and dust was being blown away by a silent wind. Everyone in the audience looked at the two contestants. When Gyar began to slowly turn towards them, its handler jumped from his bench and hurried to check its condition. Oliver, who had been standing in the shadows the whole time, went to look at Yagara. The witch was lying lifelessly on the ground, her eyes and throat wide open. Oliver gestured to the hosts, and after a moment, the man who spoke earlier announced the winner of the first match.
Both characters have had a good story so far. Yagara's influence was greater than Gyar's, but the wurm's neat card design granted it victory and a way to the tournament's 2nd round!
@HeroKP - Yagara's time in the tournament is over, but you may post her later versions here and write how her journey moves on!
The tournament bracket has been updated!
In a day or two, the match between @pakashara's Sylva and @sanjaya666's Rin Yuu will begin. The arena will be revealed 2-3 hours before the start of the match.
@ASubtleGhost - Storytelling increases your character's influence and chances. Even a little backstory or activity of your character goes a long way, and I really like what you've written so far!
“Shouldn’t have given the beast some juice I suppose. Well, my run to regain my youth has backfired... AGAIN!”
Tai was speechless.
“But, I have learned one thing in my stay here,” the witch said eeriely, “and that is friendships. I’ll never forget you Tai.”
The witch then went to her room.
@HeroKP what a shame... I really did like Bab Yagara! Anyways, is this short passage okay?
Well, it's a shame, but Yagara is the resilient type, and so am I (judging as how this is my third entry into the tournament, and as long as there is a fourth tournament, I will enter a fourth time)
Expect Yagara to be back, bigger and badder than ever
Somewhere in a clearing outside the city, leaves were falling down as they were quickly cut down by a flurry of blades from a certain swordsmaster in black robed attire. The motions were so fast and unnatural that they left magical afterimages and dark shockwaves that cut down small trees in their wake.
No normal person could attain such heights, not naturally at least, and Rin Yuu somehow able to attain such powers by a combination of her iaido skills (japanese quickdraw style) and a pact with a demon she attained in the past during her first conflict with the Syndicate that burned down her home and killed her family.
In an attempt to cleanse her minds, she sheated back her trusted demonic katana, the Yorukaze, a sign from a demon she contracted with, then sat with knees folded and controlled breathing as she also closed her eyes.
'Think I'm gonna back to town... and hoping that they won't ambush me during the match. No, they're smarter than that. They know that that would causing a hassle, and that would alerting the people about their hidden existence.'
She just frowned about the event that just transpired before.
"Where's the mastermind, deadeye?" Asked a furious Rin as she pressed her sword on a throat of a clearly male person in a hooded attire. There were also some scattered remains of a broken crossbow beside the downed person.
Alongside of it, there was a corpse of another male person in a knightly armor that was unnaturally swallowed by shadowy hands that engulfed it.
"You can't win this, death is nothing for us but a slight delay." Said the oppressed person with a smirk.
"How long will you stay defiant? You know that no one could stop us. And we will always know about your whereabouts, my dear Rin. "
In response of it, the swordsmaster just silently cut open his throat and watched the person gasping for air as he tried to stop the large amount of blood that was flowing freely from the wound. With no avail.
And she just stood up, watching, as the person slowly dies with a mad grin instead. Shortly, the corpse also swallowed by shadowy appendages that slowly dragged it into the unknown.
'Another cold track again. And think I'm gonna need to wash my clothing...'
She just sighed as she cleaned the specks of blood on her demonic sword with the sleeve of her robe.
Pele sighed, she knew Gyar was a worthy opponent but she though Yagara would have been able to outlast him. She wished the witch on her way as she left the tournament, hoping she would find what she wanted.
Bab Yagara was powerful, but was subdued by the wurm, which had come back for its vengeance after being swept away by the storm. My opponent would also be filled with the same lust to prove himself worthy after the hurricane subdued him.
Tai also couldn’t forget Eetu looking at her in the eyes the way he did. Maybe it was something he saw in her. Maybe it was just an intense stare. Tai tried to remember something that she had missed. Something that started her path to the Tournament. Why did Taz show up the way she did? Were there actually Faeries that cared for her in Thirea?
