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[Maximum Spin]

All right... We have, effectively, 73 points of power to distribute among three fields, plus a hypothetical +10 from the two boost abilities. I think another asymmetrical distribution may be wise. I am tentatively leaning toward putting Dave and the Prospectors in the middle, but B4 could make sense too - I'm not really sure that the terrain is affecting anything, but it seems like coastal lowlands aren't a situation where we need bunker-busters. I could easily be convinced to split them up too. I am thinking of bolstering Hanako and her maidens with the jet fighters. Ted should go with Ōtokage if we want to use it... I could see an argument for holding it back to soup up even more, but I kind of want to give the dragon thing a try, mainly because I want to see if the enemy try to develop anti-dragon defenses instead of anti-robot defenses. I'd probably put the cowboys with the prospectors - if we send them separately from Dave, I'd give one or the other Westernization, otherwise give one or the other PecEx. I guess I'd put Ted and Ōtokage at B6, where they can fly in over the ocean and look cool. That feels like they should get the jet fighters as backup, though. Not sure how much of the strategy I should be basing purely on what looks cool — oh, right, this is an anime arms race, so that's actually 100% what I should be doing. Any thoughts?

[TricMagic]

B4 is hills with caves, there is gold(and filthy animu) in those caves. Blow them up!

[Maximum Spin]

Okay, so, let me think...
How about:
Royal Uncle Dave, Boom Arsonist Prospectors, Cowboy Samurai Retainers → Line 1
Saio Princess Hanako, Temple Maiden Army, Super High-Tech Jet Fighters → Line 2
Eiji "Ted" Yamamoto, Dragon Nexus Ōtokage → Line 3

For Westernization, I'm thinking EITHER something for Ted (if we feel he needs more support), or something like the RADAR again because that seemed to work well. You tell me which and I'll write something up. Or copy and paste the RADAR block. Well, I kind of feel like we should aim for a modest improvement on the original RADAR. Maybe... LIDAR.

For PecEx...
Pecuniary Extravagance: Cowboy Samurai Retainers: Through various semilegal connections, Royal Uncle Dave buys the attention of a Western military satellite for this battle, giving the Cowboy Samurai Retainers the Satellite Support trait for the duration of the turn.
Satellite Support: Using special tracer rounds designed for their old-timey revolvers, the loyal retainers can call down laser strikes from a satellite orbiting over the battlefield on their targets.

I figure they could use a little extra punch, and besides, it's a fine animu tradition to mix technology levels radically.

[TricMagic]

Okay, so, let me think...
How about:
Royal Uncle Dave, Boom Arsonist Prospectors, Cowboy Samurai Retainers → Line 1
Saio Princess Hanako, Temple Maiden Army, Super High-Tech Jet Fighters → Line 2
Eiji "Ted" Yamamoto, Great Nexus Ōtokage → Line 3

For Westernization, I'm thinking EITHER something for Ted (if we feel he needs more support), or something like the RADAR again because that seemed to work well. You tell me which and I'll write something up. Or copy and paste the RADAR block. Well, I kind of feel like we should aim for a modest improvement on the original RADAR. Maybe... LIDAR.

For PecEx...
Pecuniary Extravagance: Cowboy Samurai Retainers: Through various semilegal connections, Royal Uncle Dave buys the attention of a Western military satellite for this battle, giving the Cowboy Samurai Retainers the Satellite Support trait for the duration of the turn.
Satellite Support: Using special tracer rounds designed for their old-timey revolvers, the loyal retainers can call down laser strikes from a satellite orbiting over the battlefield on their targets.

I figure they could use a little extra punch, and besides, it's a fine animu tradition to mix technology levels radically.

+1, great as always. Destroy the Animu Menace!

[Maximum Spin]

Okay but I asked a question in the middle there

[TricMagic]

Okay but I asked a question in the middle there

Great Nexus Ōtokage Westernization: Drone Support!
Using the great power of drones shaped like smaller western dragons, the Great Nexus can support troops anywhere on the battlefield, reducing the enemy to bits with great balls of exploding fire an closer attacks via claw. Its own aerial armada. That is also Dragon Dragon.

