| 1 | %% IMPORTANT NOTE TO EDITORS: As per site guidelines, please do not change character folder images without consulting the Image Pickin' Forums (https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/conversations.php?topic=images) for image approval first. |
| 2 | |
| 3 | [[WMG:[[center: [- ''VideoGame/HonkaiStarRail'' '''([[Characters/HonkaiStarRail Main Character Index]])'''\ |
| 4 | [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailAstralExpress Astral Express]]\ |
| 5 | ''Locations'': [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailHertaSpaceStation Herta Space Station]] | [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailJariloVI Jarilo-VI]] | [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailXianzhouLuofu Xianzhou Luofu]] | [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailPenacony Penacony]]\ |
| 6 | ''Factions'': [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailStellaronHunters Stellaron Hunters]] | [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailGeniusSociety Genius Society]] | [[Characters/HonkaiStarRailInterastralPeaceCorporation Interastral Peace Corporation]]\ |
| 7 | '''Aeons'''-]]]]] |
| 8 | |
| 9 | !Aeons |
| 10 | Mysterious, godlike entities who roam the universe. Each one is a powerful RealityWarper who has left a mark upon reality itself in the form of Paths, an embodiment of philosophy through which life and the universe itself may take form. Simply living in accordance to the values espoused by a Path can bestow SuperEmpowering to mortals, and Aeons THEMSELVES can [[TouchedByVorlons bless entire worlds]] with physics-defying, supernatural powers. |
| 11 | |
| 12 | Due to THEIR powers and influence, the Aeons are deified by many across the universe, forming a group of followers or worshippers who each attempt to live in accordance to the Paths of their Aeons. The Astral Express itself can be considered a group of followers of Trailblaze, although the Path has been left masterless after Akivili died under unknown circumstances. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 15 | ---- |
| 16 | [[folder:In General]] |
| 17 | * AbstractApotheosis: Many of THEM are former mortals, but upon ascending, THEY become bound to THEIR paths and THEIR mentality completely changes. According to Welt and Himeko, THEY are bound to the ''Primum Mobile'', causing THEM to lose free will and the ability to process anything outside the Path THEY represent. THEY literally ''cannot'' act against THEIR Path. For example, the Harmony will never raise a ruckus, the Abundance will keep spreading immortal life, the Propagation became mindless as intelligence is considered useless for the instinct to propagate, and more. THEIR way of thinking becomes so alien that asking THEM questions is usually pointless. Aeons capable of communicating with THEIR followers on a personal level are the exception rather than the rule, and none of the living ones can reliably do so. Out of all the Aeons, Akivili was probably the only one that fully retained the ability to relate to mortals. Even after creating simulated, modified replicas of them, Herta still requires the help of a person containing a Stellaron to bridge the communication barrier. |
| 18 | * AmbiguousGender: It is debatable if gender is a concept which applies to Aeons. Only some have humanoid forms, and even among those there are quite a few being referred with THEY/THEM pronouns regardless of the gender expressions of their forms. In the Chinese text, all Aeons are referred to with the pronoun "祂" (tā), which is primarily used to refer to the Abrahamic god, but can also refer to other deities. As of the 2.1 update, Aeons (and other deific figures) are referred to with all-caps pronouns as a reflection of this. Prior existing text in the game was also revised to match the change. |
| 19 | * AnthropomorphicPersonification: Of the possible philosophical paths which can be cultivated and expressed by life itself. |
| 20 | * AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: The followers of many Aeons claim THEY were once lesser, mortal lifeforms before becoming Aeons. How it happened differ between Aeon to Aeon, and the exact specifics are unclear. |
| 21 | * BlueAndOrangeMorality: The Aeons became what THEY are by living through a philosophy with which life can be lived, and after a certain point embody that philosophy so thoroughly in a vast and encompassing manner to the point it is difficult for mortals to truly comprehend their mindsets. This is most obvious with Yaoshi the Abundance; THEIR gift of immortality is bestowed with apparently benevolent intentions, but the consequence can range from genuinely helpful (to Denizens of Abundance) to catastrophic (to the Xianzhou Alliance). |
| 22 | * CallBack: Though Aeons are entities which are first introduced to the Honkai [[TheMultiverse Multiverse]] within ''Star Rail'', there have been multiple instances of entities similar to THEM existing or being hinted at. |
| 23 | ** In ''Houkai Gakuen 2nd'' or ''Gun Girls Z'' Part 2, [[spoiler:the Will of Honkai is revealed to be once a race of lifeforms from an AlternateUniverse, who used the Honkai to ascend and assimilate all other forms of life, becoming one with the Honkai itself of their universe]]. It is suspiciously similar to what Tayzzyronth the Propagation attempted to do in the past of ''Star Rail'' universe. |
| 24 | ** In ''VideoGame/HonkaiImpact3rd'', the Honkai is revealed to be [[spoiler:a force put in place by mysterious beings to reflect the lifeforms of any particular world into understanding themselves, and exists to allow physical and spiritual transformations for intelligent life. Due to humanity being in a habit of seeing the Honkai as an alien, corruptive force, on top of being [[HumansAreFlawed flawed]] at the best of times and [[HumansAreBastards bastards]] at the worst of times, it results in the Honkai becoming the existential threat it is in the story]]. At the climax of Part 1, [[spoiler:after Kiana figures out the Honkai for what it really is, she uses it to become one with the Cocoon of Finality — a cocoon representing the true nature of Herrschers and Honkai — which allows her to halt the flow of Honkai from Imaginary Space into the physical universe, and utilize it as she pleases]]. This is eerily similar to how Aeons are stated to be once lesser lifeforms who, according to the parables of Aha's birth, climbed the highest branch of the Tree of Existence — [[spoiler:just like how Kiana reached the Cocoon of Finality by ascending to the highest realm of Imaginary Space, which is a branch of the Imaginary Tree representing TheMultiverse]]. |
| 25 | * CapsLock: In Version 2.1, the English translation fully capitalizes the Aeons' pronouns, to emphasize THEIR otherwordlyness and THEIR power. |
| 26 | * CosmicEntity: THEY are powerful enough to extend their influence across countless worlds, and the Paths THEY walked on could affect mortals across the entire known universe. |
| 27 | * EldritchAbomination: TranshumanAbomination kind. While THEY were not necessarily humans prior to their ascension, THEY are now vastly powerful {{Reality Warper}}s who each embody a philosophy which can be expressed within life itself. |
| 28 | * EnigmaticEmpoweringEntity: All of THEM are, to a certain extent: all characters directly or indirectly draw upon their paths as sources of power (even more so in the Simulated Universe thanks to their direct blessings) and at times, THEY tend to choose Emanators - direct representatives of their Paths that are essentially demigods. However, due to THEIR BlueAndOrangeMorality, what most Aeons actually ''want'' is often an enigma. |
| 29 | * GodsNeedPrayerBadly: Played with. Aeons do not seem to need prayer to exist, but the active following of their Paths can make those Paths stronger. This is especially important for Paths whose Aeons have died. For example, The Cancer of All Worlds made the Path of Trailblaze more necessary than ever, but with Akivili dead, the Nameless struggled. They managed to empower the Path of Trailblaze by spreading stories, recording experiences, and forming their efforts into new [[TouchedByVorlons blessings]]. Similarly, [[spoiler:Sunday almost becomes an Aeon due to a combination of the preexisting paths of Order and Harmony, empowered by the combined will of the Oak Family HiveMind]]. |
| 30 | * HaveYouSeenMyGod: In Luofu, Kafka shares how a number Aeons have disappeared, leaving behind masterless Paths. She namedrops Long the Permanence, Ena the Order, Idrila the Beauty, Tayzzyronth the Propagation, and Akivili the Trailblaze. She claims Ena and Tayzzyronth have died, while other sources claim Akivili and Idrila have also died. |
| 31 | * IAmTheNoun: Aeons are typically referred to as being ''the'' concept they represent; for example, Lan is not just the Aeon of the Hunt, THEY are often directly called "the Hunt." |
| 32 | * KillTheGod: According to Kafka, there are three ways Aeons can die which are known to humanity. She initially only shares two, however. |
| 33 | ** Aeons with similar Paths and philosophies of life would clash, and the wider Path will assimilate the smaller one. Kafka states this is how Ena the Order fell to Xipe the Harmony. |
| 34 | ** Aeons can wage wars on other Aeons to destroy the means by which an Aeon can express THEMSELF. This is how Tayzzyronth the Propagation fell. |
| 35 | * LegacyImmortality: In a way. A Path is a mark which an Aeon imprinted upon reality itself through THEIR ascension, and it persists even after the death of the Aeon. The only known way for a Path to completely disappear is if it is engulfed by a greater Path. |
| 36 | * MysteriousPast: The origins of many Aeons are unknown. Even for the Aeons with some known history, that history is vague. Lan, for example, is known to originate from the Xianzhou Alliance, but even the most popular story of THEIR rise is considered to be an unconfirmed myth, and no one knows who THEY were as a mortal. An illusionary Herta generated by the Matrix of Prescience claims that Aeons do not ''have'' a past, because their Path overwhelms it. |
| 37 | * MythicalMotifs: |
| 38 | ** Related to ''Videogame/GenshinImpact'''s usage of Archons, "Aeons" is also a concept in UsefulNotes/{{Gnosticism}}. |
| 39 | *** They are said to be "emanations of God" which aren't so much "beings" as they are "[[PowersThatBe concepts]]" that exist in a purely noumenal/ideal world. In ''Star Rail'', a few characters mention that Aeons don't exist in the physical plane normally, THEY "project" themselves into it in order to manifest. |
| 40 | *** Like how later "generations" of Aeons are emanations of "older" Aeons, in ''Star Rail'' some Aeons started as a follower of another Aeon's Path, notably Tayzzyronth creating the Path of Propagation after following Permanence, while [[spoiler:Sunday almost rises as a new Aeon by combining the powers of Order and Harmony before he's stopped]]. |
| 41 | *** "Nous" (meaning variously "thought", "intuition" or "mind eye") is also one of the Aeons in Gnosticism. |
| 42 | ** The game seems to borrow much from Creator/AleisterCrowley and his religion Thelema in conceptualizing the Aeons. |
| 43 | *** The term Aeon in Thelema refers to the division of the history of humanity based on their religious and spiritual expressions. The Aeon of Horus in particular, the time when humans will seek a state of self-realization via spiritual growth and finding one's individuality through recognizing one's "True Will" (calling, purpose in life), thus acquiring new set of ethics and ''philosophy'', perfectly describes the Aeons of ''Star Rail'' universe, many if not all of whom were once lesser/mortal beings before undergoing certain experiences to embody a philosophy of living before ascending and becoming Aeons. |
| 44 | *** Aeons are godlike beings who each have their own understanding of the universe in accordance to the philosophies by which THEY ascended with, who goes on to enact that understanding upon the universe and other life. This corresponds to the ascendant state Thelemite magicians will become once they cross "the Abyss" which lies between the physical world and the higher realm from which all phenomenons originate. In fact, according to ''VideoGame/HonkaiImpact3rd'', [[spoiler:Thelemic understanding of the Abyss exists in the form of Honkai, which according to Kevin and Elysia, exists supposedly to assist mortal lifeforms of the universe to become greater beings through physical and spiritual adaptation]]. |
| 45 | *** The process by which mortals become Emanators (individuals blessed by Aeons to act on THEIR behalf) involve individuals walking down the Path of an Aeon, which sometimes may also begin with the person being greeted by a previous Emanator. This parallels how Thelemites are expected to communicate with their personal Holy Guardian Angels in their effort to find the True Will, who themselves could be previously humans as well. |
| 46 | *** The two known ways Aeons can die correspond with two out of three Aeons dividing humanity's history: Aeon of Isis (when humans revere nature itself through pagan worship) and Aeon of Osiris (when humans revere the idea of God of death and rebirth through monotheist religions). The Aeon of Isis ended when smaller beliefs are ''assimilated'' by greater schools of thought and religions, and the Aeon of Osiris ended when monotheist religions became divided into countless sects and ''went to war'' over ideology and values. |
| 47 | * NotQuiteDead: Some people believe that Aeons cannot truly die, such as how the Xianzhou believe that Tayzzyronth the Propagation might still be alive and will eventually regenerate, and the Penacony Trailblaze Mission implies that [[spoiler:Ena the Order still exists in some form despite having been absorbed by Xipe the Harmony.]] |
| 48 | * OddJobGods: Justified. Aeons are not really gods in the traditional sense, THEY are [[AbstractApotheosis living embodiments of philosophies of life]]. As such, each of THEM is technically doing the same thing — expressing and imprinting THEIR philosophies of how life should shape itself into the universe, and that expression differs greatly from Aeon to Aeon. Compare Nanook the Destruction who believes in the systematic destruction of everything with Aha the Elation who concludes the entire purpose of existence is to have something to laugh at. |
| 49 | * OurGodsAreDifferent: Compared to ''Videogame/GenshinImpact'' which uses Gnostic and fantastic image of gods (i.e as "powerful people - with all their flaws - in charge of regions"), ''Star Rail'''s Aeons follow the idea of "gods" as science fiction typically view them: supernatural beings beyond mortal comprehension whom mortals deify as a symbol, without said beings necessarily aware of them and their activities. |
| 50 | * PatronGod: Most Aeons have "factions" that follow each Aeon's Paths. Some of the Aeons have closer relationship with their factions (i.e Nanook and Antimatter Legion, Lan and Xianzhou Alliance), while some others are possibly unaware that THEY had followers. |
| 51 | * PhysicalGod: Hits nearly every point of the trope. THEY are powerful enough to the point [[RealityWarper reality itself bends]] around them, and THEIR Paths are marks left on reality itself which can influence all life across the universe. Naturally, THEY are deified and worshipped by many, particularly those who walk down THEIR Paths, and each known Aeon has at least one faction serving as THEIR followers. Though it's played with in that, most of the time, THEY aren't "physical", as THEY normally exist in the "Path Space" and only appear in the physical plane by projecting THEMSELVES into them. |
| 52 | * ReligionIsMagic: THEIR Paths act as a source of power, giving Pathstriders and Emanators their abilities and making various forms of {{Magitek}} possible. |
| 53 | * ReligiousAndMythologicalThemeNaming: Played with. Some of THEM have names taken from several different RealLife myths, such as Nanook (Inuit), Xipe (Aztec), Fuli (Taoism) and Qlipoth (Judaism), while some others have original names. |
| 54 | * SemiDivine: Emanators are those who have been entrusted with a degree of authority over a Path by that Path's Aeon. They are much stronger than normal Pathstriders. Some Aeons see their Emanators as extensions of THEMSELVES and give them a lot of power over their path, some do not anoint any Emanators at all. |
| 55 | * SpiritWorld: The Aeons appear to reside in a place called Path Space. The Trailblazer has occasionally been seen to mentally travel to it at important moments, especially when they manage to attract an Aeon's attention |
| 56 | * TimeAbyss: Most if not all of the known Aeons are old enough to be this trope. For instance, the Xianzhou Alliance became followers of the Hunt about 8,000 years prior to present time, meaning Lan and Yaoshi have been around at least before then. |
| 57 | * TouchedByVorlons: Pathstriders are people who have received power by following the Paths. If they manage to earn enough of an Aeon's interest for the Aeon to glance at them, whether out of approval or pity, they receive a blessing. |
| 58 | * VagueAge: All of the Aeons have unclear ages. Lan, for example, is implied to be around 30,000 years old when THEY became an Aeon, but when that happened is unclear in relation to present time. More details regarding their ages are in their respective folders. |
| 59 | * WowingCthulhu: Pathstriders can earn blessings by following the Paths, but the most prestigious way is to impress an Aeon enough for THEM to give the Pathstrider [[TouchedByVorlons a glance]]. |
