Leggerless

In Ul'dah, we have TN and a decent group of people who would rightfully be considered "underground." Makes sense to be where you can easily make connections, right? There are two areas I've started to RP more frequently at: 1. The lesser known taverns in Eorzea. Examples include Aleport, Wineport, Buscarron's, and Fallgourd Float. 2. La Noscea, Black Shroud, and Coerthas. La Noscea has Wineport and the Bismarck; it's a great place for dining and cooking and I would like to start acting on behalf of TN and associates in the area. The Shroud, I do not have many connections and visit almost exclusively by appointment. Coerthas, if I do visit ICly, is almost always at the tavern near the Observatorium; going any further north and Lynx may risk being ousted as an "outsider."

8/10 would design again.

[align=center]Case 3: The Leader[/align] [align=center] [/align] In the previous case, we examined the role that a commander assumes within a force. In this case, we will examine the leader’s—or officer’s—role. As a leader, your primary goal is to put into action your commander’s plans. To execute these plans properly and effectively, you should know what the operation entails and its desired outcome. Knowing one’s own capabilities, the enemy’s capabilities, and the environment the battle is to be fought upon are essential for achieving your objective. You may not be the only leader within your force. Should other leaders be present, you are expected by your commander to work together in a cohesive group. If all leaders are not working in tandem, the force’s information network will become skewed and create a weakened force. There are different types of roles a leader may fulfill, whichwe will explore below: Chief of Staff (XO): A commander’s principal officer; often considered to be the second in command. He directs the coordination of the leaders directly beneath him to ensure efficient and rapid response. Personal: Leaders that work directly under the commander. Theirgroup is separate from the authority a XO may have; the staff group, however, interacts with the XO on a near-daily, if not daily, basis. This group may consist of officers from the medical team, reconnaissance team, and external personnel. The commander holds the authority to set up his staff group as he sees fit. Coordination: A coordinating officer works under the XO and are responsiblefor general tasks. They hold accountability for the breadth of all the commander’s responsibilities. Typically, a leader in this group holds a higher rank within the company; a commander may however establish an officer’s authority even if it is not inherent with his rank. The group is limited to advising, planning, and coordinating actions within the commander’s interests and may act on specifically assigned actions through added authority and responsibility from the commander. Coordinating officers have interests in what their other officers are doing, as they acquire information and interpret it for command. A coordinating officer must make quick and accurate recommendations for the commander to make the best and most informed decisions. Special: A special officer helps in a technical or professional capacity for the force. An officer in this group may be a munitions or engineering officer, ensuring that the force is at peak fighting strength. Special staff falls under the orders of a coordinating officer, but may deal with more than one coordinating officer at a time. From these groups, we have an ad hoc command hierarchy. From the greatest to least in the amount of authority: 1. Commander 2. Personal Officers 3. Chief of Staff (XO) 4. Coordinating Officers 5. Special Officers Sometimes, the Chief of Staff’s (XO) and Personal Officers’ authority in the force are at the same level. Both Coordinating Officers and Special Officers are under the overall authority of the Chief of Staff, yet Special Officers may receive orders from Coordinating Officers. In terms of size, Special Officers are the highest in number while Personal are the lowest. There’s a saying that a leader is born. I consider that a false statement; a leader can be made from a living person if given the proper training and means to act as one. So one must ask themselves: what qualities define a leader? Looking throughout history, there are many traits that differ as you go from leader to leader, yet a few common traits are evident: Competence: Incompetent leaders in a force areas if the force had no leader at all. A leader must be competent in all aspects of his role and know his role better than any other man or woman. They must express familiarity with the roles of other officers in their group in order to create the best decisions possible. A commander will expect a leader to know the correct recommendation, not a guessed recommendation, and must be able to admit when they do not know how to proceed. Initiative and Judgment: A leader should know how to anticipate and adapt to changes in the environment, and how to make the proper decisions. A commander will not always be giving the tasks out; a leader should be able to figure out a commander’s intentions and be able to operate within them. In a hierarchy, they should know what the plan is two levels above their own position in order to better coordinate with the other units in the force. Additionally, a leader must report their actions to a commander as soon as possible. Creativity: A leader may not be Eorzea’s next greatest artist, or premiere chef at the Bismarck, but they do need a touch of creativity. A leader should always be looking for new and innovative ways to tackle operations. If they cannot recommend a proper course of actions, they must look for an alternative. In addition to a leader’s own creativity, he should be able to utilize the creativity that the other leaders and the commander possess in the force. Flexibility: A leader should possess a mindsetthat will not be overwhelmed by changing requirements and priorities in the environment. Commanders may change their decisions at whim, and it is up to the leader to properly adjust to the needs of the commander. The leader should know how to prioritize tasks and manage multiple commitments simultaneously. Should a leader not be able to make the adjustment in time, they must inform the commander before the allotted time expires. Confidence: A leader has confidence and inspiresconfidence in those below them. Even if the commander may reject a recommendation, it is of the mind that everything the leaders do is to serve the commander’s needs and perform at their best at all times. They must develop recommendations withoutbias, in order to generate the best solution possible. Four bells worth of leader work may only be worth two minutes of the commander’s time. Despite the ratio, you have saved the commander’s time by completing a task he would have to research instead. Loyalty: An officer who does not hold loyaltyto their commander or soldiers beneath them should not be deserving of their role. A loyal officer will ensure the best—and correct—information to the commander. If the information is ‘bad news,' the commander will want to know about the issue and work to fix it now. An officer’s loyalty to his soldiers is essential, as all work they do will affect the soldiers beneath them in some shape or form. Leaders