I just have to win in this round. Maybe, I’ll remember what I had been so eager to forget. What past was hiding itself from me? I must train
Tai crept downstairs while trying not to wake her slumbering friends. She eventually made it to a grass field. She had already lost her rose. Her mother’s prized possession that she trusted Tai with before she was killed by...someone...someone she couldn’t remember. She now held a flute made out of break from a Thirean Oak tree. Tai took out all her powders: Black for Draining Poison, Gold for Healing, Red for Damage Creation, Purple for Sleep, and she had lost her green powder which she forgot how to make. She knew the flute was filled with dark powers. It could drain life force with music and use songs to instill madness upon those who heard it. It was dangerous, so Tai didn’t dare to use it.
Tai found herself walking to the library. She rummaged through piles of books hoping to find one about Thirea. One that could re-open the pathways in her mind that she had closed off before. Tai glanced out the window and looked at the sun. Sylva was training. She was practicing tactics with her hammer and dagger. Then she stopped tired. Their eyes met.
Tai hurried outside. “Sylva,” Tai whimpered hurriedly, “You have to win this. We can train...”
“Together,” Sylva finished.
It was still 6:00, but the two trained tirelessly. Tai threw some red powder at Sylva, but she dodged it swiftly. Sylva quickly sprung at Tai and slashed with her hammer which missed. Tai used that moment to throw another wave of red powder at Sylva. Her face expression showed signs of pain, but she endured it and attacked Tai once more. Tai quickly dodged this and sprinkled some sleep powder on Sylva. Sylva tilted her hammer reflecting the sun’s rays on the powder which burned through it, blinding Tai. Sylva swung her hammer again, slamming Tai backwards into a nearby tree. Sylva recklessly attacked again, but this time with less strategy. Tai timed her dodge precisely and threw black powder on the tree. It fell on top of the Airship Mechanic. She managed to crawl out only to be caught by a wave of red and purple powder. Traumatic visions raced through the mechanic’s head which she managed to shake off using a lot of willpower. The Midnight Trickster threw black dust at her opponent who fell to the ground on all fours. Tai swooped in ready to intensify the draining powder with her red powder, but Sylva was somehow ready. She quickly swung her hammer, catching Tai off-guard and Tai was on the ground now as well. They both rose carefully.
“Let’s call it a draw,” Tai suggested, “We should go have breakfast.”
The airship mechanic agreed. They both used Tai’s healing powder to heal their wounds, and walked off to meet Pele for breakfast.
@pakashra is this okay?
The angel had watched the first duel. She had not liked it : malice and corruption, pitched against primal fury. Their fight had no prestige, did not call upon honor. She hoped the rest of the roster would prove themselves more than mere gladiators, only there to please the crowd with blood. She hoped she would be able see the true face of championship before all was over.
She had toured the city, spoken with its denizens. Life here was much simpler than on Iolan, her homeplane. People could go to sleep without the fear of waking up one day to see otherworldly invaders on their doorstep. She had not slept in ... far too long. The Heart of the Endless Vigil had sustained her and her battlesisters to allow them to keep watch whithout pause, so that their people could rest more easily.
Onara watched from a disance as the young Tai and Sylva sparred. The faerie compensated her small stature with devious techniques, while the mechanic expertly swung her hammer. It reminded her of herself training with Tarri. It seemed like ages ago. She smiled at the memory, but only for a moment. The training didn't stop a dozen of black spears from putting an end to Tarri's existence. She shook her head, dissipating the anger. The two on the field had come to draw, and were heading away. Removing a leaf that had caught in her hair, she decided on a whim to join them. She had a good feeling about them, unlike some of the other contestants. Especially Kift and Drellen. She had gone through quite unpleasant experiences involving shapeshifters and spiders in the past.
@shadow123 Onara decides to come by and say hello to your little group. She hopes they don't mind.
An angel
Angels were quick to strike against any being they found unholy. Like... Okar shook their head. not the time. Focus is key. They waited in the trees for a minute before slinking off into their own private clearing.
Time to train.
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/okar-of-the-aether-cycle-1
Revised. (New frame, added "nontoken" clause so it's not infinite.)
@TenebrisNemo
could you use this from now on?
Thanks
She headed into town and found an entrance into the sewer systems and walked (picking up discarded items along the way) for some time before hitting a crossroads, she stopped there and watched the rats scurry around for a few minutes before starting her training. Being in the dark allowed her powers to grow more accustomed to the dark magic running through her and she was able to strengthen her fire against water and other things by coating her hands in sewer gunk.
After a few hours of training, she made her way out of the sewers and headed through the city back to her quarters. She emerged from the sewers into the morning sunlight sweaty and dirty. She got a few glances towards her dirty appearance but thought nothing of it. She got back to her room and cleaned herself up before going out to get some food and meet up with Sylva and Tai.