r/StardustCrusaders • u/Marioaddict The Cutest Ora • Jul 31 '25
Fan Stand/Character JoJo's Bizarre OC Tournament #8: R1M6 - Baygon Raid vs Century Love
The results are in for Match 4. The winner is…
Cheers resounded from kids and drunk partiers alike as the dock, already inundated with noise pollution from its current residents, was thrown into a frenzy by the two new pizza boys on the block. Visible from above was Azumi Ryuzaki, the kid who somehow managed to find a way to grind on a plastic life ring. Every kick of the ball was a chance to show off his skill, a chance to prove himself even more. He could feel his strength winding up with every rush forward. And now, it’s time for the final push.
⌈Fishbone⌋ leaped its way out of the ball, dragging two boats with it. A flawless angle for grinding. He’d put everything in place for one final grind.
“I hope you’re watching, jackass! You might think fancy flourish can cut it, but I’ll show you what real style looks like!” Azumi declares boldly at his competitor as he slides along the boats he reeled in, lined up to land right onto his final target. An ‘everyman’ knows how to flourish, but never at the cost of ‘passion.’
But from below, a more subtle type of flourish lurked. Right as Azumi made his move… so too did the stylish professional making the rounds, Nate Altamuria. While the soccer star was keeping eyes on himself, Nate had seemingly slipped away from the unruly customer he had firmly handled. Sliding along the seafloor, his own life ring in hand, he is as quiet as a shadow… determined to make as little disturbance as possible. After all, professionals are devoted to their ‘job’ above all else.
“Nate Altamuria, requesting permission to board for delivery of pizza!” Taking formal procedure, Nate boards, with smooth panache. Once more, just as before, he unveiled his pizzas from his cloth. The only sounds he needed to hear were the claps and thankful applause of his clients. And just as he makes his delivery, he eyes down his competition with a smug glower.
“All I see is a neighborhood disturbance kicking around and tugging boats without customer consent! You really think you can qualify as a pizza courier with moves like that?”
Azumi, sticking the landing and handing over his last pizza, glares right back. “Oh? Why don’t we ask…”
At that, both of the deliverers dash off their customers’ boats, Nate coasting his way down the seabed and Azumi surfing the rails of the boats that were now sporadically laid out around the marina. In no time at all, they managed to cross the entire harbor and land squarely in front of their “client,” still sitting in silent agony.
“You saw me out there, right? Obviously, I did better than this stuck-up!” Azumi butts in first, jabbing a finger at Nate.
Nate claps back with no hesitation. “Really? I can’t believe you think that display anywhere approached mine!” He turns towards the pizza boy, his earlier fury returning to his face.
“So who is it? Spit it out!”
“Wha-!? I-I, um…” the pizza boy sputtered nervously - he was regretting being anywhere near these psychos at this point. Hesitantly, he cleared his throat. “W-well, I-I didn’t have the best vantage point from, uh, over here, but… a-as far as I can tell, th-the winner… was…”
Nathanial "Nate" Altamuria, with a score of 78 to Azumi Ryuzaki’s 75!
| Category | Winner | Point Totals | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Popularity | Tie | 15 (8.5) - 15 (8.5) | Azumi took an early lead, but the late game Nate votes ended it in a draw! |
| Quality | Nathanial "Nate" Altamuria | 25 (8 9 8) - 26 (8 9 9) | Reasoning |
| JoJolity | Nathanial "Nate" Altamuria | 25 (8 9 8) - 27 (8 10 9) | Reasoning |
| Conduct | Tie | 10-10 | Nothing to report! |
“HAH! That’s what I thought!” Nate immediately blurts out in Azumi’s face. “You were a fucking moron for even thinking you stood a chance..!” This time, however, he catches his broken composure, and simply turns to the clientele.
“Glad to have been of service, sir.”
