Author Topic: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena  (Read 14556 times)

Offline WereElephant

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #15 on: May 25, 2018, 04:39:38 PM »
I may have gotten carried away. Just a bit :D

Not at all. That is exactly what I was hoping to see on this thread. Eager to see more!


Offline groinkick

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #16 on: May 25, 2018, 05:04:50 PM »
Mavra wins hands down.  The Vampire courts by threat from pure power are Black Court, Red Court, White Court.  However since the White Court is the last standing it goes to show that cunning may trump pure power. 

Without a Black Court weakness to use, Mavra's speed, and power are very very high.  We've only seen a glimpse of what she can do however in one scene she was standing in one spot, and faster than human vision could detect she'd moved to another.  Also Jim said that only the smartest of the Black Court are still alive which means she's very smart.  She's survived a very dangerous Supernatural world without support while Ortega can make no such claim, she's existed with the support of a very powerful, and united Red Court.  That's a big factor right there.  Mavra has proven to be a survivor in a world where her species is nearly extinct while Ortega by comparison has lived a pampered life.

The entire fight would last less than a minute with the combatants moving at super human speed.
« Last Edit: May 25, 2018, 05:19:06 PM by groinkick »
Stole this from Reginald because it was so well put, and is true for me as well.

"I love this place. It was a beacon in the dark and I couldn't have made it through some of the most maddening years of my life without some great people here."  Thank you Griff and others who took up the torch.

Offline WereElephant

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #17 on: May 25, 2018, 05:11:40 PM »
Mavra wins hands down.  The Vampire courts by threat from pure power are Black Court, Red Court, White Court.  However since the White Court is the last standing it goes to show that cunning may trump pure power. 

Without a Black Court weakness to use, Mavra's speed, and power are very very high.  We've only seen a glimpse of what she can do however in one scene she was standing in one spot, and faster than human vision could detect she'd moved to another.  Also Jim said that only the smartest of the Black Court are still alive which means she's very smart.  She's survived a very dangerous Supernatural world without support while Ortega can make no such claim, she's existed with the support of a very powerful, and united Red Court.  That's a big factor right there.  Mavra has proven to be a survivor in a world where her species is nearly extinct while Ortega by comparison has lived a pampered life.

All very good points. So how do you envision the fight playing out?

Offline groinkick

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #18 on: May 25, 2018, 05:18:36 PM »
All very good points. So how do you envision the fight playing out?

Well a professional writer would have a long drawn out fight scene...  Me not so much.

Mavra lets out a hiss and crosses the grass with incredible speed, Ortega has barely enough time to cast a spell that Mavra evades easily.  She strikes Ortega across the face with her clawed fingers ripping the once beautiful face apart.  Ortega in a flash loses her human form and replaces it with her greasy, black, vampire form and screams at Mavra.  The two leap at one another and in a flash of claws, and teeth Mavra tears into the belly of Ortega.  Blood is splattered, and entrails fall to the ground.  Mavra stands above Ortega with gore dripping from her smiling mouth.  Ortega is still alive, but just barely.  Mavra says "Take your time to die, I want to relish this".

The entire fight lasts around 30 - 45 seconds with both moving at super human speed with Mavra being significantly faster than Ortega
« Last Edit: May 25, 2018, 05:21:57 PM by groinkick »
Stole this from Reginald because it was so well put, and is true for me as well.

"I love this place. It was a beacon in the dark and I couldn't have made it through some of the most maddening years of my life without some great people here."  Thank you Griff and others who took up the torch.

Offline WereElephant

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #19 on: May 25, 2018, 05:24:00 PM »
Well a professional writer would have a long drawn out fight scene...  Me not so much.

Mavra lets out a hiss and crosses the grass with incredible speed, Ortega has barely enough time to cast a spell that Mavra evades quickly.  She strikes Ortega across the face with her clawed fingers ripping the once beautiful face apart.  Ortega in a flash loses her human form and replaces it with her greasy, black, vampire form and screams at Mavra.  The two leap at one another and in a flash of claws, and teeth Mavra tears into the belly of Ortega.  Blood is splattered, and entrails fall to the ground.  Mavra stands above Ortega with gore dripping from her smiling mouth.  Ortega is still alive, but just barely.  Mavra says "Take your time to die, I want to relish this".