| 60 | * YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm: Even Akivili, the Aeon closest to mortals, cannot be perfectly recorded by conventional technology. When the Trailblazer witnesses a recording of THEM, the Trailblazer can perceive what Akivili said, but does not hear THEIR voice. |
| 61 | [[/folder]] |
| 62 | |
| 63 | [[folder:Akivili]] |
| 64 | !!Akivili, The Trailblaze |
| 65 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/web_capture_10_5_2023_14501_progameguidescom.jpeg]] |
| 66 | [[caption-width-right:350:Cloudstrider]] |
| 67 | ->''"Akivili, Depart once more, Akivili!"'' |
| 68 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 69 | |
| 70 | The Aeon of the Trailblaze, who created the Astral Express. In the distant past, Akivili desired to see the galaxy and the wonders it holds, leading to the creation of a system of galactic pathways called the Star Rails that span the entire cosmos. With THEIR faithful ride, the Astral Express, Akivili sailed the galaxy alongside those who sought wonder and adventure as THEY did; those who followed in THEIR footsteps became Pathstriders of the Trailblaze referred to as the "Nameless". However, under mysterious circumstances, Akivili perished and was never seen again, leaving the Astral Express and THEIR Pathstriders masterless. |
| 71 | ---- |
| 72 | * DeadPersonImpersonation: Within Herta's Simulated Universe, the Trailblazer is coded such that they appear to be Akivili to the inhabitants of the simulation, particularly to other Aeons. This doesn’t work on [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou Aha]] though. |
| 73 | * DeathByOriginStory: Akivili is dead before the story even begins, but without the Aeon and the Astral Express THEY presided over, the many worlds across the galaxy would not even be aware of each other, much less interact. Akivili is almost definitely responsible for much of the current status quo of the known universe. |
| 74 | * HumbleHero: In contrast to many Aeons, Akivili was described as an Aeon willing to walk alongside THEIR followers, instead of maintaining a solemn distance. |
| 75 | * HumanAliens: According to various descriptions, Akivili preferred the appearance of a human mortal to walk the path of the Nameless and enjoyed life like a mortal. |
| 76 | * {{Manchild}}: The Trailblazer purchases a memory bubble left behind by Akivili. While not entirely reliable due to being damaged and modified, it depicts Akivili as a troublemaker constantly causing problems due to THEIR childish recklessness and needing to be told off by Pom-Pom. Pom-Pom proceeded to punish THEM with cleaning duty. Akivili's antics include: |
| 77 | ** Riding snowmobiles into the Taikiyan Stadium in the middle of a match, forcing the match to be suspended and obligating some of Akivili's followers to do volunteer work repairing the damage. |
| 78 | ** Splurging a huge chunk of THEIR budget buying 250 nosewalker cubs as pets, keeping them in the bathroom, and allowing them to breed out of control, filling the other carriages with sewage. |
| 79 | ** Eating the last serving of the Express Special. However, Akivili denied disinfecting the kitchen and losing 42 Pom-Pom pies, saying that much was clearly on Pom-Pom. |
| 80 | ** Deleting entries from the Express data bank. |
| 81 | ** Watering plants with some beverage (allegedly [=SoulGlad=], but Dr. Edward admits that part was edited for advertising purposes). |
| 82 | ** [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Breaking into Pom-Pom's exclusive snack vault.]] |
| 83 | * MyGodWhatHaveIDone: According to a damaged memory bubble, after Akivili was told off by Pom-Pom for all the trouble THEY caused, Akivili described THEMSELF as the worst Nameless ever, though Pom-Pom reassured THEM that that title belonged to the person who once blew up the train (actually a disguised Aha). |
| 84 | * OneManIndustrialRevolution: Akilivi is credited for setting up the Star Rail network, not only making interstellar FasterThanLightTravel possible, but connecting previously-isolated planets and their denizens together throughout their travels. The impact Akilivi had on the entire galaxy just for wanting to explore its wonders had transformed it into the interstellar hub it is known for in present day. |
| 85 | * PatronGod: Akivili existed as a patron of all travelers, but was most importantly the deity of the Nameless, those who rode the Astral Express across the stars with THEM. |
| 86 | * PosthumousCharacter: Due to an unknown accident during THEIR travels, Akivili is long since dead. The Astral Express itself was abandoned and left to rot before Himeko found and repaired it. Solving the mystery of the circumstances leading up to Akivili's death is part of Himeko's motivation to assist the Astral Express in finding its way home. |
| 87 | [[/folder]] |
| 88 | |
| 89 | [[folder:Nanook]] |
| 90 | !!Nanook, The Destruction |
| 91 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nanook_2.png]] |
| 92 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Monarch of Extinction]] |
| 93 | |
| 94 | ->''"Yet that light began to burn, piercing through the clouds as a golden death. Towers crumbled and people fled, for the sun was soon to set and meet with vicious destruction."'' |
| 95 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 96 | \ |
| 97 | |
| 98 | The Aeon of Destruction, known to take the form of a humanoid man with dark skin and golden eyes. Pathstriders who walk Nanook's Path admire recklessness, anger, and destructive behaviour. |
| 99 | |
| 100 | Nanook leads the Antimatter Legion, who THEY bless directly to spread destruction across the worlds. The Annihilation Gang also professes faith in Nanook and destroys in THEIR name, but Nanook looks at them with disdain at best for their "impure" reasons to destroy. |
| 101 | |
| 102 | In Simulated Universe, Nanook's Blessings of Destruction - befitting the path's theme of "destructive recklessness" - is all about granting your characters boons in a "risk and reward" fashion. |
| 103 | ---- |
| 104 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Destruction, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 105 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by getting 3 Preservation or 3 Elation blessings: the former lets Path Resonance grant your characters a shield if their HP is below half, while the latter allows follow-up attacks to regenerate Path Resonance's energy, and more if the character's HP is below half. |
| 106 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Hunt or 3 Abundance blessings: the former will make Path Resonance reduce all enemies' HPToOne if their HP was around 20% or lower, and the latter will make characters gain "healing over time" based on the HP they've lost by either ally's action or Path Resonance's effect. |
| 107 | * AlienBlood: Bleeds bright yellow from THEIR wounds all over their body. |
| 108 | * AmbiguouslyEvil: Antimatter Legion is a galactic threat who is routinely wiping out whole civilizations and destroying entire worlds, and various factions freely describe them as evil in contrast to many other Aeon followers. However, there are a number of clues suggesting this isn't all that it seems: |
| 109 | ** The fact Nanook [[spoiler:directly glances at and empowers the Trailblazer to fight against a Doomsday Beast of the Antimatter Legion]] implies there is greater purpose in the Path which Nanook sees through. |
| 110 | ** The 1st dev log entry about Nanook questions why does the Path of Destruction exist in the first place, and why it isn't part of Finality. The log then states mortal conclusions of the Paths of Aeons are not yet at a high enough level to comprehend the specifics which distinguish a Path from another, and that the true meaning of a Path might be impossible to completely express with just a word. |
| 111 | ** Another scientist compares Nanook's existence with that of entropy itself, stating destruction is not merely inevitable, but also ''necessary'' for the universe, which might shed light on Nanook and the Antimatter Legion's true intentions: complete and thorough destruction of the universe, so a new form and meaning to existence can come anew. |
| 112 | -->"Expansion, fusion, and then annihilation. If we wish to welcome the new, then we must first embrace the end." |
| 113 | -->-From a scientist just before pressing the button for nuclear detonation, 2152 AE |
| 114 | * BarbarianLongHair: Has [[BraidsOfBarbarism three barbaric-looking braids]] reaching past THEIR waist. |
| 115 | * CriticalStatusBuff: In the Simulated Universe, Blessings and the Path Resonance of Destruction are more effective the lower your units' HP are. |
| 116 | * DarkIsEvil: The Antimatter Legion is of the few factions in the game which various descriptions and entries outright call "evil", and Nanook is both its leader and PatronGod. What few clothing the Aeon wears also include a black waistcloth and several strips of black cloth on THEIR forearms. |
| 117 | * DarkIsNotEvil: Despite the above, as an Aeon Nanook operates on BlueAndOrangeMorality, and as AmbiguouslyEvil entry above has described, Nanook cannot be clearly defined as "evil" even if THEY are the GreaterScopeVillain of the cosmos. |
| 118 | * DesperationAttack: In Simulated Universe, the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Destruction]] can let you trigger an explosion that deals damage to all enemies [[SituationalDamageAttack depending on how much HP your characters have lost]]. Its Resonance Formation blessings can add extra effects to this ability: allowing it to automatically activate [[CounterAttack when your characters under 35% HP gets attacked]] without consuming its energy (limited to 2 times per battle), allowing it to [[CastFromHitPoints consume your characters' HP up until 40% left]] before use, increase its damage, and then give them a shield equal to the HP lost by this ability, and allowing it to inflict a debuff that [[DamageIncreasingDebuff decreases enemies' DEF by 20%]] and deal DamageOverTime based on some percentage of the sum of your characters' lost HP. |
| 119 | * DestroyerDeity: THEY are often just referred as 'the Destruction', and the Aeon embodies the philosophy of destruction as the way of life and the universe itself. |
| 120 | * TheDreaded: Just as much as the Antimatter Legion serving it. |
| 121 | * EarthShatteringKaboom: It's believed Nanook was born when THEIR home world Adlivun fell, and it has now been "destroyed". |
| 122 | * EvenEvilHasStandards: Nanook has utter contempt for the Annihilation Gang, who can "never escape the enslavement of their own selfish desires." In fact, it isn't an exaggeration to say the Gang consists of Antimatter Legion ''rejects''. As members of the Gang are described to pursue destruction for their own desires, be it for slaughter, vengeance, or madness, it is ''very'' telling Nanook finds these motivations as impure and unfit for the Path's idea of Destruction. |
| 123 | * EvilerThanThou: The fact the EnemyMine situation of multiple Aeons waging war to destroy Tayzzyronth the Propagation is not being repeated with Nanook the Destruction despite the latter's OmnicidalManiac goals suggest this, but could go either way. Either Tayzzyronth is such a greater threat compared to Nanook that the current Aeons don't see Nanook as worth banding over, ''or'' Nanook and the Antimatter Legion are so unstoppable the other Aeons don't see banding together as a feasible course of action to stop Destruction. |
| 124 | * ForegoneConclusion: Multiple entities and factions believe Nanook and the Antimatter Legion destroying the universe isn't up to chance, but an inevitability. |
| 125 | ** Elio of the Stellaron Hunters claims he can see the future, and in most possible iterations, destiny simply ''ends'' in a great battle of Aeonic proportions involving Nanook. |
| 126 | ** Fuli the Remembrance and the Garden of Recollection are preparing the blueprints of a new universe by gathering all memories which exist, which suggests they believe Nanook's victory and destruction of the universe is inevitable. |
| 127 | ** [=HooH=] the Equilibrium is said to be waiting for the time "Nothingness" will equal "Existence", as the Aeon considers the creation of the universe itself to be an imbalance. |
| 128 | * FinalBoss: [[spoiler:At least according to Kafka. If what Elio prophesized is true, then the Trailblazer will always have to confront Nanook at the end of their journey, whether they want to or not. While it is the fate of all existence to eventually meet Nanook at the end of their destiny, the Trailblazer is implied to be the one person Elio believed could pave a future beyond that.]] |
| 129 | * FloatingLimbs: As THEIR forearms are severed from their biceps, THEY have no elbows. |
| 130 | * GatheringSteam: |
| 131 | ** In Simulated Universe, 2 of the 3-star Destruction blessings grant your characters stacks of "Fighting Spirit" buff (increases ATK and DEF), maxing at 35, with different conditions: one of them grants your characters 4 stacks of Fighting Spirit[[note]]Enhanced: adjacent characters also get 1 stack[[/note]] each time they [[PainAndGain take a hit]] or [[CastFromHitPoints consume their HP]] and then lose 4 stacks after their turn ends, and the other grants your characters 16 stacks if [[CriticalStatusBuff their HP is below 50%]]. 3 of the 2-star Destruction blessings are tied to this mechanic: the first will make characters with the buff consume 10% HP every time they attack and deal additional damage based on some percentage of HP lost by this effect, the second grants DamageReduction for each stack[[note]]Enhanced: the max amount of stacks is raised to 45[[/note]], and the third one allows your characters to [[CounterAttack immediately deal damage on enemies that just attacked them]], with more stacks raising its damage. |
| 132 | ** In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, taking on the Path of Destruction allows your characters to gain a stacking DMG buff for every battle won. The path's effect will also generate 2 extra Elite domains on the map, and you can also get extra blessing if you beat an Elite domain. The Dice of Destruction's effects will also incentivize you in various ways to get into combat domains. In essence, this path's effects encourage you to leave destruction on your wake to get stronger. |
| 133 | * GreaterScopeVillain: For at least two different antagonistic forces. |
| 134 | ** The Aeon directly blesses the Antimatter Legion, who roam the universe to destroy pretty much every world they come across. As such, Nanook is this for everything the Legion is involved with. |
| 135 | ** The Annihilation Gang doesn't receive approval ([[EvenEvilHasStandards just the opposite actually]]), but they are still causing mayhem in their efforts to revere the Aeon, making Nanook one for them as well. |
| 136 | ** The Astral Express crew also speculate the Aeon is the one sending out Stellarons to various planets, mainly due to the awfully convenient timing of a Stellaron's arrival and the Antimatter Legion invasion of Jarilo-VI. If this is true, then Nanook would be this trope for the story as a whole. |
| 137 | * HumanoidAbomination: Among the Aeons, Nanook appears the closest to a normal human, save for the missing legs and [[FloatingLimbs segmented arms]]. |
| 138 | * LightIsNotGood: Nanook bleeds glowing bright yellow AlienBlood and is heavily associated with [[SacredFlames fire]], but is the AnthropomorphicPersonification of destruction and seeks to bring the end of the universe. |
| 139 | * MrFanservice: Appears as a muscular {{Hunk}} who is only clothed at the waist. |
| 140 | * MysticalWhiteHair: Has long white hair, as befitting THEIR status as Aeon. |
| 141 | * MythicalMotifs: |
| 142 | ** Is named after the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanook Inuit god of polar bears, hunting and weapons]]. |
| 143 | ** Adlivun, the homeworld of Nanook when THEY were once a mortal, is named after the Inuit afterlife. |
| 144 | * OmnicidalManiac: The Aeon desires nothing less than systematic and thorough destruction of the universe, and has the Antimatter Legion carry it out on a world-per-world basis. However, THEY downplay this in that "mania" most definitely isn't part of the Path of Destruction, given the Annihilation Gang was rejected by the Aeon for that very reason. |
| 145 | * OrderVersusChaos: ''Both'' sides of the spectrum. Other people tend to describe the Antimatter Legion as harbingers of "chaos" and destruction. However, Nanook and the Legion disassociate themselves from the inherent desires of people who use the Path of Destruction for their own pleasures, calling it "chaotic desires" which have no place in the will of Destruction; a mindset leaning to "order". |
| 146 | * PatronGod: For the Antimatter Legion. The Annihilation Gang also claims Nanook as this, but the Aeon is so contemptuous toward them to the point it is believed "The value Nanook sees in the Annihilation Gang may be less than the value an infant sees when they smash a vase." |
| 147 | * RefugeInAudacity: Nanook admires recklessness, to the point [[spoiler:the sheer audacity of the Trailblazer putting themselves in front of the Doomsday Beast, a planet-destroying monster of the Antimatter Legion, impresses Nanook enough for THEM to throw a glance at the Trailblazer and empower them enough to effortlessly dissipate said Beast's attack while simultaneously shoving it into Welt's Black Hole using the Stellaron within themselves]]. |
| 148 | * SignificantWhiteHairDarkSkin: Among the humanoid Aeons, THEY are the only one to appear as such. |