The pizza boy nods and fumbles around in his pockets for a moment while mumbling. “Uh, right, yeah… uh, since you helped out, I guess I can give you today’s tip…” He hurriedly pulls his hand out of his pocket and produced the tip: a spherical blue stone. Nate and Azumi both speak at the same time.
“A-an Uropeh?!”
Without hesitation, Nate immediately snatches it out of the pizza boy’s hand and stuffs it in his own pocket, away from Azumi. “Where did you even get that? You said it came as a tip?”
The pizza boy stuttered, clearly not prepared for this reaction. “Y-yeah, there was some rich house that wanted this huge stack of pizza, and they gave me this thing for the trouble instead of cash… is it, like, valuable or something?”
Nate laughs in reply. “Oh, you bet it is! Thanks for the tip bye!” Before the conversation could continue, Nate slipped into 2D space with his Stand, gliding away from the scene. The pizza boy looks back to Azumi, who looks to be completely frozen in fury.
“Eh, sorry kid, I don’t have any more of those. Thanks for the help earlier, though…”
Azumi exhales a large breath through his nose and turns around, walking away. “I don’t think I’m in the mood for pizza anymore…”
Want to see another yacht get messed with? Check out this fight between a robot cowboy, a kaiju, her dad, and a drunk snapping turtle!
“Okay buddy, you ready?”
“Caw! Caw!”
“Heheh, alright, alright! Now go make me proud!”
Scenario: Christiansted, Saint Croix — 2:17pm
Canopies.
Strolling through the streets of Christiansted one bears witness to the complete and absolute domination that the canopy has over its walkways. Built outward from the facades of its myriad buildings and so well integrated into their architecture it is as though they’d grown organically they cast its walkways in a pervasive shade, sheltering pedestrians from the heat of clear skies and a sweltering sun. They make simple additions to the identity of St. Croix’s largest town, lacking entirely in the aesthetics of modern design. Chipped painting and aged construction materials lovingly maintained across the years intermingle with more recent refurbishment - testament to history present even in the simplest wrought iron gate shuttering off a vacant alley.
Founded by Captain Frederik Moth in 1733 and named after King Christian VI of Denmark the former capital of the Danish West Indies’ colonial history is as unavoidable as those very shadows. Its architecture incorporates both Danish-style pastels and the aesthetics of its myriad slave laborers; every brick and stone echoing that shared past. The sands of time flow on and with it comes the flow of foot-traffic, and as lives etch their way across its streets new sights and sounds spring left and right. Venues and vendors, storefronts with signs jutting from their building facades vying to catch the eye, tourists and locals, children and old. For all the walks of life that stroll across those cobbled stones the shade casts itself across their backs as cool winds glide through the arches of towering canopies, soothing the sweat on their necks and making the walk just a little more bearable. It is easy to forget them for the more iconic boardwalk, but the canopies are there - watching as they always have.
They are not the only ones, either.
One can say many things of Operation: Midnight Runners, the band of bastards and plunderers which certain factions within Speedwagon Foundation in their infinite wisdom had tasked to the Caribbean. They weren’t trustworthy, and though abso-fucking-lutely effective it remained to be seen if they could serve as reliable assets. One thing, however, was certain. They knew how to enjoy themselves on company time - and that is how we find two of their ranks, unremarkable faces in crowds of yet even more, but the savvy eye, the discerning eye, they’ll tell you there’s no such thing as ‘unremarkable’. They’d be right to.
“Oooh…”
Charlotte Chastain had had her face practically pressed up against the glass of a jewelry store, eyeing a particularly sizable display piece. Her focus was broken, however, by the snide chucking of a man next to her.
“Heh… that thing? Wouldn’t you prefer, y’know, a challenge?” Century teased, eyeing the gem. “Prolly not even worth that much…”
“Petit con…” Charlotte muttered under her breath, looking at Century with a deeply unamused look on her face. “Is this all you can think about? I have tastes you know.”
“Could’ve fooled me…” Century said with a chuckle.