Doesn't have to be drawn out if you don't think the fight would be. :D

Very nice. It captures everything you said about Mavra's strengths and how you said they overcome Ortega's.

Anyone else for an Ortega vs Mavra fight, or shall we move on to another pair? Summer Knight Fix vs Vittorio Malvora? Eldest Fetch vs Eldest Gruff?

Offline Griffyn612

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #20 on: May 25, 2018, 09:15:02 PM »
Really? That much of a curb stomp? I know Dresden said Arianna didn't have much a duelist's mindset, but she was a competent sorceress. You don't think she could offer any resistance to the chain spell? Or at least dodge?
Honestly, I thought it was generous to suggest that Mavra would bother using her hands.  It seems more likely that she could defeat Arianna without moving a muscle.

We're talking about a Blamp that was "locked down" by Blackstaff McCoy, and was still free to use veils that were flawless.

Offline Fcrate

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #21 on: May 25, 2018, 09:46:01 PM »
She wasn't locked down, actually. I don't think she was even in that place, just a dupe to take the fall. Or maybe she was there at first, then hightailed it when she found out she was locked out. Remember she had Renfields with flamethrowers attack Harry and company, if she's so deadly as all that, and had any shred of power, she would've used it to disrupt his shield at least.
هل أخذت الغاب مثلي منزلاً دون القصور
فتتبعت السواقي وتسلقت الصخور
هل تحممت بعطره وتنشفت بنور
وشربت الفجر خمراً من كؤوس من أثير

Offline Griffyn612

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #22 on: May 25, 2018, 10:13:21 PM »
She wasn't locked down, actually. I don't think she was even in that place, just a dupe to take the fall. Or maybe she was there at first, then hightailed it when she found out she was locked out. Remember she had Renfields with flamethrowers attack Harry and company, if she's so deadly as all that, and had any shred of power, she would've used it to disrupt his shield at least.
A few of us think that the double image Harry sees with his Sight in the main room, the specter of death behind Kincaid's hulking image, was Mavra.  That he saw her but didn't realize who it was.  And considering that she's known for veils, and someone was hidden in the room taking photos, it makes sense.

Not to mention that if McCoy hadn't sensed her power, he wouldn't have stayed outside. 

Offline Fcrate

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #23 on: May 25, 2018, 11:07:41 PM »
Looks like a stretch to me, didn't realize who it was? Well he has all the time in the world, as things seen through the Sight are etched indelibly in his mind.
And who's taking photos around a scared, nervous, spell slinging mortal wizard? Susan was 50 yards away or so, and still the image came out blurry and almost useless. Regardless, a hidden camera is a more logical option.
هل أخذت الغاب مثلي منزلاً دون القصور
فتتبعت السواقي وتسلقت الصخور
هل تحممت بعطره وتنشفت بنور
وشربت الفجر خمراً من كؤوس من أثير

Offline Griffyn612

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #24 on: May 25, 2018, 11:33:16 PM »
Anyone else for an Ortega vs Mavra fight?
Ortega looks to Mavra, a smart smile flashing across his handsome face. "We are not the kind to bow to such demands, are w--"

His voice cuts off as an invisible line of ice cold barbed wire tightens around his throat.  As his eyes bulge in surprise, the wire tightens, slicing through his neck.  The air intended for his final words gasp out of his severed larynx in a red mist of blood as his head and body topple to the ground.

Mavra, unsmiling, addresses the unseen being that brought her there.

"Next."

Summer Knight Fix vs Vittorio Malvora?
Vittorio sized up the Summer Knight. "Perhaps after I kill you, the Summer Queens will gift me with a boon, in appreciation for freeing them to choose a more worthy champion."