should be effective communicators and managers, much like their commanders. They must carefully consider resources and time and be able to manage effectively. They must be good with the resources that the force is granted, and diligent in their efforts to avoid wasteful actions. The leader should be able to articulate their orders to brief groups and individuals. A leader should know how to interpret tools, such as maps and books, and be skilled with the pen. To transform the commander’s intentions into a tangible, effective plan of action is the primary goal of a leader. So now we know what makes a leader. The question now is what can a leader do? With the advent of Magitek and rifles in Eorzea, there are some changes in battles. Nevertheless, many of the tactics I will explore may be applied with all types of units, whether they are gladiators, marauders, arcanists, or another type of combat user. A leader is not going to be exercising large-scale strategy for the force, as that is the commander’s role. What a leader does is execute actions at the commander’s behest. First, we will examine a few soldier formations a leader may employ. Wedge: Formation that utilizes one person on point and all other units spread out behind them, spaced 5-10 yalms apart. On the outside edge of the wedge should be heavily armoured units, while the inside should consist of spell casters. At the back end of the wedge, soldiers are facing the rear to provide cover from behind. The wedge has good all-round security and is a flexible formation, yet is not the fastest of the three. Controlling the wedge requires some skill, but most leaders should expect little to no trouble. Column: Formation that sets all units within a line. The spacing between soldiers is the same as the wedge, but you are limited in how far out you may spread. In the middle of the line should be the spell casters, while the front and rear are more heavily armoured units. The column effectively disperses your force and provides all-round security like the wedge. Flanks are improved, the unit moves quickly, and the formation is both flexible and easy to control. On line: Formation that sets all units at the front of the line, with supporting units right behind them. This is an excellent formation for when you need to assault a place or force and when the terrain allows it. While on line provides unmatched frontal security, it sacrifices the rear and flanks. The formation is inflexible and some leaders may struggle to control it. The formation speed is the lowest of all three formations here. An additional note: Moving in a straight line makes you predictable and easy to assail. Within these three formations, you may also assign movement patterns. Like with the formations above, we will discuss three movement patterns: Traveling: Used when enemy contact is not likely, but the unit needs to move quickly. Set the distance between soldiers to 10-20 yalms apart. The technique maintains control and speed, yet limits the dispersion and security of your unit. Traveling Overwatch: Used when enemy contact is possible. Split the unit into odd and even numbers, spacing apart the soldiers by 10-15 yalms. Traveling Overwatch keeps control, dispersion, speed, and forward security in check. Bounding Overwatch: Used when enemy contact is likely, or when crossing a dangerous area. One soldier takes position while another soldier moves to the next position. The ability of the force—and your unit—to move depends on the leader’s movement skills and all of the soldiers’ movement skills. To ensure that you move effectively, there are a few things you may do. Firstly, you should stop, look, and listen before moving. Have the next position in sight before leaving your current position. Secondly, you should look for concealed routes on which to move; a force that isn’t easily spotted by the enemy maintains the element of surprise. Thirdly, cross roads and trails only at places that have sufficient cover. Lastly, avoid cleared, open areas and the tops of hills and ridges. Inthe movement techniques, we introduced “enemy contact.” Enemy contact is, quite simply, when the force or unit you are a part of sees or engages the enemy force or unit. We will now discuss ambushes, enemy contact that was not planned or expected by your force or unit. While you should make efforts to engage the enemy first with the smallest force necessary, the enemy will not always work according to your plans. There a few types of ambushes an enemy may employ: Killing Zone: The area the enemy planned for the ambush. If this is done properly, the way where your force walked into the ambush should be blocked off. Planned Ambush: After the initial ambush is an assault where the enemy is fighting on top of you. Your force or unit has little chance at survival and fighting the enemy will encourage friendly fire. Hasty Ambush: Ambush that is neither a killing zone nor a planned ambush. The enemy makes contact with you first and decides in the moment to ambush your force. It is recommended you withdraw when confronted with a hasty ambush. There are times where you will not be fighting outside of the city, and may need to move throughout a building to encounter an enemy. There is an entry method that I’ll explain below effective for infantry-only units. For my example, I will be using a room that has two doors, one on the north and one on the south, and is a square room of 35 yalms length by 35 yalms width. Stack: The process of forming your unit in preparation for a breach. This involves waiting outside of the room leaning up against the wall. Let’s assume that we have four people making a breach. The first person in the line is next to the door and gives the signals on when and how to breach. The second person acts as frontal security for the four-man group. The third person covers the flanks while the last person covers the rear. Preparation: The process of making sure your entry into the room is safe. The people in the line should ensure that there are as few traps as possible when making their way into our example’s square room, lest they walk into unexpected trouble. Breach: The process of entering the room. There are four different breach methods to explore. In “Breach Right,” all soldiers move along the wall of the door they entered through. In the case of the south door, all soldiers move along the wall going east. In “Breach Left,” the soldiers enter through the south door and move along the wall going west. In “Breach Left and Right,” soldiers split into odd and even numbers and conduct both a Breach Right and Breach Left. In “Breach forward,” the soldiers move in a straight line after entering through the door, keeping their backs towards the wall that is closest to them. Security: After the breach, the soldiers should ensure that no enemies enter the room right after they do. In our example room, we place soldiers one and two at the north door and soldiers three and four at the south door. Each soldier should take care not to be in a direct line of fire from the doorway, but still be able to see any enemies that may pass by. This concludes the Leader case. As a reminder, you should conduct training and research beyond this case. This does not encompass everything that creates a leader; it only highlights and makes known certain parts.