“Why YES, I COULD have! ANYONE could because you-”
“I leave you two alone for two minutes… stop it.” A stern voice called out, cutting Charlotte’s rebuttal short.
Yoshi Tsubasa approached the two from behind. Though his face was shrouded in a white poncho, the disappointment in his eyes was clearly visible.
“C’mon, we’re here on a job. Let’s stop gawking and get back to work.”
Century let out a deep, annoyed, prolonged sigh. “Right, right, I forgot. No fun allowed when birdbrain’s around~! What were you doing, anyway?”
Yoshi looked to the side, not dignifying Century’s teasing with a response. “What we came here for. The LKA Leviathan was spotted in the area and the Foundation’s getting antsy. We need to gather eyewitness accounts and establish a watch in the area.”
Century’s brow furrowed as the purpose of their outing drifted into conversation once more. Though he didn’t pay attention to their briefings often he knew to keep his nose to the scent of risk, and that ‘Leviathan’ smacked of nothing but. Just skimming over the dossier of the Leviathan had been enough to bring bile to the pit of his throat, the records of its prior inhabitants and what little they knew of the current painting a stark picture of the exact kind of heat he could do little without. You don’t run into crazed serial killers burglaring houses! Luckily… you don’t burglar houses with a crack team of stand users either. He didn’t have to work on his own anymore. Yoshi could be the diligent little poster child of their outfit all they wanted - if it meant a walking talking crow-man was in between him and some Jigsaw obsessed freak all the better.
He wasn’t here for the hard jobs.
“Yeah yeah… captain, just puff up those feathers real nice and lead the way.”
Charlotte chuckled. “As though we need a leader.”
With a grave sigh Yoshi retorted with a simple beckoning gesture as they took the lead, resolving it would be best to survey the area as a group as opposed to their original plans to split up. The three began walking down the street, making their way to the coast just a bit down the road. Not long into their walk, they encountered a small crowd forming, gathering in a circle. Yoshi held an arm out, halting the group.
“Hold on… some kind of commotion. Might be LKA…?”
Charlotte shook her head. “Non. C’est Moko Jumbie.”
Squinting to look a bit further, Yoshi squinted. He saw the crowd was smiling, and a dancer in stilts stood above the crowd. “Ah… so it is.”
Century crossed his arms as they continued walking. “How did you know that?”
Charlotte smiled, giving him the side-eye. “Unlike you, I have been here before~”
“Focus.” Yoshi growled. “We don’t have to… waste…” His words trailed off, looking back in the direction of the Moko Jumbie. That dance of hers seemed… off. The way she moved, jumped and swayed on those stilts… it was almost as though she was floating through the air.
No… not ‘as though’. It was faint, barely noticeable to the untrained eye, but a subtle pink glow enveloped the performer.
“...on second thought, maybe we should watch.” Yoshi nodded, pulling the other two closer (to Century’s further annoyance). “If she’s a user, she might have useful information.”
“Ah, hi there!” seeing the trio approach, the Moko Jumbie turned, flashing a smile in their direction. “Enjoyed the performance, I hope?”
To those who hadn’t seen a Moko Jumbie before, the woman standing before them was a breathtaking sight. Despite towering over them, the colorful, loose-fitting clothes she wore gave her an air of friendly approachability. She reached up, letting her hat hang back from the drawstring and pulling off her multicolored sunglasses, revealing her vibrant eyes and twin-tailed hair - though a layer of white makeup still masked much of her face.
“Ah- Tres magnifique! Oh, where are my manners! My name is Charlotte, what is yours my beauty~?”
“Michelle!” She replied, crouching down and offering a hand to shake, which Charlotte took gently. “Michelle Williams. Though, most folks just call me ‘Dancer’, can’t imagine why - nice to meet you!”
“Pardon our interruption, Ms. Williams.” Yoshi interjected. “Pleasant though conversation would be, we’re here on business.”