Fix stood stock still, save for his fingers lightly closing around the hilt of the sword at his waist. "I'd say the same, but your King's probably never heard of you.  I know I haven't."

Vittorio's eyes narrowed. "I will show you--"

Fix blinked in surprise as the vampire's head exploded, his pale blood glistening wetly in an expanding cloud around a sphere of inky darkness.  As he tried to process the sudden and unexpected violence, an icy cold sensation spread across his body as something akin to frozen piano wire tightened across him.

"What.." he gasped out, even as the power of the Summer Knight coursed through his veins.  His muscles tensed as his skin grew hot.  The cold wire ensnaring him crumbled as heat rolled off his body in waves.  Freed from the trap, Fix's head spun, looking for the unseen threat.  His eyes fell upon a pale, deathly form stalking toward him.  His sword flashed free of its sheath, the blade glinting far brighter than it should have in the faint light of the coming dawn. "Who are you?"

The gray, dead face twisted grotesquely.  It took Fix several moments to realize it was supposed to be a smile.  "Whoever you are, I warn you.  Come any closer and I won't hold back."

The thing, which he could now see was slightly feminine, kept approaching.

"Alright," Fix said, his voice growing grim. "I tried--"

His words stumbled to a halt.  A confused frown flickered across his brow as he wondered at why his voice had failed.  The world spun as his mind struggled to focus.  His vision blurred as a searing hot pain spread across his neck, even as a splash of something hot and wet landed across his chest.

"Grrgh," he managed to croak out, the air escaping through the ragged rends that had appeared in his throat. 

His eyes failed to see the blood spurting from his exposed vein.  Nor did they see the illusion of the approaching woman flicker and fade, even as the woman revealed herself behind him.

His ears failed to register the sound as she licked her bloodied fingers clean.  Nor did he hear, as his limp form crashed to the ground, what she rasped in the pre-dawn air.

"Next."

Eldest Fetch vs Eldest Gruff?
The two members of the Sidhe Courts stared at each other from across a short distance.

Eldest Fetch, having assumed the form of a Spanish swordsman, narrowed his eyes at the short, stocky Gruff. "You seem a decent fellow.  I hate to kill you."

A bemused smile began to form at the edges of Eldest Gruff's snout. "You seem a decent fellow.  I hate to die."

The form of Eldest Fetch shifted, blurring into the shape of a Scarecrow. "I haven't got a brain.  Only straw."

The beginnings of Gruff's smile bloomed into a full grin. "How can you talk if you haven't got a brain?"

Eldest Fetch's straw neck tilted to one side. "I don't know... But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking... don't they?"

Gruff shook his head. "Yes, I guess you're right."

Eldest Fetch's form blurred again, this time into the shape of a pale, regal man in fashionable clothing several centuries late. "Listen to them. Children of the night. What music *they* make."

A puzzled look appeared on Gruff's face, as he considered the appropriate response.  He knew the reference, of course.  Dracula, as if the stiff white collar hadn't been enough to give it away.  But there was no reply in the original movie, save for the howling of the wolves.

A dark and malicious grin spread across Eldest Fetch's face, revealing his vampiric teeth.  It seemed that he'd stumped his counterpart from Summer.  And per the terms of their duel, if the stocky creature couldn't provide the correct response to his quote, he would lose the game.  And with it, his life.

The seconds ticked by, as Summer's eldest servant wondered if this was the end. 

But then Gruff's ears twitched, and he understood.  His smile returned.

Rather than replying with words, his staff rose and fell, striking the alien ground with the sound of a thundering spring storm.

And with it, a column of flame erupted into thin air a few dozen yards away, enveloped the creature that had attempted to sneak up on them as they dueled.  Dracula's creature howled as the flames consumed her.

When her howls finally faded, and her form crumbled to ash, Eldest Fetch gave a respectful bow to Eldest Gruff.  The champion of Summer did the same, and then Winter's champion blurred again, assuming a new form.

And so they continued, until the day ended.