How to find a Viper: they slither into conversations.

Arbiter? I don't remember assigning him that role.

The worst part is they didn't need to debuff the instance. They could've done just these two things and still retained the dungeon's difficulty, giving a reason to re-run the instance: 1. Incentivized the run. Make SoF drop a rare pet, land dragon mount, or even some glamour gear. From now til the time that Heavensward is released, I can almost guarantee that people would farm that run just to get one of these items. 2. Removed the reset. What happens when everyone dies and cannot recover? You have to wait until Vishap goes ALL the way down to the last gate and destroys it for an instance reset. Changing that will decrease the amount of people that will leave because it heavily reduces the penalty for failing a run of the instance. All in all, if you know what you're doing, it's simple.

Lynx would likely be an industrial engineer. The current research she delves into is the optimization of systems. Examples include facility layouts, weapon designs, mechanical processes, system evaluations, and eliminating waste of resources. Statistical analysis and mathematical equations, in addition to data from multiple sources and her own observations, are her means to an end. She's significantly more theoretical than practical. She tries to solve dilemmas without Aether and has knowledge on magitek and airships.

[align=center]Case 2: The Commander [align=left]I would expect that this journal soon reaches the eyes of someone who may be part of the Maelstrom, Immortal Flames, or the Order of the Twin Adder. Should you be an officer who is looking to brush up on his or her skills or perhaps a soldier aspiring for a higher rank, these next few cases are dedicated to you. In this case, we will look exclusively at the commander. The next case will explore leaders. There is a fundamental difference between a commander and a leader. A commander assigns the tasks and objectives, while the leader completes the tasks and objectives that are assigned. The commander is a strategist while the leader is a tactician. Should a person assume the role of a commander and leader, the force they are in charge of will suffer. Command is the art of assigning tasks, optimizing resources, controlling subordinates, and directing the force. to their objective. The commander holds authority and responsibility of their force while in command. A commander's willpower, morale, and presence are paramount to the success of a force's operation. Commanding involves competence, intuition, initiative, judgment, character, and the means to gain the trust of his force. You must lead the force to success while safeguarding the lives of your soldiers. No order is more difficult or important than one which risks the lives of soldiers for the state's wellbeing. Control is the culimination of a commander's decisions and guidance to regulate forces and functions of subordinates for success. If you can say what you intend for the force to do in as few words as possible, then you are practicing effective communication. Your job is to assign troops to tasks using the various strategies--and possibly your own strategies--as the force objective. In order to best explain your orders to your soldiers, it helps to have a guideline available. While Grand Companies and Free Companies may use a different system, I will use METT-TC. This is short for Mission, Enemy, Terrain, Troops, Time, and Civil. Mission: Clearly state the objective to your force. For example: disrupt the supply lines, take down the vanguard, or maintain a defensive perimeter. Enemy: State the type of enemy you are encountering. Examples include anything from coeurls to voidsent to Garleans. Try to figure out these things about the enemy: the size of the force, the type of support/weapons they use, the habits they exhibit when attacked, their ability to see at night, and how quickly they can traverse terrain. Terrain:Are you in the forest, the open plains, or inside of the city? You can set up ambushes if the terrain will allow for it. Look for routes that are available to the enemy and determine if they are advantageous for them. Troops: Smaller units with the force, squads and platoons, are your ambushing forces. A force that ambushes an enemy should be able to take on a group two to three times its size. Remember to evaluate the terrain and the enemy. Attacking a magitek armor in an open field in daylight is much riskier than if you did the same attack at night. Time: How long will it take to set up your force? A complex attack may take many bells to complete, while a quick attack may take less than half a bell. How long do you plan to keep the force in place and at what hours of the day? How quickly must you set up? It is ill-advised to set up an ambush at night, even if executed in darkness; it is better for everyone in your force to assemble in daylight. Civil: Consider procedures or guidelines that your force follows. Determine if situations will involve citizens and/or are non-combat situations. A command and control system is the resources essential to a commander to plan, direct, and control operations to maximize effectiveness and ensure success. The resources include personnel, communications, equipment, facilities, and procedures. The system must be capable of providing the commander with information to perform his functions, as he is the support of the entire force. While having a system by itself prove beneficial, it is to be used only as support. When a commander issues orders to his subordinates, the subordinates plan and execute the mission and provide feedback to the commander and leaders to make informed decisions on the battlefield. The leaders under a commander should receive rigorous training so they can work together to understand what information he or she deems essential. Battlefield visualization is the commander's understanding of the relation between the enemy and the environment. The commander examines his environment, determines his objectives, and visualizes the actions the force will take to complete the objective. A commander must have both visualization skills and the ability to communicate his visualizations to his subordinates. If he or she can neither visualize or communicate well, the force will be set below optimal performance. The following are concepts you must keep in mind while controlling your force: Force Concentration: Condensing your force to overwhelm a part of the enemy. Effectively managing your force in order to defeat the enemy. Objective Identification: Objectives should be simple to understand and state exactly what the objective wants to accomplish. Telling a unit to "go to the Carteneau Flats" is not as precise as "go to the Carteneau Flats and secure a supply route." The latter states two things: What the objective is--to secure a supply route--and where the objective takes place--the Carteneau Flats. Force Protection: The force's need for security. A sentry or reconnaissance personnel give you information to let you prepare for certain, incoming attacks. Even if the force must stop its advance for some time, defensive measures should be taken to safeguard the soldiers. Force Disperal: Keeping the soldiers of a force spread out. A tightly packed cluster of units will suffer more casualties from magitek cannons that a loose formation. Terrain: Plan your actions according to the terrain your force will be at. Terrain is a double-edge sword; it is as useful to you as it is your enemies. A choke point is a geographical feature, such as a bridge or valley, that forces units to break or alter formations in order to move through. When at a choke point, the following actions are recommended: take an alternative route around the choke point, fall back and draw the enemy out to fight on ground where you are advantageous, or force the enemy into the choke point. [/align] [align=left]Reconnaissance: Part of "Force Protection" above. Have reliable information at all times and know who--or what--is around your force. To know both your force and the enemy's force is to achieve victory. Deception: Deploying a tactic purposefully designed to make the enemy react in a certain manner. Effective deception is worth the weight of over five times your force's