[Maximum Spin]

Okay, sure. Baby dragons. You meant "Its" though.

[Stirk]

Line 1

For some reason the enemy sent ravens and crows dressed up as soldiers to fight here. Oklahoma Dave suspects this is some form of psyop, to distract him while the enemy goes behind his back and blows up all their supplies. Which happens a lot. So maybe it was actually a good plan? There are enough humans among the enemy to keep him occupied at least.

The prospectors are easily able to control the cave filled battlefield with their dynamite and digging implements. A new cave here, a cave in there, and boom they've changed the battlefield as easily as they change their pants. The enemy can still fly, being birds, giving them greater maneuverability outside the caves but that leaves them vulnerable to the retainer's new satellite artillery. Unless they fly directly over the samurai. Then it also would make themselves vulnerable to the artillery so they just use normal bullets.

Somehow the prospectors arn't really concerned with safety, leaving their dynamite filled supply depots a mess. And when they're tasked with guarding away from the front-line they often abandon their posts if they hear there is gold and or silver nearby. This combination seems to lead to a bunch of supply depots randomly exploding. It really is a bummer. Worse yet there is rumor among the prospectors that some have been claim jumping, as sometimes your troops seem to have died from an ambush when nobody was around. Luckily both of these things stop sometime during the battle so maybe they all learned their lesson?

In any case the birds are unable to hold the line. In the end you advance half a step to between B4 and B1. 1 enemy Incapacitated (?)

Line 2

NO MEN! CAT WOMAN ON HORSES! CAT WOMEN ARTILLERY! NOW SOME CHICK TRYING TO FIGHT ME! DO YOU EXPECT ME TO WRITE FANFICTION ABOUT HORSES LIKE SOME FURRY?

Anyway the Miko find themselves fighting the same enemy as before. That is until they find themselves blindsides by a newcomer. A human woman (GRRRR!) jumped into the fray and fought like she was demon possessed. Smelled like she was demon possessed too, according to the nearby shrine maidens, but Hanako's blade didn't seem to activate against her suggesting she isn't currently demonically active. Hanako let loose all of her pent-up frustration into fighting this newcomer. They trade blows between Hanako's sword and the enemy's bayoneted rifle and grappling hook, the force of a furious storm into each hit from each woman. In the end Hanako swung what should have been a decisive blow only for the enemy to catch the sword with her bare hands and shatter it into pieces. Hanako readied for a fist fight when that cat-woman cavalry charged into her disorganized maidens forcing them and herself to retreat. Currently she and the maidens are at the temple "to forge a new holy sword", but there is a non-zero chance Hanako is just using this as an excuse to escape the all-female battlefield for a moment.

Meanwhile our jetfighters where suppressing enemy artillery, keeping them from effectively supporting the enemy cavalry. This ends up doing little as all our infantry is forced to retreat very quickly allowing the enemy to gain significant ground.

Pushed back one step to A5, Temple Maiden Army and Saio Princess Hanako Incapacitated 1 Turn

Line 3
Ted goes into battle riding a dragon like it was his majestic cowboy steed. His enemy, no doubt under control of the same general as last battle, dug into the beach like Normandy. He had planned several traps and ambushes to catch Ted and his dragon off guard - only for the enemy rifle bullets to crash into the dragon or it's drones being used as shields with little effect. While the enemy was able to take down several drones it did little more than superficial damage to the Great Dragon. In the end Ōtokage and ted where able to slam through the defenses like a dragon taking a castle in a fairy tale. They where forced to retreat and make a new line of defense near the floating islands. Still their defenses where not worthless, as they prevented your fiery hot plasma from burning a significant number of troops.

Advanced 1/2 step to between B6 and B3. I did it's as a joke, did you catch it?

It is now the Protagonist Phase.