Offline Griffyn612

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #25 on: May 25, 2018, 11:51:50 PM »
Looks like a stretch to me, didn't realize who it was? Well he has all the time in the world, as things seen through the Sight are etched indelibly in his mind.
And who's taking photos around a scared, nervous, spell slinging mortal wizard? Susan was 50 yards away or so, and still the image came out blurry and almost useless. Regardless, a hidden camera is a more logical option.
The text from Dead Beat suggests otherwise.
Quote
I stared at the photos. The pictures were from different angles. That meant that someone else had been in the room taking them. Someone we hadn’t even seen.

Offline groinkick

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #26 on: May 26, 2018, 03:05:08 AM »
How about these fights.....  Battles of the baddies

Mavra vs Shagnasty
Shagnasty vs Coin powered Genoskwa
Mavra vs Coin powered Genoskwa
Dierdre vs Mavra
Dierdre  vs Shagnasty
Red King vs Coin powered Genoskwa
Red King vs Mavra
Stole this from Reginald because it was so well put, and is true for me as well.

"I love this place. It was a beacon in the dark and I couldn't have made it through some of the most maddening years of my life without some great people here."  Thank you Griff and others who took up the torch.

Offline Snark Knight

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #27 on: May 26, 2018, 02:17:31 PM »
A few of us think that the double image Harry sees with his Sight in the main room, the specter of death behind Kincaid's hulking image, was Mavra.  That he saw her but didn't realize who it was.  And considering that she's known for veils, and someone was hidden in the room taking photos, it makes sense.

He saw Mavra with the Sight before at Bianca's party, though. She looked exactly like herself. And Mavra probably figured there from complimenting him on seeing her when she didn't wish to be seen that the Sight detects her despite a veil (if she wasn't aware of that limitation of veils already). If it was her personally taking the photographs used for blackmail, she has the speed to easily stay out of Harry's line of sight while he's playing 'spot the Renfield'.

Offline Griffyn612

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #28 on: May 26, 2018, 02:47:48 PM »
He saw Mavra with the Sight before at Bianca's party, though. She looked exactly like herself. And Mavra probably figured there from complimenting him on seeing her when she didn't wish to be seen that the Sight detects her despite a veil (if she wasn't aware of that limitation of veils already). If it was her personally taking the photographs used for blackmail, she has the speed to easily stay out of Harry's line of sight while he's playing 'spot the Renfield'.
And yet we have Harry saying someone was moving around the room unseen, presumably using a veil.  That same person would have to be extremely good at veils, working for Mavra to supply her with the photos, and hereto unheard of.

Or, it was her.

Looking at it logically, it being Mavra is the most likely scenario.  Given that she would have been aware of Harry using his Sight to detect Renfields (he all but announced as much to the others), the most logical place to stand is behind a creature with a hulking Sight appearance that would complicate what Harry was seeing.  And the only reason he saw either image was because he left his Sight up too long and reflexively looked when he heard a sound.

Her counting on all her speed and power while being suppressed by McCoy seems unlikely.  She was probably using all the power at her disposal to stay hidden and get the job done.

Offline Snark Knight

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Re: The Dresden Files Death Battle Arena
« Reply #29 on: May 26, 2018, 07:35:55 PM »
Her counting on all her speed and power while being suppressed by McCoy seems unlikely.  She was probably using all the power at her disposal to stay hidden and get the job done.

He was suppressing her from just killing them with dark sorcery, not from moving fast enough to stay behind Harry. Super-speed is just a physical stat for blamps.

Which was kind of a waste of McCoy's abilities, since assuming the photos were her handiwork (and I agree with you that's the most likely option), she had a perfectly good opportunity to shank Harry, Murph and Kincaid with her choice of sword or firearm, and she didn't take it. The entire visit to Chicago with the failed assassination attempts was just bait to get Harry to come provide her a chance to take the blackmail photos.

Which makes Harry getting angry and declining her offer to discuss his assault on her scourge when they talked at the start of DB instead of actually fishing for some information one of the more irritating cases of him being an incurious protagonist.