size in combat. Repletion: Repeating the same tactic or fight in excess. You must avoid repeating your strategies in subsequent battles, lest the enemy figures out a way to counter. Should your force be drawn into a similar fight, pull back and gain the advantage. Irregular Warfare: Tactics that are abnormal, or not often implemented. This may include setting up your soldiers at a certain location ahead of time to prepare for your arrival or disabling an enemy's advantage before they use it against you. A commander has multiple offensive and defensive strategies at his or her disposal. You must carefully consider which strategy to employ and when to employ the strategy. The correct strategy executed at the wrong time, or the wrong strategy executed at the right time, can still lead to failure. The weather, the terrain, the force's discipline, and the force's leadership are all factors that weigh in on your success. The longer your force takes to complete an operation, the more ineffective they become. An expedient force is an effective force. Before I discuss many of the offensive strategies available to you, I will tell you some of the fundamentals of an offense: Surprise: As explored with "Deception" earlier, a force can achieve surprise by attacking the enemy force when they do not expect it. Unpredictability and boldness may turn a disadvantageous situation into an advantageous situation. Concentration: A force can achieve concentration when they amass strength and numbers into one place. Tempo: The rate at which actions are performed. Tempo is both a concept in music and in warfare. In warfare, tempo is used to either control or alter the rate to grant an initiative. Though commanders may prefer their troops to work quickly, working too quickly will fatigue your soldiers, stretch your force, and reduce your overall effectiveness in combat. Audacity: Boldly executing a plan or action. Leaders from the squad up must know what the plan is for bold actions to succeed. Should all leaders not be aware of the plan, you will cause confusion within your force and allow the enemy an opportunity to strike. The goal of an offensive strategy is to attack or weaken your enemy. Sometimes, it is as simple as attacking the enemy right in front of you. Please note that some of these strategies are currently theories and may not have been used by a Grand Company in Eorzea yet. Attrition: In attrition, your force will seek to defeat the enemy by wearing them down through steady depletion of their supplies and soldiers. The side that begins with more resources--and more effectively uses them--is usually the victor. Attrition is typically a last resort, as you are want to more carelessly expend your own resources, and can contradict the commander's goal to optimize resources for the force. It is advised to only be used when all other options have either failed or are not feasible. Should both sides be evenly matched, a victory can be achieved, but the cost of victory for the victorious may resemble a defeat instead--a Pyrrhic victory, as it is so eloquently called. [/align] [align=left]Bait and bleed: A strategy where the enemy of your enemy becomes your friend. Businessmen may use this strategy to let their rival competitors fight each other, only to take the profits from under their noses. In warfare, this tactic pits your enemy against another force in a war of attrition, widdling down their forces for you. Blockade (Siege): A tactic employed more often by the Maelstrom than the other Grand Companies due to their naval strength, this is an attempt to cut off supply routes to a certain area through force. Counter-offensive: A strategic offensive that takes place after an enemy's offensive has been halted and before they may retreat back to a defensive position. The objectives that a commander assigns in a counter-offensive are more specific compared to other strategies. Denial: A force seeks to destroy the enemy's ability to wage war. This can be done by wiping out the enemy, destroying all of their supplies, or repossessing their weapons. Encirclement (Envelopment): The force isolates and surrounds the enemy force. It is recommend that you allow some path of escape for the enemy, lest their morale increases and they begin to act out of desperation. [/align] [align=left]Feint: Your force draws the attention of the enemy to a different location where there is little action present. Useful for when you wish to lure an enemy into a trap of your own making. Flank: The force attacks the opponent from the side or the rear. The most commonly seen example of a flank is how a Lancer fights; they direct their attacks at the side or rear of an opponent's body to inflict the most damage possible. Indirect approach: Moving your troops in a straight line makes you very predictable. The goal of an indirect approach is to adjust the ends to your means and exploit the line of least expection and resistance. If an indirect approach fails the first time, do not repeat the attack in the same location. Infiltration: Moving your force undetected into an area occupied by the enemy to gain an advantage. Typically seen within reconnaisse forces, but can be done with forces of many types. Penetration: Attacking force attempts to break through the enemy's defensive line, typically on a narrow front. Pincer attack: A U-shaped attack that forces the enemy to attack a unit at the center, with your own forces ambushing from the side. Shock and Awe: A force uses overwhelming power to achieve a rapid victory over their enemies. This is effective if done properly; if done improperly, you expend more resources and men and may be placed on the defensive after the assault. Swarming: Using a decentralized force against an enemy to increase mobility, autonomy, and coordination among your force. As the battle goes on, the chaos will break down communication among all soldiers and it will take far more effort to re-organize a decentralized force compared to a centralized force. Troop Surge (Reinforce): Sending a large number of troops to bolster your forces to overcome the enemy. Defensive strategies are used to protect your own force. One defensive strategy we've covered earlier is the use of choke points in the terrain. Like the offensive strategies, some of these strategies exist in theory and have likely not been put into practice within a Grand Company. Defense in depth: The force attempts to delay the enemy instead of preventing their advance. While this strategy reduces enemy momentum, it comes at the price of additional casualties. Defense in depth can be executed by a smaller force over a large area to stress the enemy and allow for counter-attacks at a later time. Fortification: The use of a structure to provide protection for the force. Can range from geographical features such as rocks to houses within the cities. 'Fabian' strategy: Through the use of attrition and indirection, the force depletes the enemy through small skirmishes to disrupt supply and decrease morale. Like attrition, employing this strategy is recommended if no other feasible options are present. Additionally, the strategy only works when time is on your side. The great advantage is that you may execute this action with a significantly smaller force compared to the enemy. Scorched 'world': The destruction of anything that the enemy may use, whether you are retreating or advancing. This is a tactic with more destructive potential for both sides than attrition. Not only do you destroy the enemy force, but you also destroy the land that you walk upon. Turtling: You continously reinforce the front line of your force until it is at fighting strength, then launch an attack. Withdrawl: Retreating from the enemy while still maintaining contact. An example of this. You are together with a band of archers and are facing a small squad of pugilists. Conducting a withdrawl allows your archers to attack the enemy from distance--maintaining contact--while you are directing your forces away from the battle zone. [/align] This case covers the basics of what a commander has at their disposal and what their responsibilites are in battle. Simply reading this case will not make you a commander; you must undergo rigorous training and acquire more knowledge if you wish to achieve that position. [/align]