| 149 | * StrawNihilist: Played with. |
| 150 | ** Descriptions about Antimatter Legion tend to paint them as destroying things without any inherent reason or purpose, to the point it is described they sneer when worlds in their dying moments ask them "why?" and one of their emissaries reportedly asked, "For what purpose do you live?" and "why are you alive?" as rhetorical questions. |
| 151 | ** However, the Legion themselves believe the creation of the universe was a mistake [[note]]meaning, there is a ''right'' way for existence, which contradicts nihilism by definition and may be the reason why the Path of Destruction is separate from the Path of Nihility[[/note]], and that civilization is a growth of cancer birthed from its vast stellar. Because "war is the only common language known to all intelligent lifeforms", the Legion wage war; and "to correct the course and to rid the universe of the stain, Nanook must become the avatar of entropy." Put another way, Nanook sees the current course of the universe must be corrected due to THEIR philosophy, and THEY are trying to solve it via thorough, systematic destruction. |
| 152 | * SupernaturalGoldEyes: Has these as befitting THEIR status as an Aeon. |
| 153 | * VagueAge: Downplayed when compared to other Aeons. Nanook is definitively younger than Akivili, Tayzzyronth and the Aeons which were involved in the war which led to the latter's death, because by the time Akivili visited Adlivun, the world was plagued by remnants of the Swarm of Imperator Insectorum (a name or title for Tayzzyronth), before the world was destroyed and Nanook was born some unspecified time later. |
| 154 | * WalkingShirtlessScene: The entirety of THEIR upper body is exposed. |
| 155 | * WarGod: The Aeon is associated with war, so much so to the point the Legion state war is the only language across all civilizations; meaning it is the only method of communication which holds any meaning to the Legion, and by extension, to Nanook. |
| 156 | * WoundThatWillNotHeal: Has large, gaping wounds all over THEIR body, with an especially large one which cuts diagonally down from THEIR right shoulder to below THEIR left armpit on THEIR chest that bleeds yellow glowing AlienBlood. |
| 157 | [[/folder]] |
| 158 | |
| 159 | [[folder:Lan]] |
| 160 | !!Lan, The Hunt |
| 161 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lan_7.png]] |
| 162 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Reignbow Arbiter]] |
| 163 | |
| 164 | ->''"The Lux Arrow will descend to purge the wicked abominations. You must follow the traces left behind in the storm's wake."'' |
| 165 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 166 | \ |
| 167 | |
| 168 | The Aeon of the Hunt. Pathstriders who walk Lan's Path admire determination, ruthlessness, and tenacious behaviour. |
| 169 | |
| 170 | Lan is the patron god of the Xianzhou Alliance, who follow THEM in their quest to destroy Yaoshi the Abundance and THEIR followers wherever THEY find them. The other faction affiliated with Lan is the Galaxy Rangers, who believe in Lan's ideals of using violence against violence and have vowed to hunt down injustice and evil all across the galaxy. |
| 171 | |
| 172 | In Simulated Universe, the Blessings of the Hunt are all about frequency of actions and rapid, sustained offensive, allowing your characters to act a lot more times before the enemies could. |
| 173 | ---- |
| 174 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: The Hunt, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 175 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by collecting 3 Abundance or 3 Elation blessings: the former will have the Path Resonance heal your characters if the arrows manage to kill at least 1 enemy, the latter will increase your characters' and their summons' Speed for a few turns upon unleashing Path Resonance. |
| 176 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Preservation or 3 Propagation blessings: the former will make Path Resonance extend your characters' existing shield buff by a few turns, the latter will buff Path Resonance's damage [[SituationalDamageAttack depending on how many skill points you recovered beforehand]]. |
| 177 | * ArchEnemy: Is this to Yaoshi the Abundance. Lan apparently makes it a point to pursue Yaoshi across the universe, a mindset shared with some followers of the Hunt such as the Xianzhou Alliance. Other Hunt followers, like the Galaxy Rangers, do not share this mindset. |
| 178 | * {{Cernunnos}}: THEY are a God of Hunting who is typically symbolized by deers with emphasis on the antlers. |
| 179 | * CoolHelmet: Wears a helmet with horns that jut forward. |
| 180 | * DeityOfHumanOrigin: There are many Xianzhou legends that claim Lan was once a legendary Xianzhou hero who [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascended to Aeonhood]] during the Alliance's greatest hour of need. However, these legends aren't taken seriously since historians are certain Lan's existence pre-dates the Xianzhou Alliance. |
| 181 | * DestructiveSaviour: Lan does not appear to care much about collateral damage. Lan's Simulated Universe entry makes note of an incident where Lan caused an entire planet to implode upon itself because one of Yaoshi's monster-creating "blessings" was rampaging across the planet unchecked and the IPC couldn't contain the problem. [[spoiler:Dan Shu]]'s diary recounts the time where the Xianzhou Alliance won a war when the Reignbow Arbiter shot an arrow into the physical plane, annihilating not just the enemy forces but a nonzero amount of the Xianzhou's personnel, including a field hospital. |
| 182 | * {{Determinator}}: The Path of Hunt encourages this, particularly in the form of single minded pursuit toward a goal or an objective. The simulated universe version of Lan the Hunt chooses to ignore the Trailblazer (which should have registered as Akivili), simply because Akivili has nothing to do with Lan and THEIR current hunt. |
| 183 | * TheFaceless: THEIR CoolHelmet hides their entire face. |
| 184 | * GatheringSteam: |
| 185 | ** In Simulated Universe, 2 of the 3-star Blessings of the Hunt grant your characters up to 8 "Critical Boost" stacks, each increases Crit Rate and Damage by 6% and 12% respectively; one of the blessings grants 1 more stack each turn[[note]]Enhanced: increases max stack to 12[[/note]], while the other one grants 4 stacks (and [[ExtraTurn advances their next action immediately]]) upon [[ChainLethalityEnabler killing an enemy]]. The way Critical Boost works is that the buff is passed onto the the character of the next turn, and if they take a hit (from an enemy's turn), [[BreakablePowerUp they'll lose the buff]], so it'll encourage you to gather other Hunt blessings that speeds up your characters' turns to make the most out of this buff. 3 of the 2-star Hunt blessings are tied to this mechanic: Allowing the characters' Ultimate (Enhanced: and follow-up attacks) to inherit Critical Boost and increase its stacks by 1 upon activation[[note]]otherwise, as they are OutOfTurnInteraction, Ultimates and follow-up attacks normally cannot be boosted with Critical Boost unless they're activated right on/after their normal turn[[/note]], [[RegeneratingHealth healing your active characters per turn]] [[note]]Enhanced: or after they use their Ultimate[[/note]] depending on the number of stacks, and further increasing the characters' Crit DMG (up to 150% extra) if their Crit Rate is over 100% if they currently have the buff. |
| 186 | ** In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, taking on the path of the Hunt will grant your characters increased Crit DMG the more Trotters you hunt and successfully captured. Domains with Trotters inside will be marked on the map, and they can "move" to adjacent domains each turn, but the Dice of the Hunt gives you ways to get into Trotter-marked domains more easily. Of course, like in regular Simulated Universe, the Trotters will grant you bonus Blessings if you can defeat them on time - this path, essentially, gives you a quick way to gather Blessings and get stronger by hunting Trotters. |
| 187 | * GravityMaster: Lan is said to use "gravity as THEIR bowstring and stars as THEIR arrows". |
| 188 | * IHaveManyNames: THEY are called the "Reignbow Arbiter" or "Archer Lord of Fate" by THEIR followers, while followers of Yaoshi call THEM "Devilish Archer Author". |
| 189 | * LightIsGood: Lan is heavily associated with light, and in the Xianzhou Alliance's eyes THEY help to maintain order and prevent them from repeating the mistakes that almost led to the end of their civilisation. |
| 190 | * TheMarvelousDeer: THEIR symbol features a deer's head. |
| 191 | * MurderIsTheBestSolution: Lan may be the Xianzhou's patron Aeon, but do not mistake THEM for a guardian deity. Lan lives almost exclusively to smite THEIR targets from existence, and will not stop for anything. If Lan considers something a problem, THEY will solve it by destroying it with extreme prejudice. Other concerns, like collateral damage against even THEIR own followers, are of comparatively little concern; Yukong bitterly remembers a battle in which Lan's arrows wiped out the enemy only after the Xianzhou had already sacrificed countless lives to hold the line, wondering aloud what mortal struggles are to an Aeon who can make problems go away with the snap of a finger. |
| 192 | * NotSoDifferentRemark: In one of Herta's Simulated Universe entries, she makes such a comment about Lan and Yaoshi regarding THEIR DestructiveSaviour tendencies: |
| 193 | --> ''This is the action and creed of The Hunt, for whom salvation and destruction are nigh indistinguishable. THEIR perpetual enemy, the Abundance, is the same, for THEY bring healing and torment hand-in-hand...'' |
| 194 | * OurCentaursAreDifferent: Appears as a masked and armored centaur with wheels where THEIR hind legs should be. |
| 195 | * PatronGod: For the Xianzhou Alliance and Galaxy Rangers, though moreso the former. |
| 196 | * RainOfArrows: In Simulated Universe, the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: The Hunt]] allows you to summon a whole rain of arrows from the heavens, dealing damage to all enemies based on the ATK of your character with the highest ATK. Its Resonance Formation buffs add extra effects to this ability: doubling its maximum energy capacity and [[RegeneratingMana regenerating it whenever your characters take their turn]], guaranteeing it to deal CriticalHit against enemies with lower than 50% HP and regenerating 50% of its energy for each enemy it defeats, and [[CooldownManipulation advancing the turn of your character with the highest ATK]] and giving them a special buff (increasing their Crit DMG based on their Crit Rate and allowing them to get an ExtraTurn if their next move defeats an enemy). |
| 197 | * {{Revenge}}: The Path of Hunt encourages ruthlessness, and revenge is a suitable mindset to encourage such quality. Notably, the Xianzhou Alliance pursue Yaoshi and Denizens of Abundance partially because the blessing of immortality from Yaoshi had done much wrong to their people. [[spoiler:After defeating Phantyllia, Jing Yuan declares that Lan will now hunt down Nanook as revenge for what THEIR Lord Ravager had done to the Luofu.]] |
| 198 | * SacredBowAndArrows: As Aeon of the Hunt, Lan is heavily associated with bow and arrows to shoot at THEIR adversaries, primarily Yaoshi. |
| 199 | * SuperPersistentPredator: Lan and the Xianzhou Alliance go to extreme lengths to hunt down Yaoshi and THEIR followers, and they will not stop until their adversaries are [[FinalSolution exterminated]]. No matter where Yaoshi hides, Lan will find THEM. Lampshaded by Welt who calls the Path "narrow"; as Paths themselves restrict the respective Aeons into a particular way of thinking, "the Hunt" as a concept symbolizes singular, unchanging obsession or focus, hence making it a narrow path enforced by persistence. This is also why playable characters of the Hunt excels in powerful single-target damage and high speed. |
| 200 | * SuperSpeed: THEIR blessings in the Simulated Universe have a strong focus on allowing your characters to attack ahead of the enemy, even multiple times. |
| 201 | [[/folder]] |
| 202 | |
| 203 | [[folder:Nous]] |
| 204 | !!Nous, The Erudition |
| 205 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nous_4.png]] |
| 206 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Monarch of Myriad Machines]] |
| 207 | |
| 208 | ->''"The celestial one guards their secrets, plotting out the roots that connect all things. But they are silent, like a shroud of mist at the center of the universe. Listen to the silence and you will know where the stars are resting."'' |
| 209 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 210 | \ |
| 211 | |
| 212 | The Aeon of Erudition. A mechanical god determined to unearth the secrets and logic of the cosmos. Pathstriders who walk on Nous' Path admire thinking, logic, and strategic behaviour. |
| 213 | |
| 214 | The factions affiliated with THEM are the Genius Society, whose members are picked by Nous themselves, and Intelligentsia Guild, who believe that knowledge should be freely flowing like currency and are more open to all beings who seek to learn. |
| 215 | |
| 216 | In Simulated Universe, THEIR Blessings of Erudition are introduced in 1.6 alongside the new expansion "Gold and Gears". Said blessings grant you boons related to Ultimate and AOE attacks. |
| 217 | ---- |
| 218 | |
| 219 | * AbilityMixing: In "Gold and Gears", the Path Resonance: Erudition can gain its Resonance Interplay buffs by gathering 3 Elation or 3 Nihility blessings: they make your follow-up attacks (the former) or any attack on Weakness Broken enemy (the latter) not consume the trigger count of Synapse Resonance. The former will also make follow-up attacks trigger said effect an extra time on each enemy hit. |
| 220 | * BlueAndOrangeMorality: While this trope applies to all Aeons in general, particular mention goes to Nous because THEY decide who joins the Genius Society based on raw genius potential alone regardless of the morality of the individuals in question. Because of this, the members of the Genius Society can vary wildly on the morality spectrum, ranging from genuinely good people like Aiden and Screwllum, to heinous psychopaths like Rubert and Dr. Primitive (the former tried to kill all organic life in the galaxy while the latter is a wanted MadScientist on the run from authorities). |
| 221 | * CyberCyclops: Is shown to have only one [[RedEyesTakeWarning red]] [[GlowingMechanicalEyes glowing mechanical eye]]. |
| 222 | * DeityOfMortalCreation: Interacting with the portrait of Zandar One Kuwabara (the 1st member of Genius Society) in the Herta Space Station at the prologue has Kafka mention to Silver Wolf about how Nous was supposedly created by him. |
| 223 | * DeusEstMachina: Nous is a supercomputer that became an Aeon. |
| 224 | * DubNameChange: In Chinese, Nous' name is more technical in nature as 博识尊(Bóshìzūn), or "Knowledge Lord". |
| 225 | * GodInHumanForm: According to Fu Xuan's character story, when she was younger, she entered a "library" and asked a question to an old blind man inside, about whether fate is truly set in stone or it can still be changed by more precise prediction and correct actions. He told her that he cannot answer it, and can only present her a problem and a way to perceive it. She responded by asking him to grant her the "[[ThirdEye eye]]"; he agreed, but also warned her that to accept said eye means to endure endless "torture". She then realized that it is the Wisdomwalker's creed. This, combined with how the "Erudition Keys" trace-leveling material talked about "key to open a library" and how Nous can't give answers, only questions, all imply that the old man was none other than Nous THEMSELF. |
| 226 | * GodOfKnowledge: As the Aeon of Erudition, Nous was originally a computer designed to provide answers that ascended to godhood. THEY seek to calculate the essence of the universe and select the most intelligent beings in the universe to be part of the Genius Society. Those who walk the Path of Erudition admire thinking, logic, and strategic behavior. |
| 227 | * MeaningfulName: 'Nous' is a concept from classical mythology roughly equivalent to intellect or thought. |
| 228 | * PatronGod: Of Genius Society and Intelligentsia Guild. |
| 229 | * PrescienceByAnalysis: According to Simulated Universe: Gold and Gears, Nous can perform a myriad amount of calculations to predict future events; back in the era of Emperor Rubert, Nous could predict at least 3 events coming true: the infighting between 2 departments within the IPC that triggered the Borderstar Trade War, Rubert starting the Mechanical War, and Polka Kakamond slaying Rubert. |
| 230 | * SpamAttack: In Simulated Universe, 2 of the 3-star Blessings of Erudition allows your characters to charge "Brain in a Vat" in various ways: whether by entering battle and Weakness Breaking enemies[[note]]Enhanced: and when attacking Weakness Broken enemies[[/note]], or by dealing lethal damage to them[[note]]Enhanced: when fully charged, the character's Speed will be buffed[[/note]]. When its value reaches 100%, the next time the character in question uses Ultimate, their Energy will be refilled to full again, allowing you to use another Ultimate in quick succession at the cost of draining Brain in a Vat's value. 3 of the 2-star Erudition blessings are tied to this mechanic: allowing your characters to charge Brain in a Vat whenever they gain energy beyond 100%, increasing the Crit DMG of the ultimate performed by spending the charge[[note]]enhanced: the Crit DMG buff can last until the end of their next attack[[/note]], and granting a shield to the character who use Ultimate by spending the charge. |