Spoiler: Current Roster (click to show/hide)

Eiji "Ted" Yamamoto P20 Westernization, Purge the weebs!, Friendship is Over Rated
Temple Maiden Army: P5 Princess's Personal Personnel Incapacitated 1 Turn
Cowboy Samurai Retainers: P5 Six Shooting Samurai
Great Nexus Ōtokage: P5 Deploy Spaceship! Crouching Dragon, Dragon Dragon
Saio Princess Hanako: P10 Light Priestess Saio, Mahou Shoujo Otaku, Huge Fujoshi Incapacitated 1 Turn
Super High-Tech Jet Fighters: P6  Can Into Space, Actual Adult Pilots
Royal Uncle Dave: P14  Princeton Educated, Penetration Expert, Pecuniary Extravagance
Boom Arsonist Prospectors: P8 Blow it all to hell!
 

Spoiler: Map (click to show/hide)

        AC
A1     A2     A3
A4     A5     A6
B4     B5     B6
B1     B2     B3
        BC

AC: Heian-Style Castle Refurbished to look like a Western Castle on a ridge overlooking the head of a river
A1: Mountains
A2: Highlands with pastures
A3: Mountains
A4: Mountains
A5: Valley floor, lakes, river.
A6: Mountains

BC: Veloxflumine, the political capital of the alliance.
B1: Mountains (with cities for winged creatures)
B2: Alverlon Ruins
B3: Floating Islands (with cities)
B4: Hills with caves (and occasionally settlements)
B5: Flat farmland with a few mountains
B6: Coastal Lowlands

Spoiler: Step Status (click to show/hide)

Line 1 is currently between B4 and B1
Line 2 is currently at A5
Line 3 is currently between B6 and B3

Did I really have between on all of them last time?

[Maximum Spin]

Did I really have between on all of them last time?

Yep. It's okay. I forgive you.

[TricMagic]

Calling in Fighter Mechs
Jet is an old hand at air and ground combat, using his transforming fighterplane/mech to control the skies and ground alike and lead his troops to victory.
Traits:
Master of Air: A man who has never been shot out of the sky, his fighter jet has missiles, machine guns, and smart bombs to blow anything and anynumber out of the sky.
Also a Mech: His Fighter Jet doubles as a mech, gaining a cool jet-fire blade for melee and cutting through walls and animu.(and flamethrowing everything) Speedy, and still has the armaments of the plane. Noted for using a smaurai style of combat and rushing attacks with the jet on it's back and the blade itself.
Calling in Support: Jet is a master of logistics and tactics, able to turn the tide of entire battles by completing objectives, all while ensuring he never runs out of ammo or fuel.


(Max, want to ad more bio?)

[Maximum Spin]

It looks like we might want to focus EITHER on counter-espionage OR on some anti-normal-(but super strong)-human measures right now, though, based on the weaknesses shown in our results. As far as air superiority goes, I think we're solid. I don't dislike your idea (an ace pilot was in my list from the moment I made the jet fighters), but it's not what I think we need right now...

I had a few ideas of my own to start with, one of which is a strong counter-espionage effect playing further into the "space technology" angle, but I'm not sure it's the right time to introduce it, narratively. Maybe we should do more smaller space stuff first. That said, I've written it out here and if you want to vote for it I won't say no. Of course it's a little OP and Stirk might have complaints.
Brain Satellite APOLLYON
Joining the experience with robotics gained from the redesign of Ōtokage with our recent insights into space travel and satellite deployment, Jingay scientists, in partnership with NASA, have developed the world's first fully artificially intelligent modular satellite system, ominously titled APOLLYON (アポリョン). Equipped with military-grade full-spectrum sensors capable both of zooming in on a single ant and tracking hundreds of signatures at a time, APOLLYON leverages that data to manage a network of weapons autonomously across air, ground, and space, although it can still only focus on one battlefield at a time. In order to keep it under control, it has been programmed with absolute loyalty to the Emperor, and has a broadband neural interface allowing it to be commanded directly from Dragon Nexus Ōtokage. Its primary weapon, "Zusu no Sandaa", fires a bolt of plasma that ionizes the air along its path, striking the earth like lightning from the heavens. Ted gets so mad when people pronounce it "Aporyon".