Book Cover [align=center]For my readers to whom I write: This is a collection of case studies I looked at, ranging from the philosophical to the theoretical. Some may be simple in their application, while others may be more complex. Within this text I hope to explore moral, ethical, and even aesthetical values that exist in a given context. I, Elise Wolfe, hope that you acquire some greater knowledge from this text. No matter your views on life, you can always look from a different perspective. [/align] [align=center]Yours truly, Elise Wolfe [/align] [align=center]Case 1: One vs Many [/align] There are times where you must make a decision between multiple alternatives--choices--and accept the consequences of the alternative you choose. Consider the following example below: [align=center][align=left]You are a prisoner forced to live out the rest of your days. The day of your execution arrives and the guard offers you a chance at freedom. Go through with your execution to release your fellow prisoners, or accept a release from your execution, sentencing your fellow prisoners to death. [/align] [align=left]What factors are present within this example, you may ask yourself? Let's assume we go with the first choice: Go through with your execution to release your fellow prisoners. This choice is considered noble, as you offer yourself up as a sacrifice in order to save the rest of your group. You accept the charge that the state has placed on you, and do not wish to subject more people to your suffering. Some may be so noble that they would offer up their lives up, regardless of the crimes that the other prisoners committed. By offering themselves as a sacrifice, they may save the lives of many for the life of one. What happens when the rest of this prisoners are free though? While their own lives may be saved by your actions, they are as likely to take the lives of others as they are to lead a more righteous life influenced by your sacrifice. Though you have satisfied your noble cause, it may be but a brief respite. What if you had gone with the second choice: Accept a release from your execution, sentencing your fellow prisoners to death? This choice is considered good, as you can eliminate many potential threats towards society by preserving your own life. Consider these words again, however... The guards second choice is to grant you a release from your execution. A guard may be lenient with his words and say that you are entirely free from the bounds of the jail. A guard who manipulates his words may state that, while you are spared your live today, you will not be free from jail and still be forced to spend the rest of your days imprisoned. Another issue to consider is you made a choice to commit homicide by saving your own life, whereas the first choice only ensures that you are dead and leaves the prisoners to their newly gained freedom. The relatives of the prisoners will resent your actions and mayhaps even plot revenge against you. They will know that you had a chance to prevent the deaths of their loved ones and you did not take it. [/align] [align=left]There are many reasons, both good and bad, for either one of these choices. For the first, you gave a chance for everyone, including yourself, to prevent further homicide. One life lost compared to many lives lost minimizes casualties and you have a chance to break a cycle. For the second, you may be overcome by self-preservation and choose to degrade the values of the prisoners lives. Mayhap you even be in the frame of mind to consider their lives as "unneccessary" and stepping stones for your own gains. You could consider that by ending the lives of more criminals you would decrease the amount of crime that occurs in the world. Considering the benefits and drawbacks of the second choice, you eliminate criminals and save your own life, but at the risk of retribution and even guilt from blood on your hands. [/align] [align=left]Is there a universally correct choice? Perhaps there is... and perhaps there isn't. In a scenario such as this, the line between what is good and evil becomes skewed. An upstanding citizen may choose to save his own life so that he may serve his state once more, while a honest criminal may choose to sacrifice his own life as payment for the debts his crimes have wrought upon him. People will argue and have conflicts about one choice over the other choice, basing their answers on their own perspectives, backgrounds, and codes of honor. An Ul'dahn may choose a different answer from the Gridanian for the same reasons. They may also choose the same answer, but for different reasons. One may even contend that so long as there is more than one person in a setting, conflicting ideas will occur. The social circle that a person is raised in influences their interpretations of the world. What if, however, it were not perspectives, backgrounds, and codes of honor that dictate what a person may choose, but some other factor? You may make one choice now while reading about it and yet make a completely different choice when you are thrust into the situation. Emotional states may play into our responses; the more emotionally unstable we are, the more likely it is we make may decisions that go against our own values. Were we, perhaps, given inherently good souls upon our inceptions, only to have them darkened through the atrocities we have seen? Or do we make from our minds a system that we confide ourselves in, believing it to be good in all things? [/align] I end this case study with a question that I have not found a proper answer to: Is it better to be good and remain good, or is it better to turn evil, yet overcome your own nature? [/align]