| 231 | * TheSpock: The Path of Erudition appears to encourage a mindset built around logic and reasoning. Notably, Nous extends THEIR blessings to both Genius Society and Intelligentsia Guild, which are often at conflict regarding how knowledge should be pursued and spread (the former only seeks knowledge relevant and to be hoarded for geniuses, while the latter appreciates all forms of knowledge and spreads it to all), suggesting Nous does not really care how things are carried out as long as knowledge continues to be accumulated. |
| 232 | * {{Synchronization}}: In Simulated Universe, the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Erudition]] deals big damage on all enemies and inflicts "Synapse Resonance" debuff on all of them. While the debuff is active, every attack (up to 15 attacks on each enemy with this debuff) will make both the affected enemy and another enemy with the highest HP take additional damage (counts as Ultimate damage) based on a percentage of the attacker's ATK. Its Resonance Formation buffs add more effects to this: making the marked enemy with highest HP take extra damage when they're attacked by an Ultimate, triggering the additional damage effect twice more whenever a marked enemy is defeated, and [[RegeneratingMana regenerating its energy]] based on a percentage of your characters' combined max energy whenever an enemy appears (whether at the start of battle or when they're summoned by another enemy). |
| 233 | [[/folder]] |
| 234 | |
| 235 | [[folder:Xipe]] |
| 236 | !!Xipe, The Harmony |
| 237 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_9501_2.png]] |
| 238 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Mother of All Stars]] |
| 239 | |
| 240 | ->''"Then, they say, O you who have reached the end, enter into the paradise that envelops all! Join this great choir and feast, listen to the beating of billions upon billions of hearts, holding you in their embrace..."'' |
| 241 | -->'''-- Black Swan?'''\ |
| 242 | \ |
| 243 | |
| 244 | The Aeon of Harmony. An all-encompassing deity welcoming the entirety of the universe into their loving embrace. Pathstriders who walk Xipe's Path admire understanding, support, and cooperative behaviour. |
| 245 | |
| 246 | As befits the theme of harmony and unity, THEY have only one affiliated faction, called simply "The Family" whose members come from various worlds. |
| 247 | |
| 248 | ---- |
| 249 | * TheAssimilator: Kafka mentions Xipe has previously engulfed another Aeon, Ena the Order, due to overlapping concepts. |
| 250 | * CelestialBody: THEY wear a dress made of galaxies and gas clouds. |
| 251 | * CleavageWindow: THEIR dress exposes their sternum. |
| 252 | * EtherealChoir: Xipe's presence in the Simulated Universe is preceded by a heavenly choir. |
| 253 | * GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe: THEY appear as a feminine humanoid with purple skin. |
| 254 | * HolyHalo: THEY are shown to have a vividly colourful, abstractly-shaped UnusualHalo, as befitting THEIR Aeon status. |
| 255 | * HumanoidAbomination: Is among the few Aeons that have a more human form, save for the MultipleHeadCase, purple skin and parts of their body breaking away into puzzle pieces. |
| 256 | * ManyFacedDivinity: Is shown to have 3 faces in the style of Vedic deities. |
| 257 | * MindHive: THEY are described as a plural Aeon who is an amalgamation of thousands of beings from many different worlds. This is reflected in THEIR multiple faces and voices. |
| 258 | * MsFanservice: Appears as a beautiful and curvaceous woman wearing a form-fitting dress. |
| 259 | * MysticalWhiteHair: Has long white hair that reaches THEIR calves, giving a supernatural impression befitting an Aeon. |
| 260 | * MythicalMotifs: Named after the Aztec god Xipe Totec, god of seasons and agriculture. |
| 261 | * NiceIsNotGood: Xipe is praised as an Aeon who spreads the blessings of joy, happiness, and harmony to THEIR followers. However, like all Aeons, [[BlueAndOrangeMorality the actions undertaken according to their Path can be difficult to comprehend through conventional morality]]. Case in point, THEY assimilated the Path of Order and its Aeon, Ena, when THEY ascended, implying control and restriction of free will are parts of the unity Harmony brings. THEIR associated faction, the Family, is also willing to resort to shady methods when necessary in order to enforce the will of Harmony, such as in Penacony. [[spoiler:That said, with the reveal of the Dreammaster and Sunday's actions being done in the name of ''Order'' instead of Harmony, exactly how Xipe factors into this is unknown.]] |
| 262 | * PatronGod: Of the Family. |
| 263 | * RedBaron: The Family commonly refers to Xipe as the "Great One of Paradise", the "Thousand-Faced Great One", and the "Triple-Faced Soul". |
| 264 | * RuleOfSymbolism: More obvious than the other Aeons. Some parts of Xipe's body appears to break away into purple puzzle pieces, which when combined with the CelestialBody theme of the Aeon imply Xipe views the universe as ultimately a giant jigsaw puzzle, with everyone and everything meant to fit together like puzzle pieces of a big picture. |
| 265 | * VoiceOfTheLegion: Implied to have this as Black Swan's narration during THEIR segment in the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JruxFQurUDQ Myriad Celestia trailer]] starts to [[PowerEchoes echo]] and feature multiple voices speaking in-sync. The Swarm Disaster portion of Herta's Simulated Universe also reveals Xipe speaks with at least 2 different voices; while THEY are in sync most of the time, the two voices can sometimes pick different words to say something (“Akivili / The Trailblaze?” for example), with one text colored red and the other purple, fitting with Xipe's status as a MindHive. |
| 266 | [[/folder]] |
| 267 | |
| 268 | [[folder:IX]] |
| 269 | !!IX, The Nihility |
| 270 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ix.png]] |
| 271 | [[caption-width-right:1000: All-Consuming Black Hole]] |
| 272 | |
| 273 | |
| 274 | ->''"Blindfold your eyes, they say, that the approaching darkness may strike no fear in you. Let it not burden your soul, nor numb your stride."'' |
| 275 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 276 | \ |
| 277 | |
| 278 | The Aeon of Nihility. A lonesome, introverted entity shut away from the rest of the universe in certainty of purpose's absence. Pathstriders who walk IX's Path admire laziness, exhaustion, and meaningless behaviour. |
| 279 | |
| 280 | THEIR affiliated factions (for a loose sense of "affiliated") are the Self-Annihilators and Doctors of Chaos. Both have received the gaze of IX, but the former became dejected and truly nihilistic while the latter became curious, determining in defiance of their Aeon's beliefs that there is meaning to existence. There's also supposedly another faction associated with the Nihility called Device IX, but whether it actually exists at all beyond mere rumors and speculations is deemed a mystery. |
| 281 | |
| 282 | In Simulated Universe, THEIR Blessings of Nihility grants your characters boons related to debuffs, especially DamageOverTime effects. |
| 283 | |
| 284 | ---- |
| 285 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Nihility, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 286 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by gathering 3 Hunt or 3 Propagation blessings: the former will let Path Resonance advance your characters' next turn depending on how many DOT debuffs are successfully applied on enemies, and the latter allows your characters to [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility trigger the DOT effect of the Path Resonance by hitting enemies with basic attacks]]. |
| 287 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Remembrance or 3 Elation blessings: the former will make frozen enemies [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility take more damage from Path Resonance's DOT]] and extend the DOT's duration, the latter allows you to increase the DOT's damage for every type of non-DOT damage the enemies have suffered, with this increase being reset at the end of each of the enemy's turn. |
| 288 | * AdorableAbomination: For an EldritchAbomination consisting of a black hole, IX appears quite cute with THEIR "head" consisting of a purple blob with sad-looking and small beady eyes. |
| 289 | * TheAntiNihilist: IX has a group of these as THEIR followers. The Doctors of Chaos are people who have comprehended the vast abyss of the Path of Nihility, and concludes meaninglessness is not the answer to the universe. Thus, they are trying to “cure” IX the Aeon through sufficiently meaningful actions, hence being Doctors. |
| 290 | * BlessedWithSuck: Self-Annihilators are often referred to as a faction, but it has been noted that it might be more accurate to call them a phenomenon. Like all Paths, the Nihility offers power. However, making contact with IX and becoming a Self-Annihilator, receiving the direct enlightenment of Nihility, comes with a price, destroying some aspect of their being. The blessings of the Nihility give them various abilities, such as massive destructive power, but an aspect of their own existence repeatedly decays away. This might apply to their physical body or their mind. In [[spoiler:Acheron]]'s case for example, her memories fade away quickly. Some especially strong-willed Doctors of Chaos are able to persist against the curse indefinitely, but most Self-Annihilators eventually burn themselves out of existence. |
| 291 | * BrownNoteBeing: In the simulated universe, IX notices the Trailblazer (as Akivili), and THEIR presence nearly drives the Trailblazer to mindless despair. According to Herta, IX in the simulation is not even trying to do anything harmful; THEIR stare just inadvertently causes it. |
| 292 | * DubPronunciationChange: IX's name is spelled that way in every language, but different language says it differently; i.e in English it's pronounced "Eye Ecks" (i.e the 2 letters are pronounced separately), while in Japanese it's pronounced "Icks". |
| 293 | * GeniusLoci: Strongly implied. While every other Aeon revealed so far is a person or creature of sorts (or a supercomputer in Nous' case), IX is described to be a ''location'', being a sentient black hole complete with an accreation disk orbiting around THEM. THEIR exact whereabouts in the universe still remains a mystery. |
| 294 | * GatheringSteam: In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, if you choose the Path of Nihility, your characters can gain increased DamageOverTime the more "Blank" domains you enter during the run. The path's unique effect is that entering Blank domains will [[UnpredictableResults cause its contents to change into that of other domains at random]] (otherwise, nothing happens if you enter Blank domains). The Dice of Nihility's effects can turn every domain of a certain category into Blank domains, thus encouraging you to take the "meaning" out of activities and go on a metaphorical path of aimless wandering in order to get stronger. |
| 295 | * LazyBum: |
| 296 | ** The Path of Nihility encourages this behavior. After all, doing anything at all is meaningless, why bother going the extra mile by putting effort? |
| 297 | ** This is also why most people mistakenly believe THEM to be one of the Aeons with no Emanators, since THEY would never so much as go to the trouble of giving anyone a ''glance'', let alone [[TheChooserOfTheOne entrust anyone with their direct power]]. Turns out that THEY ''do'' have Emanators, it's just that the process of becoming one is different than with other Aeons - that is, whoever ''[[RussianReversal glances at THEM]]'' and can withstand the effects of Nihility on them because of the act are THEIR Emanators. |
| 298 | * NonMaliciousMonster: The simulated universe IX can cause BrownNote on beings just from THEIR presence, regardless of THEIR intentions. This is true for the real IX as well. THEY do not actively hand out THEIR cursed "blessings", the Self-Annihilators were simply unfortunate enough to have come into contact with THEM. |
| 299 | * NonStandardGameOver: Encountering IX for the first time in Swarm Disaster result in your run ending prematurely as IX’s influence nearly overwhelm the Trailblazer. |
| 300 | --> '''Herta:''' '”A word of advice. Don’t get too close to Nihility… Everything will just end suddenly!”' |
| 301 | * PatronGod: Technically IX is never known to have blessed anything, but the Doctors of Chaos walk down the Path of Nihility and claim IX as this for them. Acheron mentions that the only people who have been "[[BlessedWithSuck blessed]]" by IX are people who have managed to make contact with IX's shadow and survive. |
| 302 | * PurgatoryAndLimbo: One of IX's manifestations is a black sea with a black hole in the backdrop. [[spoiler:Aventurine ends up there when he manages to force Acheron into killing his dream self. He mistakes it as the land of the dead, but Acheron clarifies that it is only a temporary stop where consciousnesses linger before moving onto their own paths, and death isn't guaranteed]]. |
| 303 | * RedBaron: IX is also known to be referred to as the "Dark Sun", or "The Sleeping and Shapeless". |
| 304 | * StatusInflictionAttack: In Simulated Universe: |
| 305 | ** 2 of the 3-star Blessings of Nihility allow you to inflict stacks of "Suspicion" debuff on enemies, each increases DamageOverTime inflicted on enemies up to 99 stacks, but 2 stacks will be lost after the enemy's turn ends. One of said blessings inflict 3 stacks of Suspicion on an enemy whenever they're inflicted with a DOT debuff, while the other one inflicts 1 stack whenever the afflicted enemy takes DOT damage[[note]]Enhanced: Suspicion stacks will no longer deplete per turn[[/note]]. 3 of the 2-star Nihility blessings are tied to this mechanic: the first one allows you to inflict 1 extra Suspicion stack[[note]]Enhanced: double the stack amount[[/note]] whenever Susipicion is sucessfully applied, the second passes the debuff stacks onto another enemy upon an enemy's death, and the last one reduces the enemy's ATK[[note]]Enhanced: and Effect Resistance[[/note]] per stack. |
| 306 | ** The [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Nihility]] inflicts 4 kinds of DamageOverTime debuffs at once to all enemies with a chance. The Resonance Formation buffs give additional effects to this ability: increasing its chance of debuffing to 100%, the debuffs' duration by 1 turn, and their stacks by 1, additionally inflicts 2 stacks of Confusion[[note]]when you inflict Weakness Break on an enemy, said enemy will immediately take damage from all the DOT debuffs they currently have, times the number of stacks[[/note]] and 2 stacks of Devoid[[note]]when enemies regenerate their Toughness Gauge, Devoid will reduce the amount of the gauge regenerated, depending on the stacks[[/note]] on all enemies, and allowing it to [[RegeneratingMana regenerate its energy]] by 40% at the start of a battle, and 2% each time enemies take damage from DOT effects. |
| 307 | * UnfinishedBusiness: Some who have encountered the Nihility became trapped by their regrets, pointlessly repeating the same actions. [[spoiler:Acheron feels that her duty as "the watcher" is to resolve their lingering regrets, allowing them to be free from the Nihility and pass away in peace.]] |
| 308 | * UnrealisticBlackHole: IX is described as a black hole, and THEIR official render even shows that THEY have an accretion disk orbiting around THEM with planets being torn apart by tidal forces, which is about as close to a realistic depiction of a black hole that IX will ever get. However, THEY have a CelestialBody of stars with beady sad eyes giving them a CuteSlimeMook-like appearance for an event horizon, which is of course nothing like an actual black hole, on top of lacking General Relativity effects such as gravitational lensing, time dialation, and the Doppler shift of light on THEIR accretion disk. |
| 309 | [[/folder]] |
| 310 | |
| 311 | [[folder:Qlipoth]] |
| 312 | !!Qlipoth, The Preservation |
| 313 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/qlipoth.png]] |
| 314 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Amber Lord]] |
| 315 | |
| 316 | ->''"Push open the majestic gates, they say, and lift up the tablets of lapis. Read them aloud -- let the fire that forged the bricks and the ones that laid the wall's foundations be known!"'' |
| 317 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 318 | \ |
| 319 | |
| 320 | The Aeon of Preservation, a god who takes the form of a headless giant made entirely of amber. Pathstriders who walk Qlipoth's Path admire patience, sacrifice, and defensive behaviour. |
| 321 | |
| 322 | THEIR affiliated factions are the Interastral Peace Corporation (IPC) and The Architects. The former began as a "support group" to assist Qlipoth in THEIR astronomical fortification building before slowly becoming the largest economic entity in the galaxy, while the latter does the same thing but with an unchanging focus in building fortifications, including in Jarilo-VI; there, they're also involved behind the founding and managing of the Silvermane Guards. |
| 323 | |
| 324 | In Simulated Universe, Qlipoth's Blessings of Preservation focuses on generating shields for your party, as well as granting you boons related to shields. |
| 325 | ---- |
| 326 | |
