r/whowouldwin • u/mrcelophane • May 06 '15
Character Scramble! Character Scramble III Championship!
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Hello all and welcome to the championship for the third installment of the Who Would Win Character Scramble! Many of you have probably seen these posts popping up on the subreddit with some regularity and have been wondering what they are.
The Character Scramble is a game that started on this sub a little over half a year ago. The basic premise is that each participant is given a team of random (or "scrambled") characters that were submitted by other participants. Each week, the participants write a Bloodmatch letting us know how their team would beat their opponent's team (determined by best-of-1 brackets) based on special rules. If you would like to participate in next season, please sign up for the email list above to be notified of the sign up topic and more. If you want more information regarding the character Scramble. you can read every post ever made for the scramble by clicking on the hub post link at the top of this post, and feel free to ask any questions you may have in this thread.
Each season follows a different theme which determines the limitations and overall power level of each of the characters allowed. The theme is determined by the champion of the previous season. This season's theme was created by /u/dat_bass1 and was called "The Scramble Ball Run" and involves a race across America for vast sums of money.
Our Heroes (and villains) have traveled from the West Coast and dealt with everything from generic thieves, crossing piranha infested rivers, and taking down super powered foes that required the cooperation of both teams...and that is not even taking into account the fact that a different scramble team was fighting them every week.
Below, I will post the prompt that our two finalists, /u/7thsonofsons and /u/House_of_Usher, were working off of.
When you are ready to vote, USE THIS FORM. It will remain open through the weekend. This post will likely stay stickied till only Friday, so please save/bookmark it if you want to vote but need the weekend to read through these excellent responses.
The finalists have spent a lot of time on these, so please read both posts fully before voting.They may take a little while to go up so please be patient.
The Prompt
FINAL ROUND: MANHATTAN RHAPSODY
It's been a long time coming. A couple of months ago, you signed up for a race across America with an enticing cash prize, dreaming of fame and fortune, and it's been pretty much non-stop action since then. You've finished six stages--each of which presented its own unique set of environmental hazards--covered more than 2000 miles total, and fought what feels like dozens of other contenders along the way. Now, you're finally here, at the beginning of the seventh stage--『The Final Push』--and there are only three other contenders left, besides you and your associates.
Time to settle this the only way it ever could be settled. With an all-out sprint to the finish.
RULES
Fight for the Finish: This is a straight-up race from Brighton Beach to Trinity Church (as always, give it up for MS paint), with a checkpoint at Brooklyn Bridge (you don't have stop, but you do have to cross it). As soon as the starter's pistol is fired, it's on, and the victory condition is having one of your teammates there first.
Weapons Free: The race organizers (that is, those of them who still remain) have pretty much given up and accepted that this whole event has been and will continue to be looked on as a barbaric outrage by critics the world over. You're free to duke it out as you race (in fact, considering that this is a tournament on /r/whowouldwin, you're expected to!).
Mind the Crowd: The sides of the route will, most likely, be packed with adoring fans. It'd be a good idea to be careful of them.
This is for all the marbles: Not only will the winner take home a cool hundred billion dollar cash prize, but, thanks to a bet made between the two competing teams, all the magic idols left in play.
What now?: How will your team split up the prize once one of them wins? How will they use the single wish that assembling all the idols in one place grants? IT'S UP TO YOU, THE AUTHOR, TO DECIDE!
7
u/mrcelophane May 06 '15
Part 4: Final Lap
Cho weighed his options. Not Raiden. He’d slaughter me in a heartbeat. Not the Xenomorph, Bolin can deal with him. That leaves Jin. “Bolin, take the alien. Take-Mikazuchi, stall Raiden. I’ll keep Jin occupied.”
Running full on at Jin, Cho began to calculate the man’s moves. Okay, Potential Pattern One: slice to the shoulder, dodge. Reverses blow, block with mace, deflect sword at 30 degree angle. End Pattern One. Potential Pattern Two:...
After running through every pattern possible, Cho engaged Jin, barely ducking under the kenjutsu expert’s blade. Geez, he’s fast. Reevaluate some of the patterns to reflect inordinate speed. Cho blocked the second strike with his mace, and retaliated by attempting a sweeping kick. Jin dodged it easily, leaping backwards into the air and landing with a smirk. “Unorthodox moves, using your environment, I know all about your tactics, Cho. I used to work with a man who fought in a similar fashion. You won’t catch me off guard.”
Damn. thought Cho, this is going to be a long couple of minutes.
Meanwhile…
Bolin wasn’t the best combat strategist, but when an enemy makes a conscious effort to stay as far away from lava as possible, then it’s a sign the enemy is afraid of lava. Of course, pretty much everything is afraid of lava. Bolin only connected the dots after Cho had connected them for him, and once Cho had explained that the alien creature was likely afraid of fire and extreme temperatures, Bolin had just nodded and accepted it. With Cho, that’s pretty much all you could do.