*checks Fate-14 Sheet for clarification* 3.5 Better than a four, but definitely not the best fighter around. There's always a bigger fish.

I'll take "In Pursuit of the Steward" for 400.

Lynx looked down at the note that C'kayah had written on the job board, reading it quietly to herself. ...We're working with Osric and Kiht to draw Taeros out and attack him. To do this, we need the location of the Black Pit, a Monetarist prison in Western Thanalan... Must be another opportunity to make some gil to pay for her funds, right? Being an informer does not bring steady pay. Some days you can make a few hundred thousand gil and other days a paltry sum of less than a hundred. She would need to get gil whenever she could, and this job... this was an opportunity to do what she was good at. Her real performance in the grand scheme of fate and destiny--if she were willing to call it that--soon developed with a woman named Stormchild. Red hair, a pair of pince-nez, and red clothing adorned her figure, as well as a feisty appetite for alcoholic beverages--specifically of the rum and brandy variety. Lynx had considered her a quaint little bird that has found its way into a cage. The best way to meet with someone such as herself? Why, bring her guest down to a bar and have a few drinks, of course! Be a gracious host and perhaps receive a gracious guest in turn, she thought. Their pleasant exchange mutually benefited one another. She got the location of the Black Cells, an underground network of tunnels and cells a small distance north of the Hammers in Western Thanalan and a description of what type of guards would be there, while Stormchild got her fair share of free drinks. A few suns later she made an attempt to convene L'kenthi, C'kayah, Osric, and Kiht all back to the estate. The first two were unable to make the meeting, which left Lynx alone with Osric and Kiht to deliver the information and allow them to formulate their plan. For Osric, a small glass of pineapple juice mixed with rum sated his thirst. For Kiht, no drink was required. She gave the information, with a little bit of embellishment and pizzazz much to Osric's frustration, and talked with her two guests. She told them about the Brass Blades and mercenaries that were expected to be guarding the cells down there, as well as a warning that the guard information may not be accurate due to some developments in Ul'dah. Osric and Kiht were free to do as they pleased now knowing where their friend was held. What she didn't know, however, was why these two were so keen on reaching this place. Some extrapolation on Lynx's side would assume it's someone of high value who's being purposefully kept alive... yet she did not have a name for a face. She pressed Osric and Kiht for this information, yet received no quarter or even the slightest hint of an answer to her questions. One last look through her options on how to know that which she must know were slim, and she decided on something a villain would not normally consider. Helping out the heroes of the tale for no extra cost. If anything were to get the attention of Kiht and Osric, it would be that. Osric, though reluctant in his decision, allowed her the chance to help save whoever was inside of these cells and more openly talked about their plan to save the captive. It was agreed upon to be a group of four to five people in the rescue party: Lynx, Osric, Kiht, and one--possibly two--others of Ala Mhigan descent. She was to directly assist Kiht, while Osric and the others provided the proper distractions. After Osric and Kiht left the estate, Lynx was stopped by Lani, a white-haired female Miqo'te; a woman she would consider her direct boss. She gave a few warnings about Osric and his past, to which Lynx had dismissed given the current situation. "Osric? It isn't him that I'm afraid of... it's the Miqo'te woman that was with him. I know nothing about her, yet she was able to peel away a layer of my personality within two bells." She pauses for a moment before speaking again to consider her implications. "...Thank you for the warning though. I'll be more careful around him." With this, she headed up the stairs and back to her room, to her books, and to her maps. It was true, afterall, that Lynx knew nothing about Kiht. A fear of that which you know nothing about passed through her mind when she pondered about the Miqo'te, but it was nothing to be concerned about now. There were more pressing matters at hand. Many suns later in the present, outside the Gate of the Sultana where the group was meeting, she found Warren covered in armor from head to toe standing next to Osric, his face and body covered by the black robe he wore. She paused a moment, looking at the robed man with a raised eyebrow. Wait a minute, who was this again? She thought to herself briefly, before hearing his voice as confirmation. Nevermind, that is Osric. She chuckles a bit to herself as the group of three wait in the rain for their next companion Kiht, who arrived soon after Lynx with a spear, leather armour, and a mask covering most of her face. Right, right… a quick, tactical analysis. She tried to ponder through the rest of her thoughts without bringing too much attention to herself. As she pondered, the fireteam made their way towards the North Hammer, where the Black Cell is located. Her thoughts coincided with whom she looked at, assessing each person’s skills at