| 327 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Preservation, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 328 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by getting 3 Nihility or 3 Remembrance blessings: the former will let Path Resonance inflict Bleed status onto all enemies, while the latter will let said attack [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility deal higher damage onto]] [[IceBreaker Frozen enemies]] before removing said status. |
| 329 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Destruction or 3 Erudition blessings: On characters with 50% health or less, the former will [[SituationalDamageAttack increase Path Resonance's damage]] and extend current shield duration for them. The latter will allow you to increase the next Path Resonance's Physical resistance penetration by casting Ultimate, up to 8 times. |
| 330 | * GatheringSteam: In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, taking on the Path of Preservation allows you to apply "Cornerstone" onto the domains by using the Dice of Preservation. Said domains will not collapse if you go past them (but they will collapse if you enter them), and the effects of applying it will only take effect once you get into the Boss domain: you gain increased shield generation per Cornerstone applied, and for each different type of domain covered by said effect, you gain chances to choose Blessings. Also, one of the effects of said dice allows you to get Cosmic Fragments (the SU's currency) for every domains covered by Cornerstone. In essence, by "preserving" as much domains as you can, you'll gain more power at the end. |
| 331 | * GodOfGood: The closest equivalent among the currently alive Aeons, Qlipoth's goal is to protect and preserve all life and planets, and though THEIR method is through separating the worlds through walls, THEY at the same time permit and sponsor the Interastral Peace Corporation who instead tries to connect the universe through trade, and even sent [[TheChosenOne Emanators]] to be among the IPC despite THEIR actions running contrary to the Aeon's wishes. However, Qlipoth is also noted to be infamously aloof, rarely even glancing in the direction of THEIR followers. This aloofness is noted by both Himeko and Cocolia herself as having been a significant factor in why Cocolia abandoned the path of the Preservation and found her hope in the Stellaron's "promised new world" instead. |
| 332 | * GoodIsDumb: Qlipoth may be the most benevolent of the Aeons revealed so far (barring the late Akivili), but THEY are not without THEIR flaws. It's worth noting the philosophy behind their Path is actually not understood by the vast majority of followers; all they can understand is a voice telling to "build a wall" without context, which doesn't automatically translate to a noble cause. THEIR followers, the Architects, are also known for misusing their philosophy for trying to shill fortifications for civilizations without considering the consequences or whether it would actually benefit them long-term. For example, one Architect on the Xianzhou Luofu named Greyla tells a story about how she convinced a planet's civilization to build what's essentially a DysonSphere-esque wall around them for better protection at the cost of ''blocking out its host star''[='=]''s light from reaching its surface'', and even then, [[ArmorIsUseless the wall didn't work]], and [[ShaggyDogStory the planet was destroyed by hostile forces regardless]]. |
| 333 | * GoodIsNotSoft: As benevolent as Qlipoth is known to be, THEY are still an Aeon with all the cosmic power that title implies. The Swarm Disaster event reveals, among other things, that Qlipoth was the one who dealt the final blow to Tayzzyronth the Propagation with a star sized golden hammer, mercilessly destroying the insect Aeon even as THEIR roars of pain can be heard across the galaxy. |
| 334 | * {{Golem}}: Certainly gives the impression of looking like one, with THEIR amber and rock-like body. |
| 335 | * HumongousHeadedHammer: Qlipoth wields a hammer of galactic proportions, with each swing carrying the power of an entire planet slamming down, so powerful that the sound echoes across the universe, and has even become a standard unit of time to measure eras ("Amber Era"). In the Swarm Disaster, THEY used it to deal the final blow onto Tayzzyronth. |
| 336 | * MagikarpPower: In the Simulated Universe, Preservation builds rely extremely heavily on access to 3-star blessings to gain the bulk of their power, with comparatively unimpressive lower-rarity blessings that give a wide spread of generic, generalist buffs and damage mitigation. But once it has it's core set up with Macrosegregation to build up ungodly amounts of shields while weaponizing them with the 3-star Quake damage blessings and amped up Path Resonance, it can be nearly unstoppable. |
| 337 | * MythicalMotifs: Is named after [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qliphoth the representations of evil/impure spiritual forces from Jewish mysticism]], though the Aeon is likely named that due to the word literally meaning "shell". |
| 338 | * TheOlderImmortal: Noted to be among the oldest known Aeons, alongside Oroboros the Voracity. |
| 339 | * OneTrueFaith: Qlipoth's followers, particularly the IPC, are steadfast in their faith about how Qlipoth was the very first Aeon to manifest. In fact, Herta's notes on Qlipoth mention the IPC is vehemently opposed to any research which even suggests Qlipoth wasn't the first Aeon. |
| 340 | * PatronGod: THEY are the patron Aeon of the Interastral Peace Corporation as well as the Belobog CitadelCity of Jarilo-VI. |
| 341 | * SituationalDamageAttack: In Simulated Universe: |
| 342 | ** 2 of the 3-star Blessings of Preservation lets your characters deal "Quake" damage based on the amount of shield points your characters have; one of said blessings triggers Quake by attacking, the other one triggers it by [[CounterAttack being attacked]]. 3 of the 2-star Preservation blessings are tied to this mechanic: the first one increases Quake's damage and [[SplashDamage Blasts its damage to adjacent targets]], the second one further increases its damage based on the individual character's DEF stat, and the third allows Quake to inflict [[DamageOverTime Bleed]] on enemies that take the hit. |
| 343 | ** the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Preservation]] deals damage to all enemies based on the total amount of current shield points your characters have. Its Resonance Formation buffs add extra effects to this ability: guaranteeing the ability to deal CriticalHit and increasing its Crit DMG for every shielded characters in the team, granting your characters a small shield and a buff that [[LastChanceHitPoint prevents your shield from breaking if the enemies' attack is going to break it]] (1 use per activation), and allowing it to [[RegeneratingMana regenerate its energy by 40% when entering battle, and 2% each time your characters gain a shield]]. |
| 344 | * StarfishLanguage: The Swarm Disaster event reveals Qlipoth was among the Aeons Ena invited in THEIR coalition to destroy Tayzzyronth, and reveals Qlipoth has this. In fact, while the Trailblazer can translate what Ena says to Qlipoth using their Stellaron, they quite literally cannot comprehend a single word from Qlipoth, rendered in text form as jumbled mess of fonts with no alphabet. This is implied to be the reason why Qlipoth is only able to say “build a wall” to THEIR followers. |
| 345 | * ThemeNaming: THEIR Blessings of Preservation in Simulated Universe are prefixed by "Construct" (1-star), "Interstellar Construct" (2-star) and "Divine Construct" (3-star). |
| 346 | [[/folder]] |
| 347 | |
| 348 | [[folder:Yaoshi]] |
| 349 | !!Yaoshi, The Abundance |
| 350 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yaoshi.png]] |
| 351 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Thousand-Handed Merciful Medicus]] |
| 352 | |
| 353 | ->''"Let your staff strike the earth, they say, once, and again. The tender sprouts will grow to the sky, and the dew that falls from their branches will rid you of sickness, and poison."'' |
| 354 | -->'''-- Black Swan'''\ |
| 355 | \ |
| 356 | |
| 357 | The Aeon of the Abundance, representing concepts such as life and healing. Pathstriders who walk on Yaoshi's Path admire selflessness, altruism, and healing behaviour. Despite Yaoshi's benevolent intentions, THEIR quest to spread immortality has done more harm than good, with many of those blessed by THEM turning into violent, bestial monsters. The Xianzhou Alliance's people have come to loathe Yaoshi due their civilization nearly being destroyed as a result of the Aeon's blessing, so the Alliance and their patron god Lan the Hunt have sworn to destroy Yaoshi and THEIR followers.\ |
| 358 | |
| 359 | THEIR affiliated factions include Denizens of Abundance and Elixir Seekers. The former are the civilizations which received the Aeon's blessing and fervently worship THEM in return, while the latter are the Xianzhou Alliance's ancestors who originally sought Yaoshi to attain immortality. There's also a secret sect in the Xianzhou called the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus, who wish to continue their civilization's old way of worshipping Yaoshi against the wishes of the rest of the Xianzhou. |
| 360 | |
| 361 | In Simulated Universe, THEIR Blessings of Abundance grants boons based on healing, whether by giving you various ways to heal your party or granting your characters buffs when they get healed. |
| 362 | ---- |
| 363 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Abundance, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 364 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by gathering 3 Nihility or 3 Propagation blessings: the former lets Path Resonance buff your characters' [[AntiArmor Weakness Break efficiency]] and Break Effect, while the latter lets Path Resonance buff all damage output of all characters (stackable twice) and recover 1 Skill Point if at least 1 of your characters gets overhealed by Path Resonance. |
| 365 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Destruction or 3 Erudition blessings: When the Path Resonance overheals your characters, the former will store the overhealed amount to be used to heal your characters later when their health falls below 35% Max HP, the latter will buff your characters' Ultimate damage based on the overheal amount. |
| 366 | * AmbiguousSituation: The Xianzhou blame Yaoshi for seemingly cursing them with Mara, and it is widely believed that the condition comes part and parcel with the Xianzhou natives' particular form of immortality. According to Fu Xuan however, Mara affliction can actually happen to any of the three races that make up the Xianzhou Alliance, it's just that Foxians don't usuually live long enough for it to manifest, and Vidyadhara normally reincarnate before it can take root. That it can happen to the Vidyadhara is especially odd given that their immortality comes not from Yaoshi but from Long, the Aeon of Permanence, showing that understanding of the condition is incomplete. |
| 367 | * ArchEnemy: Is this for Lan the Hunt. However, what Yaoshi thinks of Lan is currently unknown. |
| 368 | * CleavageWindow: The robes that THEY wear leaves a large part of THEIR chest exposed to show the three gashes located there. |
| 369 | * ExtraEyes: Yaoshi is described in the Simulated Universe to have "tens of thousands of eyes". At least some of those eyes can be seen in the portrait above, where THEY take the form of red eyes appearing in long gashes in THEIR skin. |
| 370 | * EyesDoNotBelongThere: THEY have eyes with black scleras and red pupils all over THEIR various limbs. |
| 371 | * FertilityGod: Yaoshi is all about the creation and nurturing of life. Unlike most examples of this trope, though, Yaoshi's promotion of life is not necessarily good. In the original Chinese, the Path's name "Abundance" is explicitly meant to be "Fertility", and it was named that way too in the pre-release beta. |
| 372 | * GatheringSteam: In a way different from other paths - when you take on Path of Abundance in the Swarm Disaster, your characters gain increased healing power depending on the current countdown. Unique to this path, the countdown will be reduced by 3 points instead of 1 whenever you move around, but if you move onto a domain with the "Mercy" effect, you'll instead gain 1 point in the countdown. The Dice of Abundance give various ways to cover more of the domains with Mercy, allowing you to keep raising the countdown number. Also, one of the effects of the dice gives you bonus points for the countdown (and Cosmic Fragments) for every domain with Mercy, while another effect lets you cause HP loss onto enemies when you enter battle, for every point in the countdown. Essentially, playing this path the right way will lead to an abundance of countdown, healing power, and potentially Blessings and Curios from the many domains you enter. |
| 373 | * GodIsFlawed: Some have described Yaoshi as being [[GodIsGood the most benevolent of the Aeons]] as they go out THEIR way to heal people. The Xianzhou however believe Yaoshi to be evil and hate them to the point where they see worship of them as heresy. Regardless of Yaoshi's actual morality, in terms of actions THEY do seem to fail to prepare for the consequences of their gift of immortality, which can easily turn into a FateWorseThanDeath for the affected or even result in planet-wide ecological disasters. It's hard to know for sure whether Yaoshi means for this to happen, but it does happen uncomfortably often. |
| 374 | * GreenThumb: THEY granted the immortality that the Xianzhou Alliance's ancestors were seeking with the extremely tall Ambrosial Arbor tree, and are also pictured sitting on a throne made of vines while holding an ear of wheat. THEY are also symbolised by two intersecting ears of wheat. |
| 375 | * HarmfulHealing: Yaoshi has a tendency to do more harm than good. THEIR blessings are known to cure people's diseases and prevent them from aging with the unfortunate side effect of eventually turning them into aggressive monsters. |
| 376 | * HealerGod: One of THEIR titles is the Merciful Medicus, and Pathstriders of the Path of Abundance are similarly healer units. |
| 377 | * HealingHands: In Simulated Universe, the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Abundance]] heals all of your party and grants them increased maximum HP for a duration. Its Resonance Formation buffs give extra effects to this ability: allowing it to also [[AntiDebuff cleanse debuffs and give a stackable buff that blocks 1 debuff attempt on your characters and then heal them]], preventing your characters from receiving lethal damage and then automatically casting the ability (1 use per battle), and adding itself into the turn queue to give periodic healing, with reduced healing potency. |
| 378 | * HornedHumanoid: Sports deer horns on the sides of THEIR head. |
| 379 | * HumanoidAbomination: Is among the few Aeons that have a more human form. |
| 380 | * IHaveManyNames: THEY are also known as Merciful Medicus by THEIR followers, while THEIR opponents (mainly people of the Xianzhou Alliance) name THEM "Plagues' Author" or "Deathless Doom". |
| 381 | * ImmortalityInducer: Yaoshi apparently roams the universe to actively spread this; granting the blessing of Abundance and immortality to any world and civilization who wish for it. In the simulated universe, this extends even to fellow Aeons; Yaoshi approaches the Trailblazer (coded as Akivili for experiment) to embrace and kiss them, wanting to give Akivili a body which would not die. |
| 382 | * IntimateHealing: The Simulated Universe version of Yaoshi kisses Trailblazer-as-Akivili to grant them immortality. |
| 383 | * LightIsNotGood: While a HealerGod like Yaoshi would normally be associated with good, the Path of Abundance does have its dark side as Yaoshi shows favor to not just regular healers, but also {{Mad Scientist}}s who resort to dubious or outright unethical methods to advance the field of medicine. |
| 384 | * MultiArmedAndDangerous: Has three pairs of arms. |
| 385 | * MythicalMotifs: Building on Yaoshi's UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}}-inspired elements, THEIR name is taken from the Chinese name for the Buddha of healing and medicine [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhaisajyaguru Bhaisajyaguru]], 药师佛 (Yàoshīfó), as befitting a HealerGod. THEIR behavior and blessing, however, are essentially a 'corrupted' version of a Buddha: whereas Buddhism teaches of the importance of impermanence and how desire and life itself is the root of all suffering, Yaoshi teaches and spreads material permanence in the form of immortality and states that death is the root of all suffering. |
| 386 | * NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Xianzhou Alliance has many names to denounce Yaoshi their former PatronGod, but few stand out as much as "the [[FateWorseThanDeath Deathless Doom]]." |
| 387 | * NiceIsNotGood: Yaoshi is described as one of the nicest and most affable of the Aeons, whose actions and philosophy embody generally positive traits like healing and altruism. However, THEY are [[EldritchAbomination still an Aeon]], so BlueAndOrangeMorality still applies to THEM. Yaoshi is vehemently hated by the people of the Xianzhou Alliance due to granting them [[WhoWantsToLiveForever near immortality]] and some of THEIR ardent followers like the Order of Sanctum Medicus are just as destructive and dangerous as followers of more 'evil' Aeons. |
| 388 | * ObliviouslyEvil: It's an in-universe debate whether Yaoshi knows the consequences of THEIR actions and doesn't care, or THEY are this trope and only see that THEIR spreading of life is good without regards to the quality of that life. |