Traits:
- Absolute Coverage: When APPOLYON's eyes are trained on a battlefield, no enemy movement, no matter how subtle, goes unnoticed. The locations of every enemy unit on the battlefield are tracked and broadcast to our own soldiers in realtime.
- Absolute Control: APOLLYON carries an orbital deployment platform capable of launching drones, based on the same design used with Ōtokage, into the battlefield to carry out its orders directly. Each drone is equipped with a tiny flamethrower.
- Absolute Capability: APOLLYON runs a state-of-the-art learning algorithm. After a fight, it gains Power based on what it has learned about the enemies it faced, and it can exchange five Power for a new trait related to that knowledge.
Now, the character I was planning for this round BEFORE the results came out is an American superheroine and romantic interest for Uncle Dave. She could serve as a counter to normal humans... which I'll expect to see even more of after Dave butchered their animal people.
American Superhero Sparrowhawk
Research ornithologist Samantha Sparrow was in the field in the Yucatán jungles when she first met Dave Yamamoto, a dashing explorer investigating an ancient temple to the Yucatec bird deity, Itzamna. The smitten young grad student was more than happy to join the exploration team as a consultant on native birds, but when the party was attacked by a cursed bird spirit, she suddenly awakened bird-themed superpowers to save her new friends. After her relationship with Dave smoldered down because of his inner restlessness, she decided to quit academia and become a superhero instead of taking on student loans. Now, years later, she's an established member of the Justice Bros with responsibilities of her own, but when she hears that her old flame has left to defend his homeland, she decides to take a vacation to help any way she can.
Traits:
- Super Strength: Like any typical superhero, Sparrowhawk hits like a semi truck dropped off a skyscraper and is virtually impervious to physical damage.
- Super Flight: Sparrowhawk can fly! Obviously. It'd be pretty weird if she didn't. She also has hawk-like vision and sharpened senses, especially from the air.
- Super Invisibility: Sparrowhawk can become invisible, like a bird. Birds are well known to turn invisible whenever people aren't looking. Although Sparrowhawk's power also works when people are looking.
I'm open to more ideas.

[Maximum Spin]

If TricMagic got hit by the isekai truck, I vote for Sparrowhawk, I guess.

[TricMagic]

If TricMagic got hit by the isekai truck, I vote for Sparrowhawk, I guess.

Thumbs up from the sidewalk "I'm fine." collapses

[Maximum Spin]

Good luck killing/seducing/being the demon king depending on genre!

[Stirk]

American Superhero Sparrowhawk
Research ornithologist Samantha Sparrow was in the field in the Yucatán jungles when she first met Dave Yamamoto, a dashing explorer investigating an ancient temple to the Yucatec bird deity, Itzamna. The smitten young grad student was more than happy to join the exploration team as a consultant on native birds, but when the party was attacked by a cursed bird spirit, she suddenly awakened bird-themed superpowers to save her new friends. After her relationship with Dave smoldered down because of his inner restlessness, she decided to quit academia and become a superhero instead of taking on student loans. Now, years later, she's an established member of the Justice Bros with responsibilities of her own, but when she hears that her old flame has left to defend his homeland, she decides to take a vacation to help any way she can.
Traits:
- Super Strength: Like any typical superhero, Sparrowhawk hits like a semi truck dropped off a skyscraper and is virtually impervious to physical damage.
- Super Flight: Sparrowhawk can fly! Obviously. It'd be pretty weird if she didn't. She also has hawk-like vision and sharpened senses, especially from the air.
- Super Invisibility: Sparrowhawk can become invisible, like a bird. Birds are well known to turn invisible whenever people aren't looking. Although Sparrowhawk's power also works when people are looking.

D20 Roll: 1! My condolences!

It is now the Supporting Character phase.