a glance. She looked first at the front of the group. Mhm… Warren. Plate armour, brandishing a sword and shield. He’ll be useful for any encounters against arrows, so long as he doesn’t receive a hit in the cracks of his armour. At the very least, he will provide a counter towards any heavily armoured personnel. A glance to her left followed after Warren’s quick assessment. Kiht. An elusive Miqo’te to be sure, yet her combat capabilities are likely with that spear of hers. I’ll expect her to break through the line while Warren attempts to keep the more dangerous enemies on him. From Kiht, she turned her head over towards Osric. A slight smirk showed on her face as she looked his way. And Osric! Equipped with two dagger-sized blades, he’s going to be the person—besides myself—the most capable of slipping past the enemy vanguard. His sergeant status will likely set him as the ad hoc leader of this group. If he has knives he can throw, he can improve his function within the unit. She looked down at herself, patting down her coat and touching the hilts of both of her blades. Let’s see here… lockpicks, a few bandages, throwing knives, and a small logbook. Doubt our enemies will sit for a story this time though. And both of my blades look to be in good condition... Hm. It seems like I’ll have to act the part of an archer for a time, though with knives instead of arrows. She looked across the other three in the group once more before taking out a pair of goggles and putting them over her eyes. Warren in front, Kiht and Osric behind him, and myself as the rear guard... I’d imagine they’ll consider the same kind of formation as well. The group set foot at the entrance to the Black Cell. Osric removed his robe to show a person quite unlike the man she remembered seeing at the Tylwyth Narah estate. She stayed quiet about this, trusting the man to have a plan behind the appearance similar to a very certain pirate her organization has been investigating. One could even say he perfectly resembled Lazarov in height, stature, skin color, and hair color! Though… his eyes. If someone took a second glance, they may see through his carefully made disguise. Within moments after they made their way inside, shouting is heard at the other end of the tunnel. Thuds and crashes, chainmail bashing against the stone, and the splashing of water echoed down the path. “They’ll hire anyone these days, won’t they…?” Warren said. “Recruitment standards are lacking, that’s for certain. You think I boasted and poised and postured and called out his name enough times? I’d like to drop this atrocious accent as soon as possible.” A bit of disgust marked his words as Osric spoke. More footsteps were approaching from the other end of the tunnels. Three? Four? Lynx questioned the number, but didn’t assume that a large number could quickly traverse the tunnels with ease. The light touch of their steps on the ground could assume they were trying to be sneaky, and then—silence. “Kiht, Lynx, from here on out, eyes ‘n’ ears open. Expect anythin’.” Osric says, likely anticipating an encounter. The silence is broken as Warren clangs his sword on his shield, the wardrum of battle echoing throughout the halls. Lynx sighs to herself as she speaks in a soft, yet annoyed voice. “Well, now we can expect anything.” The others either didn’t respond or dismissed her attempt at a joke. “They’ll be in touch on pearl at the very least. They knew we were here before we did.” says Warren. Osric grins, his red shirt and black vest making him an easy target to spot. “Blades, paladins, archers, musketmen… anythin’ ‘n’ everythin’.” “Indeed, I think we have even awakened ancient spirits by now…” Kiht states, before readying her spear. “Front and center, Arbiter?” Osric chimed in. “Makes the most sense.” Warren says, as he steps to the forefront, keeping his shield raised and his eyes open. Lynx almost made a comment about how the enemy knew they were coming, but she stayed her tongue. Pointless questions won’t do much good here. “Line it up.” Osric states; the group putting themselves in order. Like Lynx predicted, they set themselves into a formation much like the one played out in her mind. “Know what folks use t’bring down gates, Ser Castille?” Warren smirks before replying. “I’m familiar. Hold tight, watch your corners.” The team interpreted his sentence as a final piece of advice. Osric tightened the grip on his blades, Warren kept his shield tight to maximize his defense, Kiht prepares her stance, and Lynx puts a blade in her right hand and a throwing knife in her left hand. Osric laughed. “Battering ram.”

Character Name: Leggerless Hanzou (ICly known as Lynx) Character Type: Informationist, part-time researcher (operations research, tactics, strategy), lawful evil, katana-user (mix of Rogue/Gladiator). {Warning: Good to contact for illegal jobs and/or for research; bad to contact if you're wanting to make a quick friend. Can acid test people interested in underworld RP.} Availability Day(s) of the Week: All days Time(s) of the Day: For RP: Typically between 19:00 CST - 23:00 CST any given day. I'm online for more of the day before 19:00 CST but that's reserved for PvE, leveling, and RP appointments. Compatible with EU/NA RPers. Frequent Locations: Thalanan, La Noscea, The Goblet, Ul'dah, Limsa Lominsa, Quicksand, Wineport, and Camp Drybone. Able to travel to all regions with relative ease.