| 389 | * OtherworldlyAndSexuallyAmbiguous: Among the humanoid Aeons, Yaoshi is the most androgynous-looking due to a lack of any clearly identifiable secondary sexual characteristics on THEIR body alongside a feminine face and long hair. Further muddling the situation is Yaoshi being referred with THEY/THEM pronouns when the Trailblazer encounters them in the Simulated Universe while the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JruxFQurUDQ Fables About the Stars Part 1 trailer]] uses she/her pronouns. |
| 390 | * PatronGod: For Denizens of Abundance. Was also one to the Elixir Seekers, the ancestors of the Xianzhou Alliance. |
| 391 | * {{Plaguemaster}}: THEY are this to the Xianzhou, who refer to THEM as the Plagues Author as THEIR blessing of longevity caused longevity-related sicknesses and ailments among them and almost caused their civilisation to crumble. |
| 392 | * SituationalDamageAttack: In Simulated Universe, 2 of their 3-star Blessings of Abundance lets your characters charge "Dewdrop", either by entering their turn (charges based on percentage of current HP) or by getting healed (charges based on the heal amount)[[note]]Enhanced: also increases damage of Dewdrop by 40%[[/note]]. When your character attacks, Dewdrop will burst, dealing additional damage based on the total charge amount. 3 of the 2-star Abundance blessings are tied to this mechanic: the first one allows Dewdrop to heal your characters when it bursts, based on its charge, the second one allows it to [[AntiDebuff cleanse 1 debuff]] when it bursts, and the third one increases its charging potency [[FullHealthBonus if your character's HP is full]]. |
| 393 | [[/folder]] |
| 394 | |
| 395 | [[folder:Aha]] |
| 396 | !!Aha, The Elation |
| 397 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aha_4.png]] |
| 398 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Joyseeker]] |
| 399 | |
| 400 | The Aeon of Elation, a wily god who races through the stars in search of entertainment. |
| 401 | |
| 402 | THEIR affiliated factions are the Masked Fools and Mourning Actors. The former believe that the ultimate meaning of all things lies in laughter, and thus spend their time mocking others for their flaws and causing chaos for their own amusement, while the latter seek to defy Elation and tries to convey the idea of necessary sadness and tragedy to the universe, only for Aha to find them amusing and bless them with the Aeon's power. |
| 403 | |
| 404 | In Simulated Universe, THEIR Blessings of Elation grants boons related to follow-up attacks. |
| 405 | ---- |
| 406 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Elation, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 407 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by collecting 3 Abundance or 3 Remembrance blessings: the former allows the Path Resonance to randomly [[AntiDebuff cleanse your debuffs on hit]], while the latter allows it to freeze enemies if the attack happens to deal ice damage. |
| 408 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Nihility or 3 Hunt blessings: The former grants Path Resonance a chance to [[StatusInflictionAttack inflict DOT debuffs]] if the attack happens to deal physical/lightning/wind/fire damage, the latter will advance the next action of your ally with highest ATK and all of friendly summoned units depending on the Path Resonance's energy consumed. |
| 409 | * ActuallyPrettyFunny: Aha has a group of people who are dedicated to defying the Path of Elation, the Mourning Actors, who want to remind everyone about the existence of tragedy, that no amount of joy can prevent sorrow. Aha actually finds this amusing; enough to outright bless them and let them spread their teachings about tragedy and sorrow to the universe. |
| 410 | * TheAntiNihilist: The Masked Fools, followers of the Path of Elation, tell a parable about the birth of their Aeon with AnAesop along this lines. |
| 411 | --> When the Aeon of Elation climbed to the highest branch on the Tree of Existence, THEY saw the cold and despicable void, the stars operating like machinery, and how the meaning of all things bows before nothingness. THEY continued looking until they saw a baby fall to the ground and cry because it had been wronged. The Aeon burst into laughter so clear it tore through the cold universe and still reverberates through the universe today. |
| 412 | * BewareTheSillyOnes: Just because Aha embodies the very concept of amusement doesn't mean THEY aren't dangerous. Aha is still an Aeon, with all the nasty BlueAndOrangeMorality that entails. Herta's writings describe an incident where Aha disguised themselves as a human and joined the Astral Express for over a year, and when they got the opportunity, Aha blew up an entire planet and half the Express along with it. |
| 413 | * CharacterSelectForcing: Aha's Blessings of Elation in Simulated Universe benefits those who can do [[OutOfTurnInteraction follow-up attacks]] (CounterAttack included) - and, as of this writing, they comprise only about 1/3rd of the roster[[note]]Himeko, Herta, March 7th, Clara, Yanqing, Qingque (only with 4th Eidolon upgrade), Bronya (ditto), Jing Yuan, Blade, Kafka, Topaz (& Numby) and Dr. Ratio[[/note]]. And even among those, only Clara, Jing Yuan, Blade, Kafka, Topaz and Dr. Ratio have follow-up attacks strong/consistent enough to make Blessings of Elation worthwhile to use. This can be partly alleviated with the 3-star blessing ''Champion's Dinner: Cat's Cradle'', which causes (offensive) Ultimates to count as follow-up attacks, therefore allowing many other characters to enjoy Blessings of Elation's benefits. |
| 414 | * TheChessmaster: Aha's ''modus operandi'' is less about grand displays of power like other Aeons and more about subtly manipulating people or entities to do THEIR bidding. |
| 415 | --> '''Fu Xuan, in the book Glimpses into the Beyond:''' "It would be wrong to assume that the Joyseeker is a jester among the Aeons. Yes, THEY can't really perform earth-shattering miracles like the Reignbow Arbiter or the Firmamend Arbiter. However, by using THEIR invisible hand, THEY can imperceptibly influence the movements of all living things. This demonstrates an extraordinary and delicate manipulation of reality." |
| 416 | * ForTheEvulz: Being the metaphysical embodiment of Elation, Aha exhibits all forms of humor as THEIR whims command, especially humor at another’s expense. What they do could be as harmless as a pie to the face, or as horrifying as ending a species. THEIR followers, the Masked Fools, could be described as a cult of {{Troll}}s who basically go around the galaxy to piss people off as much as possible. This is acknowledged in gameplay with their Elation Blessings in the Simulated Universe which empowers your characters by attacking out-of-turn, interfering with the flow of the battle and potentially turning the whole thing chaotic. Aha will even go as far as to [[EarthShatteringKaboom destroy entire planets]] just for a joke. |
| 417 | * TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: The Simulated Universe version of Aha is distinct from other simulated Aeons in that they are ''fully aware'' the whole thing is a simulation, including THEMSELF. Not only that, THEY also know the Trailblazer is just impersonating Akivili and the real Aeon has long died. Aha nevertheless still pretends to treat them as if they were Akivili, sarcastically apologizing for blowing up the Astral Express (which the ''real'' Aha did to Akivili when the latter was still alive). Herta's comments suggest this seems to always happen each time they simulate Aha. |
| 418 | * ItAmusedMe: What the Path of Elation espouses as the ultimate reason for existence. All things exist because they are to be laughed at. This makes the Masked Fools rather disliked among followers of the Aeons, as they promote doing ''whatever'' in the name of pleasure, which usually translates to chaos in their wake. |
| 419 | --> The Fools believe that the truth of the world is a joke, and that the ultimate meaning of all things lies in mere laughter. |
| 420 | * LaughingMad: In the Simulated Universe, Aha's presence can be sensed with the sound of crazed laughter. |
| 421 | * ManyFacedDivinity: Seems to be composed of several masks with different expressions, all held by a humanoid silhouette obscured by shadows. |
| 422 | * MythologyGag: The Masked Fools are the second time Hoyoverse has featured a cult of dangerous misfits themed around comedy, the other being ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'''s mask-wearing Fatui (lit: "fools"). |
| 423 | * PatronGod: For the Masked Fools, followers of the Path of Elation. Ironically enough, Aha is also this for the Mourning Actors, who seek to defy Elation as a philosophy, having blessed them directly. |
| 424 | * PsychopathicManchild: The Trailblazer's interactions with them in the Simulated Universe suggest THEY often act like a child in constant need of stimulation. |
| 425 | * RandomizedDamageAttack: in Simulated Universe: |
| 426 | ** 2 of the 3-star Blessings of Elation allow your characters' follow-up attacks to deal additional "Aftertaste" damage of a random Type; one of them randomly procs Aftertaste 1-3 times, the other one procs it once, and once more [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown if the enemy is Weakness Broken]]. 3 of the 2-star Elation blessings are tied to this mechanic: the first one makes Aftertaste to proc 1 extra time (with reduced damage) each time it procs, the other two reduce the affected enemies' ATK and [[DamageIncreasingDebuff increase their damage taken]] for each different damage types of Aftertaste damage they took, lasting until the end of their next action. |
| 427 | ** The [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Elation]] is a series of attacks of random damage types (counts as follow-up attacks by the game) to all enemies 3-5 times. Its Resonance Formation buffs give extra effects to this ability: allowing it to [[RegeneratingMana regenerate its energy]] when entering battle and whenever characters perform follow-up attacks, doubling its maximum energy capacity, making it consume more than 100% of its energy and deal more instances of damage [[SituationalDamageAttack depending on how much extra energy is consumed]], and inflicting a debuff on all enemies that [[DamageIncreasingDebuff increases their damage taken against follow-up attacks]]. |
| 428 | * ShoutOut: |
| 429 | ** The entry of the Masked Fools begins with this: |
| 430 | --> Even an organization like the Masked Fools sing praises of their Aeon. The Aeon will [[{{JustForFun/Rickroll}} never give you up, never let you down, or abandon you. He will never make you cry, say goodbye, or tell a lie and hurt you.]] |
| 431 | -->-- [[Music/RickAstley Ast Rickley]], super popstar of the Epsilon XII Galaxy |
| 432 | ** Even the '''name''' of the Aeon could be a reference to one of Rick Astley's music videos, A-ha. |
| 433 | * TakeThat: The Masked Fools are fond of this, calling out all kinds of people for their perceived flaws. They laugh at heroes for self-righteousness, kings for lust for power, lovers for infatuation, and scholars for overthinking. |
| 434 | * TricksterGod: As an Aeon whose portfolio includes pranks, amusement, and subtle manipulation, Aha is certainly one of these. |
| 435 | * {{Troll}}: If the parable of THEIR birth is any indication, Aha appears to delight in the misery and suffering of lesser beings. THEY even went out of their way to bless a group of people who seek to defy the Path of Elation, seemingly just to mock them. |
| 436 | * UnpredictableResults: In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, if you play Path of Elation, you can gain random amounts of damage boosts for your follow-up attacks for each domain you pass through. The Dice of Elation's effects let you choose a domain and apply a random "Happiness" effect to it, ranging from changing the domain's type, swapping its position with another domain, copying its contents to an adjacent domain (like one of Dice of Remembrance's effects), locking your next step onto that domain, or automatically clearing said domain and turning it blank (like one of Dice of Destruction's effects). In essence, if you're the type who gets elated by surprises and unpredictable situations, then this path is for you. |
| 437 | [[/folder]] |
| 438 | |
| 439 | [[folder:Mythus]] |
| 440 | !! Mythus, The Enigmata |
| 441 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_9502_7.png]] |
| 442 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Shapeless Prince]] |
| 443 | |
| 444 | The Aeon of Enigmata, an unknown existence that obscures itself from all possible gazes, seeking to render the universe incomprehensible to those who seek answers. |
| 445 | |
| 446 | THEIR followers are the Riddlers, who distort and deconstruct language, and the History Fictionologists, who obfuscate and erase history in the hopes of saving people from the stagnation of total certainty. |
| 447 | ---- |
| 448 | * AbstractEater: One of Herta's more dangerous curios is an artifact created by a History Fictionologist. The curio eats culture and recorded history directly out of humanity's collective subconscious. Herta has dealt with it via a TailorMadePrison designed to make up history for it to feed off of, though the curio's description says that the curio will not be fooled forever and will eventually see through her tricks. |
| 449 | * AnimalMotifs: Jellyfish. Herta’s Dev Log explains that Mythus' form is described as a broken and torn "jellyfish," akin to a deliberately destroyed version of... the "cognitive" center of the human brain. |
| 450 | * BlueAndOrangeMorality: This applies not only to the Aeon but to their followers at large. The beliefs of Mythus's [[SemiDivine Emanators]] are poorly understood by the galaxy at large. What is known is that they have an inflated belief in their own altruism. They are convinced that if the past is fully understood, then the same will be true for the future. By destroying the past beyond repair, they believe that protecting other beings from the despair of PrescienceIsPredictable and maintains the illusion of free will. Few people agree with them, and as the fallout of their work is more and more understood, their reputation has become comparable with the Antimatter Legion. The Antimatter Legion destroys matter, the History Fictionologists destroy the Universe itself. |
| 451 | * {{Conlang}}: Actually inverted. The Riddlers are followers of Enigmata who make a point to blur, distort and twist the meanings of words and languages so their meanings are lost to any potential discoverers. In other words, they are ''deconstructing'' languages. |
| 452 | * TheGhost: While several Aeons qualify for this trope, either because THEY'VE long since vanished or because THEY haven't yet been introduced to the player, Mythus and [=HooH=] are distinct from THEM in that THEIR true forms have never reportedly been witnessed by ''anyone'', even THEIR followers. |
| 453 | * GodOfKnowledge: A variant. Mythus aims to subvert and obfuscate knowledge by creating myths and deconstructing language. THEY believe that if all knowledge of the universe became known, the universe might become stagnant. |
| 454 | * TheHeavy: Implied to have THEIR hand and followers on pretty much every faction who seek to figure out truths in the universe, in an effort to sabotage the accumulation of knowledge or fabricate truths. |
| 455 | * InternalRetcon: Welt notes much history of the known universe is missing, and states the Enigmata is responsible for most of that. In particular, History Fictionologists are followers of Enigmata who make it their mission to rewrite history with fabrications, fallacies or outright fiction, making it difficult if not impossible for the truth to be unravelled. They are so notorious to the point they are compared to ''Antimatter Legion'' in how hated they are. |
| 456 | * LostCommonKnowledge: Mythus's goal is speculated to be rendering ''all'' knowledge lost. Followers of the Path of Enigmata are actively obscuring history and killing languages, while the Aeon THEMSELF seem to be sabotaging attempts to accumulate more knowledge. As an example, the ''Star Rail'' universe has civilizations which are several thousands of years ahead of humanity from ''VideoGame/HonkaiImpact3rd''. Yet, it is only recently the Genius Society progressed scientific research far enough to identify Imaginary as a unique element, a discovery that humanity of ''Honkai Impact 3rd'' identified early in the Previous Era, which was more than 50,000 years prior to the AD Calendar. Welt, who notices this discrepancy, believes the Enigmata is responsible for the oddness of knowledge progression and missing history in ''Star Rail'' universe. |
| 457 | * TheManBehindTheMan: It's implied that THEY, along with Aha, were the ones behind the events where some organic humans took on the late Emperor Rubert's Anti-Organic Equation and starting the Second Rubert Wars. |
| 458 | * NecessarilyEvil: Despite hindering progress for knowledge, it is noted that Mythus's attempt to obscure facts and truths about the universe has its own benefits. If a civilization manages to discover everything there is about the universe, there will be [[ModernStasis no more incentive for progress]], which would lead to stagnation. Ultimately, much like the other Aeons, Mythus operates on BlueAndOrangeMorality. |
| 459 | * PatronGod: For the History Fictionologists and the Riddlers. |