This left Bolin in the advantageous situation of having both a rotating disc formed of pure lava and an enemy with a pretty debilitating phobia. “C’mere, you!”
Rex dodged the disc, spitting something in Bolin’s direction. Bolin raised a wall of earth in front of him, and was dismayed as it began to dissolve. “Okay, that is one ick level up from Flying Bison snot. And I hate Flying Bison snot.”
As Bolin hurled the disc towards the Xenomorph again, Raiden intercepted the attack, cutting the lava weapon in half. Take-Mikazuchi followed, throwing lightning at the Xenomorph and attempting to crush Raiden. Bolin created another disc, this time sending it at Raiden, who was locked in a grapple with Take-Mikazuchi, but was forced to dodge out of the way as more of the Xenomorph’s spit came flying towards him. Damn. thought Bolin, this is going to be a long couple of minutes.
Meanwhile…
Cho’s mace flew into the river. Jin lowered his sword, satisfied with his victory. Cho fell to his knees, looking lost. “You are really, really good. I predicted every move you made and I still couldn’t match you.”
Jin adjusted his glasses. “You were a worthy opponent, and, as I said, much like my old associate. Only he was more… rough around the edges. It would be a shame to end the life of one so talented.”
Cho sensed a But. “But…”
Jin raised his sword. “I’m afraid my wariness of you goes even deeper than respect for your talents, Amadeus Cho. You are a threat, even while beaten. And I have an obligation to help my team to victory. I’m sure you understand.”
Meanwhile… again…
Raiden dodged another lava disc and closed in on Bolin’s makeshift earth shelter. After switching opponent’s with the Xenomorph, Rex had kept Take-Mikazuchi busy and off Raiden’s back, leaving him free to deal with the real reason he had almost sunk to a watery grave.
Raiden cut down Bolin’s disc. “This,”
Raiden ran at Bolin’s shelter, slicing through the tough rocky wall. “Is why,”
Bolin attempted to escape through a small tunnel, but Raiden grabbed him and threw him out into the open. “You don’t,”
As Bolin rose to his feet, Raiden kneed Bolin in the gut. Hard. “Piss me off. Are we clear?”
“Crystal,” moaned Bolin from his supine position.
Raiden turned to see Rex still struggling with the Persona, Take-Mikazuchi, and Jin with Cho at his mercy. He turned back to Bolin. “Looks like it’s all over. Call out that yellow-haired friend of yours, and I’ll be more inclined to be merciful.”
Bolin smiled a crack-toothed smile. “About that…” he began.
Elsewhere
“What do you mean he’s not here?” asked Jin, his brow furrowed.
“Simple,” said Cho. “Kanji hasn’t been here for the entire fight. By leaving his Persona in his place, Kanji could safely run the remainder of the race without any interference. I he keeps his speed up, he should arrive in about 10 seconds. So, Jin: am I still worth killing?”
“Jin!” Raiden came running over. “The Bolin kid says the yellow-haired punk is heading the church! We need to stop him-”
“No point. He’s already almost there.” Jin lowered a hand and helped Cho to his feet. “Well played, Amadeus Cho. Well played.”
Rex looked around in confusion as Take-Mikazuchi dissappeared. Suddenly, Speedwagon’s voice rang out once more. “Ladies and Gentlemen, spectators and competitors, the race is over. While Cho and Bolin held the rear, Kanji Tatsumi snuck ahead, beating the other team to Trinity Church during the ensuing fight! It took guts! It took deception! It took Cho and Bolin risking their very lives, and Kanji’s indomitable will and faith in his comrades! But in the end, I pronounce the winners of the Scramble Ball Run to be Amadeus Cho, Kanji Tatsumi, and Bolin!”
Speedwagon composed himself, wiping away the manly tears forming on his face. “But we cannot forget the competition, the warriors who so nearly snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, who so often proved themselves to be proud gentlemen and worthy foes! Let’s hear it for Jack Raiden, Jin, and Rex the Xenomorph!”
The crowd, now slowly streaming back to the scene of the fight, began to cheer. Raiden sheathed his sword, as did Jin. The two swordsmen shared a brief moment together, basking in the warm applause. Neither of these men often had a chance to be respected and lauded for their actions.
As Bolin and Cho began to walk to Trinity Church to greet and congratulate Kanji, Raiden broached the question on both his and Jin’s mind. “So, what do we do with Rex?”
The Xenomorph came over and rubbed its head on Raiden’s shoulder reassuringly. Jin smiled. “Keep him, Raiden. From what you’ve told me about your life, it would be greatly improved with one more murderous monster on your side. God knows your enemies have enough already.”
Raiden nodded, seeing the merits of having Rex at his back, especially on any future missions involving Snake. “Yes, I see what you mean. I think this is the beginning of a long and profitable partnership. What do you say, Rex?”
The Xenomorph growled appreciatively as Raiden scratched it underneath the mandible. “Excellent,” said Raiden.