*raises hand* Another for the waiting list here. Leggerless Hanzou

leggerless Picture of a bird with a coffee cup; can't miss it. Just mention server/name and we'll be groovy.

http://www.memegasms.com/media/created/zg9ac8.jpg[/img] The Whispervine has recently hit over 50 linkshell members! We are still going strong and accepting applicants.

*raises hand* I volunteer as another tribute! Additionally, characters don't have to be 100% villian. They could just be a character that doesn't agree with how you do things and simply tries to make trouble for you whenever possible. Perhaps they would even question your characters morals as well... maybe even testing how closely you "follow what you preach." Plenty of opportunities for how to make a villian work with your character. All you need... is the villian (or villians) to make it happen!

[Now Deleted]

It's a funny concept I'll explain a little further below: The goal of this project is to design a way to introduce RP to newcomers that isn't intimidating and does not require an extensive background on FFXIV's lore. A secondary goal of this project is to make it easier to generate creative RP that goes beyond the tavern setting. In short: It's an optimized form of RP. "Wait, you can optimize RP?" Heh. You can optimize pretty much anything. I'd even argue that RP is no exception. There's a few things that are required to know beforehand for this type of RP: The roles of the characters involved. The setting the RP will take place at. The central plot of the RP. The idea is that as long as these three points are established, any type of RP may take place at any location at any time. All that it requires is at least two willing parties to start. The Equation: Roles + Setting + Plot = Story

Howdy y'all, Leggerless [iC: Lynx] here. A bit of background: Outside of FFXIV, there are... quite a few other MMOs and games I could list off having experience in. To name a few: WoW (Pre-WotLK), Defiance, Vindictus, Dragon Nest, Dungeon Fighter Online, and Torchlight 2. Also have a little experience with D&D. We also have Planetside 2, where I am currently one of the admins for a community-based organization (Server Smash) that hosts large-scale competitive matches on an international scale. Relating to FFXIV: I'm a transfer from Sargatanas; the main reason that I came to Balmung was to discover another form of entertainment besides theorycrafting and PvE. That entertainment is RP. I also recently got recruited by Raltz Waltz to be one of the NET Coordinators. Instead of inter-server relations, I'm doing inter-FC relations. Neat change of pace! If you're a fellow RPer that happens to be into theorycrafting, I'd love to chat with you sometime to see some of the work you've done; it'd be a real pleasure to witness as I'm trying to get into that part of the gaming world. Anyways, I hope I don't come off too intimidating ICly and I hope for a great time RPing.

((Preface: Yes, I'm aware I'm not using a 'character' with an RP name. Transferred from Sargatanas to Balmung. This is why ICly, I use an alias (i.e. 'Lynx') to name my character. Strangely enough, it also works as a secret identity ICly as well.)) I. Basic Info Characters:'Lynx' (Wiki!) Primary character:Leggerless Hanzou Linkshells:NET RP-FC Directory Primary RP linkshell:NET RP-FC Directory II. RP Style Amount of RP (light, medium, heavy): I'd have to say probably with the 25%-40% range. This most likely means I'll only be around to work with light or medium RP, but I don't have any problem dropping time into an RP if there are no other conflicts. Views on RP combat and injuries: Oh boy. At least this isn't DnD. RP Combat... acceptable for the character. Most of my past experience I've seen deals with taking "turns." This means that the character with initiative, the faster person, will take the first strike. Since there isn't a dice and saving throws to determine the likelihood of missing, we instead state that we're attempting to execute the action. The receiver of said action can choose to either take the blow without so much as moving, or could in response do some sort of block that takes into account the force applied by the striking weapon. Injuries are permanent until healed ICly in my book. This means that, for example, if you have to bandage up yourself, you better make a note of that ICly and not immediately write it off. After a decent break of healing or so, you can finally go back to your full strength again and remove those bandages. Views on IC romance: IC romance? Would be possible, but it would be very tough to maintain due to her nature. Additionally, she would likely only agree to a platonic love, as a relationship would likely restrict her freedoms. As for ERP? That's a no-fly zone, Captain. Views on non-romantic RP (family ties, etc): If it is not beneficial for her or mutually beneficial for both parties to have a tie to each other, then she will vehemently reject it. If it is the opposite case, she would be willing to consider but would likely change it to fit her side of the deal better. Views on lore: If you're not able to become the role you are RPing as in Eorzea, I'll probably write you off. Other times I go by the realm of possibility. If it can be proven that it is possible and within reason to commit the action you did, then it's allowable. Moogle delivery service and using aetherytes (as in being right next to one) to teleport away would be ICly. An exception to the teleport rule is if I'm not currently RPing! As for conversation, it's a lay of the land deal; don't expect me to entertain someone calling the Binding Coil of Bahamut the St. Louis Arch ICly. Views on chat functions (/say, /linkshell, etc): /say, I consider IC and inside quotation marks; this is the dialogue between characters. /em, I consider IC and as actions taken by a player; dialogue can also be placed inside of here, but must be placed in quotation marks to distinguish it. /linkshell, I consider IC unless otherwise stated. /fc... Yea, that's going to be OOC. /party chat, I consider OOC unless stated as IC. /tell I consider IC while RPing, OOC while I'm not RPing. When making an OOC comment while RPing I will use a double bracket "(())" to section it off. III. Other Info Country:United States (EN-US) Timezone:CST (GMT - 6) Contact info: Teamspeak, Skype (leggerless), Reddit (Leggerless), in-game, or PM here.