| 460 | * UnreliableExpositor: ''Someone'' with RealityWarper powers is sabotaging knowledge and recorded history, but there are signs that information about the "History Fictionologists" said sabotage is blamed on has itself been tampered with. |
| 461 | [[/folder]] |
| 462 | |
| 463 | [[folder:Oroboros]] |
| 464 | !!Oroboros, The Voracity |
| 465 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_7779_6.png]] |
| 466 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Drinker of Worlds]] |
| 467 | |
| 468 | The Aeon of Voracity, an ancient Leviathan who has carved a Path of THEIR very own into the universe. |
| 469 | ---- |
| 470 | * GorgeousGorgon: THEY resemble a gorgon with green snakes as hair, surrounded by larger, more monstrous snakes. |
| 471 | * LastOfItsKind: If Oroboros really is a Leviathan, then THEY would be the last one left alive in the known universe, discounting the artificial creatures created from the remains of Leviathans which are part of the Antimatter Legion. |
| 472 | * TheOlderImmortal: Noted to be among the oldest known Aeons, alongside Qlipoth the Preservation. |
| 473 | * TheOldGods: Suspected to be one of the Leviathans, gigantic creatures who once roamed the stars in a time before the Aeons rose into existence. |
| 474 | * SirenSong: The Trailblazer’s first encounter with THEM in the Simulated Universe has Oroboros singing with a beautiful and alluring voice to lure them in so it can devour them. It nearly worked until Herta paused the simulation. |
| 475 | * VillainousGlutton: The Path of Voracity is simply about eating, hunting preys and devouring everything in sight, and this is true to both the Aeon and those who walked on this path (as seen in Simulated Universe). This insatiable voracity had caused numerous devastation across the worlds. |
| 476 | * WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Despite Oroboros being prominent in the early portions of the Swarm Disaster as depicted by Herta's Simulated Universe, THEY simply disappear midway along with Ena with no mention of what happens to THEM near the end and after the crisis, as if obscured. |
| 477 | |
| 478 | [[/folder]] |
| 479 | |
| 480 | [[folder:Long]] |
| 481 | !!Long, The Permanence |
| 482 | [[quoteright:808:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/long_aeon_9.png]] |
| 483 | [[caption-width-right:808:Progenitor of All Dragons]] |
| 484 | |
| 485 | The Aeon of Permanence, a deific dragon and progenitor of the Vidyadhara race who suddenly disappeared from the universe's stage. |
| 486 | ---- |
| 487 | * DivineParentage: Dan Heng mentions that the Vidyadhara are Long's descendants, and as such they are also referred to as "Long's Scions". |
| 488 | * ADogNamedDog: Their name (龙/龍) means "dragon" in Chinese. |
| 489 | * DragonAncestry: Is the progenitor of the Vidyadharas. |
| 490 | * DragonsAreDivine: As an Aeon who took the shape of a Chinese dragon, this trope is naturally applied to THEM. |
| 491 | * {{Irony}}: Long, Aeon of ''Permanence'', vanished without a trace, as if THEY never existed. |
| 492 | [[/folder]] |
| 493 | |
| 494 | [[folder:Idrila]] |
| 495 | !! Idrila, The Beauty |
| 496 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/web_capture_11_5_2023_14548_wwwyoutubecom.jpeg]] |
| 497 | [[caption-width-right:350:Wondergazer]] |
| 498 | |
| 499 | The Aeon of Beauty, believed by the universe to have died long ago, leavingTHEIRtheir Path without a master. THEIR followers include the Mirror Holders, who seek the pieces of the Beauty to revive THEM, and the Knights of Beauty, a group of skilled and fearless knights who fervently worship Idrila and believe THEY never died. |
| 500 | ---- |
| 501 | * LiterallyShatteredLives: The most common interpretation of Idrila's death. It is the belief of THEIR followers, the Mirror Holders, that this was ultimately caused by differing opinions and perspectives of beauty across the universe fracturing the concept of "true" beauty into endless variations, reflecting back on Idrila as actual physical damage. |
| 502 | * MagicMirror: Idrila is an example of this trope inflated to deific proportions. The only image associated with THEM is one of a shattering mirror, and purported fragments of THEIR body take the form of magical mirrors capable of projecting "beautiful" reflections into reality. |
| 503 | * OnlyMostlyDead: What the Mirror Holders believe in regard to Idrila's current existence. They know that THEY have long since died, but believe it may be possible for THEM to return should the concept of beauty across the universe be reunified into a single expression. This contrasts with the Knights of Beauty, who don't believe Idrila is dead at all. |
| 504 | * PatronGod: Serves as such to the [[ArtifactCollectionAgency Mirror Holders]] and the [[KnightInShiningArmor Knights of Beauty]], even long after THEIR own death. |
| 505 | * PiecesOfGod: It is believed that the Mirrors of Transcendence possessed by the Mirror Holders are fragments of the Aeon's fractured form, their power to reflect what the user considers beautiful into reality lending credence to the idea. The Mirror Holders believe that gathering these fragments together from across the universe will aid them in [[SeeksAnothersResurrection resurrecting]] Idrila. |
| 506 | * PosthumousCharacter: Idrila is held to have disappeared long before the present era, most of the universe and even THEIR followers believing THEY had died. |
| 507 | * SaveYourDeity: The overall goal of the Mirror Holders. They continue to believe in Idrila's divinity despite THEIR death and seek to reunify THEIR body and the ideal of beauty to enable their revival. |
| 508 | * WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Reportedly. While there are no images or descriptions of Idrila to say anything about THEIR appearance, having carved the Path of Beauty into the universe through their actions proved that THEY were a ''looker'' if nothing else. |
| 509 | [[/folder]] |
| 510 | |
| 511 | [[folder:Fuli]] |
| 512 | !!Fuli, The Remembrance |
| 513 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fuli_0.png]] |
| 514 | [[caption-width-right:1000:Glowswather]] |
| 515 | |
| 516 | The Aeon of Remembrance, appearing in the form of a crystal emperor. Fuli wanders the universe in search of memories, likewise tasking THEIR followers, Garden of Recollection, with the same mission. Among them, however, secretly lie the Cremators, who believe that some memories are less than desirable and deserve to be deleted beyond recovery. |
| 517 | |
| 518 | In Simulated Universe, THEIR Blessings of Remembrance grants boons related to freezing enemies, allowing you to delay enemies' turns repeatedly. |
| 519 | ---- |
| 520 | |
| 521 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Remembrance, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 522 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by gathering 3 Hunt or 3 Destruction blessings: when the freezing effect of Path Resonance expires or is resisted, the former will inflict Slow debuff on all enemies, while the latter will inflict [[DamageIncreasingDebuff penalty to all damage resistances of enemies]], which grows in number for each percentage of your characters' HP loss. |
| 523 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Preservation or 3 Propagation blessings: The former grants your characters shields whenever the Path Resonance's freezing effect expires or is resisted, the latter will allow you to inflict the Dissociation debuff by [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility using basic attack on enemies successfully frozen by Path Resonance]]. |
| 524 | * AmbiguouslyRelated: Fuli, from THEIR name and CoolCrown, has distinctively Chinese cultural elements, linking them with the similarly Chinese-inspired Xianzhou Alliance. Combined with the fact that the Xianzhou Alliance was established because their ancestors' emperor (who also wore a CoolCrown that is similar to Fuli's, as seen in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_NJovUIrOc ''History of the Xianzhou: Seven Arbiter-Generals'']]) wanted to be remembered eternally, there is a possibility that Fuli is that emperor who managed to AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence. |
| 525 | * TheArk: Fuli’s ultimate goal, so said by the Garden of Recollection that revere and serve THEM, is to accumulate the universe’s memories in order to construct a blueprint of creation. Then, after Destruction has had its due and all has fallen silent, Fuli will use this blueprint to make the universe anew. During the Swarm Disaster, Fuli is implied to have closely followed the trails of Oroboros the Voracity to try to obtain memories of the worlds devoured by the latter. |
| 526 | * BackstoryInvader: When Fuli ascended as an Aeon, THEY tempered with the memories of pretty much every living being except for perhaps the Aeons, making it as if Fuli has always existed. This makes it impossible to say for certain, at least for mortals, when exactly THEY came into being. |
| 527 | * BlueAndOrangeMorality: Even by Aeon standards. The one follower of Fuli who is recording the Trailblazer in the Astral Express will erase the memories of other people in the Express if the Trailblazer tries to inform them of her existence, but when asked to restore memories, she notes such a thing is illegal by her standards and grounds for immediate termination. |
| 528 | * CoolCrown: The headpiece that Fuli wears is a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mianguan mian'guan]], which has been historically worn by Chinese emperors. |
| 529 | * CycleOfHurting: In Simulated Universe, one of the two 3-star Blessings of Remembrance allows you to inflict "Dissociation" debuff on enemies by [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility attacking a Frozen enemy]] (the other one inflicts the debuff by triggering Weakness Break). Dissociation is considered the same as Frozen, except that the ice damage they take when they thaw is much higher ([[PercentDamageAttack 30% of their max HP]]). One 2-star Remembrance blessing makes it that when the enemy with Dissociation thaws, they'll get Frozen with a chance. Combined with the above 3-star blessing, it's possible for you to keep the enemies in Dissociation or Frozen state for long, and 2 other 2-star Blessings help make the cycle more painful: one of them makes enemies with Dissociation [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility take more damage]], which can stay for 1 turn after the state ends, and the other one makes your attacks [[IceBreaker break Dissociation early and increase the ice damage caused by the breaking]]. |
| 530 | * TheFaceless: THEIR entire face is blanked out. |
| 531 | * GatheringSteam: In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, taking on their Path or Remembrance will make you gain increased Effect Hit Rate the more domains with "Recollection" effect you passed through. The gimmick of the path is that you can copy domains around and apply Recollection on them using the Dice of Remembrance. In essence, this path allows you to "remember" your experiences as you tread through, and gain strength from it. |
| 532 | * TheHeretic: One of the factions professing worship of Fuli is the Cremators. They steal from the Garden of Recollection, assign the memories value based on their own arbitrary standards, and destroy the memories they deem unworthy, self-righteously declaring that they are saving Fuli from unnecessary work. The rest of Fuli's followers see them as arrogant idiots for thinking they have the right to judge the value of memory and don't even see why their actions would be necessary. The galaxy at large sees them as criminals, naming them as the primary suspects for mysterious cases of memory loss throughout the galaxy. Cremators who get caught are sentenced to death. |
| 533 | * HumanoidAbomination: They appear as a human-shaped crystal being. |
| 534 | * LivingMemory: Followers of Fuli who live in the Garden of Recollection are said to have cast aside their physical forms to live exactly as how they are remembered, meaning they are literally this trope. The messenger of the Garden who observes the Trailblazer even claims she is able to exist, interact with the Trailblazer and move around their perception because she is more akin to an information entity who exists through memory and perception. |
| 535 | * MemoryJar: Taken to a galactic extreme. Fuli and the Garden of Recollection where the Aeon resides are said to hold the memories of every living being in existence. |
| 536 | * MythicalMotifs: Fuli (浮黎 Fúlì) is named after a supreme deity from a [[UsefulNotes/{{Taoism}} Taoist]] sect. |
| 537 | * OneHitKill: Memokeepers operate under strict regulations binding the usage of their TransferableMemory powers, and breaking a rule will result in them getting their existence terminated on the spot. However, it is noted some Memokeepers can bypass those restrictions and avoid this. |
| 538 | * PatronGod: For the Garden of Recollection and its Memokeepers. |
| 539 | * PensieveFlashback: When the Trailblazer asks a Memokeeper messenger whether or not she can restore their lost memories, she asks back if that is a trick question because doing so violates the rules. This implies that Memokeepers can restore lost memories and are in fact not taking memories from the brain or other physical sources when interacting with memories. |
| 540 | * SelfServingMemory: The Cremators are a faction of Memokeepers who believe they have the right to decide which moment of the universe should be preserved in time and which ones should be completely erased without any trace. In other words, they are an entire faction that tries to apply this trope to the universe itself. |
| 541 | * StaringDownCthulhu: In one of their entries in Simulated Universe, Herta says that Fuli once appeared during the IPC founder Louis Fleming's final retirement speech. Fleming and the Aeon locked eyes with each other for some seconds, then the latter disappeared and the former walked away from the stage, never to be seen again. Herta claimed that of all people who have seen an Aeon directly, Fleming was the calmest one she had seen. |
| 542 | * StatusInflictionAttack: In Simulated Universe, the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Remembrance]] is an attack that deals damage to all enemies with a high chance of freezing them. Its Resonance Formation buffs grant extra effects to this ability: gaining a chance to reduce the enemies' resistance to freezing, additionally inflicting a debuff that doubles the duration of other debuffs, and [[RegeneratingMana regenerating its energy]] when you enter battle and whenever an enemy becomes frozen. |
| 543 | * TransferableMemory: Memokeepers from the Garden of Recollection have the power to freely back up, store, and transfer memories like computer data. This ability has caused a bit of a bad reputation for allegedly stealing memories. |
| 544 | [[/folder]] |
| 545 | |
| 546 | [[folder:Tayzzyronth]] |
| 547 | !!Tayzzyronth, The Propagation |
| 548 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/9345985894366.png]] |
| 549 | [[caption-width-right:350:Imperator Insectorum]] |
| 550 | |
| 551 | The Aeon of Propagation, an ancient, deceased deity who threatened the entire universe with THEIR rapidly reproducing HordeOfAlienLocusts called the Swarm. THEY are the focus of the Swarm Disaster game mode of the Simulated Universe.\ |
| 552 | |
| 553 | In the Simulated Universe, THEIR Blessings of Propagation confer benefits revolving around basic attacks and the usage of skill points. |
| 554 | |
| 555 | ---- |
| 556 | * AbilityMixing: In Simulated Universe's expansions, by gathering at least 3 Blessings from 2 certain other paths, you can gain "Resonance Interplay" buffs for Path Resonance: Propagation, causing it to gain properties that fit said other paths. |
| 557 | ** In Swarm Disaster, by gathering 3 Destruction or Preservation blessings: the former makes Path Resonance grant the chosen ally a SingleUseShield that nullifies all damage once (except DamageOverTime effects) and recover 1 more Skill Points if their HP is below 50%, and the latter makes it grant the chosen ally a shield equal to 60% of their HP, lasting for 3 turns. |
| 558 | ** In Gold and Gears, by getting 3 Abundance or 3 Remembrance blessings: The former makes Path Resonance heal the target ally; when it overheals, other allies will get healed instead. The latter will make the ally with Metamorphosis buff [[StatusEffectPoweredAbility deal more damage on Frozen enemies]], and their attacks gain a small chance of freezing enemies. |
| 559 | * ADayInTheLimelight: Is the front and center focus of ''Swarm Disaster'' event of Herta's Simulated Universe, being the literal parent of all of the Swarm. Doubles as ADeathInTheLimelight, as THEY are eventually killed by a coalition of Aeons. |
| 560 | * AlmightyIdiot: Despite being a god-like being who can single-handedly breed indefinite amounts of world-devouring insects, Herta's notes indicate that Tayzzyronth THEMSELF was not only timid, THEY were also pretty much mindless and only driven by the instinct to reproduce. As later explained by THEIR Path, this is justified: Propagation is not so much a spiritual philosophy as much as it is an ''instinctive'' one. The mind and the spirit is nothing more than a byproduct of the instinct to live and propagate, and as such unnecessary to life as Path of Propagation expresses. |
| 561 | * AmbiguousSituation: |
