inbox for balance_rpg

[oculusriffs]

TG: this is going to be fucking stupid isnt it


[want to get in touch with Dave? you can leave a TEXT, VOICE, or VIDEO message — or alternatively, he shouldn't be too hard to track down in person.]

Comments

[blodsvorr]

You can always go around me and get it commissioned yourself, but you can explain to Ryuji next time we have a mission why you still don't have a real sword, because I'm not going to.
Make it ASAP, kiddo. A blacksmith'll need about a week to put together most things. They'll need longer for something more complex. Ideally, you'll have as much time to practice with your new weapon as possible before the next field mission.

[oculusriffs]

[..........]

what
did he say something

just to be perfectly clear
dont think im not takin you seriously
i know i need a sword that like
adheres to the basic laws of physics
isnt a fucking piece of wiffle bat garbage
does normal sword shit

its more just a matter of getting used to HAVING to fight again

[blodsvorr]

He said a few unflattering things about that sword of yours. Sorry if I'm revealing a hidden betrayal here, but I'm on his side.

Coming back from a quiet period's tough.
But fighting isn't something you've got to do. I'd still say it's worth getting a real weapon, just in case, but if you don't want to be in combat, you don't have to be. There's plenty of good to do in other ways.

[oculusriffs]

nah
dont really see how statin the obvious is betraying anything

i mean yeah thats all fine and good
but that isnt really in the paladin job description
i tried the pacifist yoda thing once already though
argued that having a mastery over your powers means not actually using em
and i still think that honestly
but it didnt really work out

[blodsvorr]

Just because someone puts you on a path, that doesn't mean you've gotta walk it.
They made me a Chemist. And sure, I'll take lessons from Dr Gnome on some basic healing things.
That doesn't mean I'm not going to do things my own way.

[oculusriffs]

what exactly does going your own way entail

[is ... is Qrow gonna open a brewery?]

[blodsvorr]

It entails still doing my job as a Huntsman. You know, killing monsters and protecting people. That thing.

[oculusriffs]

i know youre saying that i dont have to fight
i can change my personal path or whatever
but do you really think thats gonna work out

[blodsvorr]

I think it could. You can do a lot for people in a support role. Hell, you can stop people from turning into corpses with the right application of support skills.
Thing is, I also think you wouldn't be satisfied with that. I get the feeling that at the end of the day, if the people who matter to you are in the thick of it, you're going to want to be there beside them.
Maybe it's not a real choice if there was only one thing you could ever live with yourself doing. Still, I think it's worth considering that the option to do something else is there.

[oculusriffs]

[Dave actually doesn't answer that immediately, which may be as strong an indicator as any that Qrow is right. multi-comment rants he's had on the subject aside, he can't not insert himself into the fray, not when people he cares about are at risk of harm. it's who he is. it's the knightly portion of the outer space paradox goo that's built into his very being.]

[so maybe fifteen minutes later, Qrow will get two pictures of two drawings on his bracer. one's a simple samurai sword. the other's ... well, it's the SORD..... but modified just enough to look serviceable.]

[and that's Dave's answer to that line of thought. the suggestion that he could try something else. it's that he can't change his path — and maybe he's okay with the idea of not wanting to.]

[blodsvorr]

[The first one he immediately dismisses. It doesn't suit Dave. It reminds Qrow of Raven. The second, though...]

Second one.

[oculusriffs]

ok
which blacksmith should i take it to

[blodsvorr]

Of all the Jerries, Jeeeerry seems to do the best with swords. Give him a try.

[oculusriffs]

what

[Jeeeerry??]

[blodsvorr]

Don't ask me. The blacksmiths are all named some variant on "Jerry," apparently.

[oculusriffs]

thats kind of dumb but
ok

[like Dave "walking Lord of the Rings reference" Strider has any room to be talking shit about a dude's name.]

ill talk him into forging this
hes probably easier to deal with than the last blacksmith on the last rpg quest i was stuck in was

[blodsvorr]

Glad to hear it.
Anyway, give me more specifics on where you are. I've got something to deliver to you.

[oculusriffs]

you do
what is it

[come on Dave, no spoilers.]

i was just going back to my room though
can meet you right outside

[blodsvorr]

A surprise.
I'll come by.

[It takes him a while, since he has to get back to base, but he does come by. Is Dave inside his room or outside of it by the time Qrow makes it?]

[oculusriffs]

[he is absolutely standing outside his room! curiosity killed the crows as they say.]

[that's not what they say.]

[blodsvorr]

[Qrow arrives holding two things badly wrapped in shiny paper. He holds them out to Dave. One is vaguely bottle-shaped, and the other kind of could be a container maybe?]

Merry Candlenights, kid. Figured you could do with these.

[When Dave opens them, he will find in the bottle shaped one a juice that is, in fact, apple, looking somewhat pulpy because it was handmade and strained. The container will show what happened to the strained material: it is applesauce.]

[oculusriffs]

[this is the second time it's been a holiday or a birthday that Qrow's given him apple juice, and this is the second time that Dave is slightly caught off guard by it — and this time around, it's because he doesn't have anything to give in return.]

[that is to say, there are a number of gears turning at the moment.]

[.....]

Thanks.

[it's not tentative, or even confused anymore. it's as sincere as Dave Strider is ever gonna get.]

You're really pretty good at looking out for all of us, huh.

[blodsvorr]

[And now it's Qrow's turn to be caught off guard. He looks physically taken a back, drawing away with surprise.]

Eh, I just figured you'd like it. Really looking out for you guys isn't really my thing. I mean it is my thing, I'm a Huntsman. I'm great at being a Huntsman. Just not so much in a being responsible for people, except for being responsible for keepin' 'em alive. So that kind of responsible, sure. But not the other kind.

[Stop him he's rambling]

[oculusriffs]

[oh geez. maybe if Dave also rambles they'll cancel each other out?]

I mean, I dunno if you've been keeping inventory on literally everybody that universe hopped their way here, but "responsible" ain't really a word I'd use to collectively describe us.

So the fact that bein' responsible is apparently what you're paid to do as a Huntsdude already puts you like. At least a couple rungs above the rest of us on that metagorical ladder. [Jesus Christ he said metagorical.]

[blodsvorr]

[Instead of responding to the stuff he doesn't know how to respond to:]

"Metagorical."

[Dave.]