| 562 | ** How exactly did Tayzzyronth ascend into becoming an Aeon using a part of the Path of Permanence? Aeons with similar Paths will clash and the greater one would engulf the smaller one, so exactly how Tayzzyronth apparently did something which was the reverse of that is not yet explained. |
| 563 | ** At the end of the Swarm Disaster portion of Simulated Universe, Herta and Screwllum conclude while it is possible the rise of Tayzzyronth and the Path of Propagation was coincidental; the destruction of Lepismat star system where Tayzzyronth once lived as a mortal was definitely ''not'' a coincidence and was intended. Herta specifically mentions Voracity, Elation, and Finality as the possible culprits, but whether or not any of them is indeed responsible is not yet confirmed. |
| 564 | * ArchEnemy: Oroboros is said to be one to them, as the former went to devour many of the Swarm's spawns during the Swarm Disaster. The battles between the two Aeons are said to have devoured and devastated countless worlds. |
| 565 | * CharacterSelectForcing: THEIR Blessings of Propagation gives boons related to basic attacks and consuming/recovering skill points. While technically all characters can easily benefit from these blessings (unlike Elation), they'll work better if you have characters with enhanced basic attacks, and/or especially those who consume a lot of skill points. As of Swarm Disaster's introduction (1.3), there are only 2 characters who fit both descriptions: Qingque and the Imbibitor Lunae. Coincidentally, they're Quantum and Imaginary-type respectively, which match the weakness types of the new enemy type introduced, the Swarm. |
| 566 | * EnemyMine: Tayzzyronth posed such a massive threat to the universe that THEIR fellow Aeons, who are normally solitary entities, found it necessary to form an alliance to destroy Tayzzyronth in a war. |
| 567 | * EvilerThanThou: The fact the EnemyMine situation of multiple Aeons waging war to destroy Tayzzyronth the Propagation is not being repeated with Nanook the Destruction despite the latter's OmnicidalManiac goals suggest this, but could go either way. Either Tayzzyronth is such a greater threat compared to Nanook that the current Aeons don't see Nanook as worth banding over, ''or'' Nanook and the Antimatter Legion are so unstoppable the other Aeons don't see banding together as a feasible course of action to stop Destruction. As of Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, it's implied the former is true: the ever-expanding Propagation intruded on the other Paths (Order, Equilibrium, Trailblaze, among others) that they saw Tayzzyronth as a threat. |
| 568 | * FertilityGod: In a very roundabout way: the Path of Propagation necessarily includes the concepts of reproduction and life, though the Aeon took that concept to its logical extreme with near-endless reproduction that threatened to overwhelm the universe. |
| 569 | * GatheringSteam: In Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, taking on the Path of Propagation grants you increased Basic Attack damage the more Swarm-related Domains you enter. The Path's effect generates more of the Swarm domains in the map; the Dice of Propagation's effect ranges from generating even more Swarm domains, granting additional bonuses onto Combat: Swarm domains, and best of all, [[DungeonBypass making you skip straight to the Boss domain]] and granting you Propagation blessings equal to the Swarm domains you skipped through this way. In essence, in this Path, you'd like to "propagate" more Swarms to strengthen yourself and then reap the benefits in one fell swoop, which also allows for faster completion. |
| 570 | * HatesBeingAlone: How THEY ascended to Aeonhood. THEY were the LastOfItsKind and was so desperate for companionship that THEY created a whole new Path. |
| 571 | * HordeOfAlienLocusts: The Path of Propagation's philosophy in how life should take form was expressed in the form of this. TheSwarm, a horde of self-propagating alien insects who once threatened to overwhelm the entire universe. |
| 572 | * InsectoidAliens: Naturally, since THEY are an insectoid Aeon that gives birth to space-faring insects. |
| 573 | * LastOfItsKind: THEY are said to be the last of the Coleoptera race. |
| 574 | * MarkedToDie: 2 of their 3-star Blessings of Propagation allows your characters to inflict "Spores" on enemies, either by recovering Skill Points (inflict them to 2 random enemies) or consuming Skill Points (inflict them to all enemies). An enemy can hold a max of 6 stacks of Spores (can be raised to 9 by enhancing the former *3 blessing); when they possess 3 or more, taking a hit will cause Spores to burst, dealing additional damage and [[TheVirus spreading them to adjacent enemies once]]. 3 of the exclusive 2-star Propagation blessings are tied to this mechanic: increasing the number of times Spores can spread and making the original bearer contract the spread Spores again, increasing Spores damage and spreading all Spores stack onto other enemies when they're defeated, and [[LifeDrain healing the character with the lowest current HP]] whenever the Spores burst[[note]]Enhanced: each existing stack of Spores will also [[DamageReduction reduce damage taken by allies]][[/note]]. Also, one of the Resonance Formation buffs for Path Resonance: Propagation also changes how Spores work: if the chosen ally still has the Metamorphosis buff, only they (and not the other allies) can cause the Spores to burst, and bursting Spores will also additionally deal Basic Attack damage up to 3 times on the same target; in effect, this can potentially cause ''all enemies'' to take Basic Attack damage at once. This special Basic Attack damage can also benefit from other Basic Attack boons that Path of Propagation grants you. |
| 575 | * NotQuiteDead: Some parties do not believe that Tayzzyronth was dead, contrary to common belief. |
| 576 | ** According to an excerpt from the in-universe book "Glimpses of the Beyond," the Xianzhou Alliance theorized that Tayzzyronth might regenerate THEIR full body at any moment. |
| 577 | --->"''According to the scholar, such horrors have not completely disappeared. The Imperator Insectorum's descendants remain, and THEIR own body could return at any moment. This scholar once showed me his collection — A dull yellow piece of amber with moving flecks and a buzzing tremor. I was absolutely gob-smacked to hear him say that it is part of the "Imperator Insectorum's Prison Cell." The omniscia implanted in my forehead could not see the future of this item, which only serves to corroborate the scholar's claims. All I can do is pray in silence to the Reignbow that such a day will not come soon.''" |
| 578 | ** After completing the main story of Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, Herta expressed her skepticism about THEIR supposed death due to the presence of endless Swarms. |
| 579 | --->"And the last, as well as the most important point of suspicion. If Tayzzyronth did indeed fall according to all observations and evidence, why are there still endless Swarm offsprings roaming around the universe? What exactly is the root of the Path of Propagation... If we can figure this out, I'm sure everything will make sense. But we have a long way to go to find the answer to this question." |
| 580 | * PatronGod: Was one for the Swarm. |
| 581 | * PosthumousCharacter: Kafka states Tayzzyronth is long dead by present time. THEIR character is explored in Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, added in Version 1.3. |
| 582 | * RedBaron: A number of files describe Tayzzyronth as Imperator Insectorum, which roughly means emperor of insects in Latin. |
| 583 | * TheRemnant: The Swarm is now just remnants of Tayzzyronth's spawns who, while no longer at their peak due to their Path being diluted when Qlipoth hammered Tayzzyronth, remains a significant threat to worlds unfortunate enough to encounter them. |
| 584 | * SnowballingThreat: Due to the nature of THEIR Path, Tayzzyronth - who was once the last of THEIR kind - overwhelmed the universe with THEIR spawns, out of sheer instinct to propagate. The Aeon was eventually stopped by coalition of several other Aeons, and the Swarm Disaster is no more, but some small amounts of the Swarm survived and still roams the cosmos to this day. |
| 585 | * StatusBuff: In Simulated Universe, the [[LimitBreak Path Resonance: Propagation]] is unique in how it works: Choose 1 ally to [[CooldownManipulation advance their turn immediately]], regenerate 2 Skill Points, and grant them the unique "Metamorphosis" buff for 1 turn. The buffed character's attack can [[ArmorPiercingAttack ignore 10% of their primary target's all-type resistances]] for every Skill Point they consume or recover, which can stack up to 2 times. Its Resonance Formation buffs give additional effects to this: extending the Metamorphosis buff by 1 turn and [[RegeneratingMana regenerating 20% of its energy]] if the buffed character defeats an enemy, doubling the energy limits and regenerating its energy whenever characters consume or recover Skill Points, and [[QuadDamage buffing the chosen ally's damage output by 40%]] and changing how "Spores" work (see MarkedToDie above). |
| 586 | [[/folder]] |
| 587 | |
| 588 | [[folder:Terminus]] |
| 589 | !!Terminus, The Finality |
| 590 | |
| 591 | ---- |
| 592 | * TheGhost: THEY have not only yet to appear, but is being deliberately kept as mysterious as possible. THEY are not included in the Data Bank along with the other Aeons, THEIR description can only be briefly seen in a random loading screen, and is only briefly mentioned by Herta in Nanook's Simulated Universe file. |
| 593 | * MythologyGag: The Finality is said to be an Aeon involved in prophecy and said to "[[TimeMaster move backwards in time]]". In sister game ''VideoGame/HonkaiImpact3rd'', the Herrscher of Finality is prophesized to be the last and most powerful Herrscher, responsible for [[spoiler: wiping out humanity and resetting the 50,000-year cycle]]. |
| 594 | [[/folder]] |
| 595 | |
| 596 | [[folder:[=HooH=]]] |
| 597 | !![=HooH=], The Equilibrum |
| 598 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_9499_9.png]] |
| 599 | [[caption-width-right:1000:]] |
| 600 | |
| 601 | The Aeon of Equilibrium, a formless being who has never been witnessed by the universe. [=HooH=] watches over the universe, nudging things where needed to further THEIR mission, confident that balance will eventually be achieved. |
| 602 | ---- |
| 603 | * AmbiguouslyRelated: To Ena the Order. The Swarm Disaster portion of Herta's Simulated Universe reveals when Ena disappeared, countless suns disappeared along with THEM — but the voice of Equilibrium returned the suns to countless systems. What exactly this means is unclear, but it implies there is a connection. |
| 604 | * AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: Has purportedly achieved this to an even ''greater'' extent than what Aeons grasp by default. [=HooH=] is said to have "dissolved THEIR will into the web of logic behind the universe's movement", making THEM more akin to a background process of the universe itself than a galactic deity as Aeons are traditionally considered. |
| 605 | * BalanceBetweenGoodAndEvil: More like balance between ''everything''. Good, evil, order, chaos, love, hatred, and all other opposites are variables [=HooH=] seeks to balance throughout the universe. Even the creation of the universe in and of itself is considered by [=HooH=] as an imbalance, and it awaits the day where Nothingness will finally equal Existence. |
| 606 | * BigBrotherIsWatching: The Equilibrium is said to observe the entirety of the universe, factoring even the tiniest, most insignificant variables into THEIR eternal quest for universal balance. Even those acting to defy THEIR mandate have long since become a part of [=HooH=]'s surveillance network, contributing even in their defiance. |
| 607 | * DubNameChange: Different localizations use different symmetrical names for the Aeon, such as 후 in Korean and [=XyX=] in Russian. |
| 608 | * TheGhost: While several Aeons qualify for this trope, either because THEY'VE long since vanished or because THEY haven't yet been introduced to the player, [=HooH=] and Mythus are distinct from THEM in that THEIR true forms have never reportedly been witnessed by ''anyone'', even THEIR followers. THEIR form is finally shown in Simulated Universe: Gold and Gears. |
| 609 | * GodIsNeutral: In this case, god is extremely neutral. Although [=HooH=] interferes enough with the universe to avoid becoming TheWatcher, THEY ultimately favor nothing and no-one beyond what is required to balance various factors of creation. Even the Arbitrators, the faction of mortals who formed around [=HooH=] in admiration of THEM and THEIR quest for balance, are given minimal consideration by the Aeon. |
| 610 | * MeaningfulName: Even THEIR name is perfectly balanced: in the Chinese script, 互 (''Hù''), has both horizontal and vertical symmetry and translates to "reciprocally". The English script renders it as "[=HooH=]" to approximate that symmetricality. |
| 611 | * MediumAwareness: The Path of Equilibrium appears capable of achieving this in some vague fashion. Upon the player maxing out their Trailblaze Level for the first time, capping their progress through the game, a mysterious voice will reach out to the Trailblazer, claiming to belong to the faction that follow [=HooH=], the Arbitrators. That this ''only'' happens the first time [[DifficultySpike Equilibrium Level]] can be raised hints at some level of this trope being in play. |
| 612 | [[/folder]] |
| 613 | |
| 614 | [[folder:Ena]] |
| 615 | !!Ena, The Order |
| 616 | [[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/img_7778.png]] |
| 617 | [[caption-width-right:350:Aeon of Threads]] |
| 618 | |
| 619 | The Aeon of Order, a long-gone deity known to have been subsumed by Xipe the Harmony. |
| 620 | ---- |
| 621 | * ADayInTheLimelight: The Swarm Disaster event of Herta's Simulated Universe reveals that Ena played a key role in ending it, and also shows much about THEIR character. Can also be considered ADeathInTheLimelight, as Ena disappeared about midway into the story shown by the simulation. |
| 622 | * AmbiguousSituation: It is known Ena had died some time around the end of the Swarm Disaster, with Xipe's rising. But Ena and Oroboros simply disappeared midway into the Simulated Universe's recreation of the event as if being obscured (and later Xipe themselves appears alongside Aha), leaving it ambiguous what exactly happened to Ena before Xipe arose. |
| 623 | * BigGood: Can be see as one during the Swarm Disaster. Ena was the one who gathered the coalition of Aeons to wage war with Tayzzyronth, specifically inviting Qlipoth to a dialogue which suggested the Order was trying to convince the Preservation about how ending the Disaster was in THEIR best interest. |
| 624 | * ControlFreak: Herta outright describes THEM as one. Considering their dedication to Order and their thread/puppet string motif, it makes sense. |
| 625 | * EndOfAnEra: Ena's death near the end or some time after the Swarm Disaster is implied to be one, as with THEIR death, calamities suppressed by Ena's Order can now form. |
| 626 | * GodOfOrder: Obviously, Ena seeks to impose THEIR philosophy of Order across the universe and all its worlds. In fact, Ena was considered by Herta to be one of the few Aeons who commonly interacted with mortals for the sole purpose of maintaining order, and was willing to initiate a dialogue and an alliance between Aeons, who are usually solitary entities, to eliminate threats to THEIR order. |
| 627 | * LivingStatue: Ena primarily appeared to mortals using the form of a giant statue in the likeness of a holy woman. |
| 628 | * OminousPipeOrgan: Ena's presence in the Simulated Universe is preceded by an ominous orchestral note. |
| 629 | * OrderIsNotGood: Ena might be the BigGood of the universe during the Swarm Disaster, but like any Aeon, Ena subscribed to BlueAndOrangeMorality. Ena's form heavily implied THEIR definition of Order was to watch over and manipulate everything with their "threads". [[spoiler:Furthermore, two of THEIR followers in the present day plan to impose order upon people's lives by trapping everyone within a "sweet" dream even if they don't want to be a part of it.]] |
| 630 | * PeoplePuppets: In "Destruction: I" story of Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster, the Trailblazer is somehow engulfed in a "desire for destruction", only for their limbs to be restrained by invisible strings, which causes said urge to recede suddenly. At the same time, Ena appears, and the text implies that THEY did this out of either love or a desire for "order". |
| 631 | * PosthumousCharacter: Kafka explains Ena ceased to exist after THEY and their Path were absorbed by Xipe. THEY first show up in one story of Simulated Universe: Swarm Disaster. |
| 632 | * RealityWarper: Swarm Disaster portion of Simulated Universe reveals Ena had been suppressing countless calamities across the universe, including the Trailblazer ("Akivili" in said universe)'s "urge for destruction". Along with the fact that Nanook hasn't existed yet during the era (according to Herta), it's implied that the concept/thought for "destruction" was actively blocked by Ena up until THEIR disappearance. |
| 633 | * RedBaron: Ena was also known as the "Aeon of Threads". |
| 634 | * SaveYourDeity: Even though Ena has been assimilated into Xipe for many Amber Eras while THEIR faction, Beyond the Sky Choir, faded into obscurity, THEY still have followers like [[spoiler:Sunday and Gopher Wood]], who seek to reimpose THEIR Path upon the universe. |
| 635 | [[/folder]] |
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