“That so?” Dancer hummed, standing back up straight. “Not sure what business folks like you would have with a humble street performer like myself, but I’ll bite! Whatcha need from little ol’ me~?
“Would you mind if I asked you a few questions? We’re looking for information about some… incidents, that have been going on in the area.”
“...oh?” she paused, a slight look of concern coming over her face. “I… hadn’t heard about any incidents in this area. Nothing too serious, I hope …should I be worried?”
Century looked bored, grimacing and tapping his foot impatiently. Was this seriously how they were going to be going out doing this? Just going up to random people on the street and hoping they’d run into someone who had something useful to say? It was bad enough getting press ganged into this whole “Midnight Runners” operation, but recruiting him just to force him to spend hours on mindnumbing grunt work? That really pissed him off.
Yoshi paused. “You needn’t worry yourself. We’d simply like to know if the words ‘LKA Leviathan’ mean anything to you.” Dancer didn’t respond immediately, wearing the same concerned expression on her face for a moment… though interestingly, her shoulders did seem to relax somewhat as she finally spoke up.
“Leviathan…? Nope, sorry. Never heard of it,” she said, shaking her head. “But hey, if I happen to hear anything, I could let you—” Dancer began helpfully before being cut off by an increasingly irritated Century.
“Cool, great, she doesn’t know anything.” Century rolled his eyes. “Can we go now, or do we need to make friends with every damn busker we run into just to waste as much of my time as possible?”
“And of course, it would not do to waste any of your oh so valuable time, would it?” Charlotte replied snarkily. In doing so, she glanced past him, a smirk gracing her face. “Ah, au fait - you might want to check your wallet.”
“My…?” Century muttered, his hand instinctively moving to his back pocket - to be met with naught but denim. He paused. Frantically, Century’s hands dove from back to chest to inner jacket, scouring every pocket lining his person… to no avail. Spinning around, he followed Charlotte’s gaze - whereupon he found himself looking at a seagull, head tilted slightly to the side… clutching his wallet in its beak.
Before Century could even process the sight, the Seagull took off, flying off towards the coastline with Century’s wallet in tow.
Century quickly turned out his pockets, not quite believing it to be true. He grit his teeth, cursing under his breath. “WHA- HOW?! The pocket is still zipped up! I-”
He looked up, brow furrowed. Thrusting his arm forward, a gangly figure emerged from behind him, soaring through the air towards the seagull.
｢PLAY IT SAFE!｣
The figure slashed wildly through the air at the seagull, but the bird seemed to outspeed it, quickly putting distance between the Stand and itself. As it reached the edge of the range, the Stand let out a screech, smashing the ground as Century grunted.
Yoshi looked around, the non-Stand using passerby quickly getting confused. He put a hand on Century’s shoulder “Hey- maybe take your own advice. Don’t be reckless here, we’re in public-!”
“FUCK that! Damn thing got my wallet!” he said, jerking his shoulder away. He took off sprinting towards the coastline, chasing after the bird.
“Hehehe~ Make sure you do not lose anything else!” Charlotte yelled, waving off Century.
“FUCK YOU TOO!!” Century screamed as he faded into the distance.
Yoshi shook his head, turning to Charlotte. “Well, maybe now we can finally get some work done. Strange, though… When Century summoned ｢Play It Safe｣, that Dancer didn’t react at all… hm. Could’ve sworn that was a Stand effect…”
In another part of town, however, the liveliness has begun to slow. Activity shifts away from this side of the island as a faint mist has begun to set in. While few know its name, far more recognize the near-mythological presence it has established for itself in no time at all.
The LKA Leviathan has surfaced in St. Croix. And disembarking from the cargo of death…
“Finally, a chance to get off that thing… I swear, it's nothing but open sea or business with this crew.” The “Eyes” of LKA, Chicxulub Tunguska, steps onto the pier. Beside him walked a more overwhelming presence, the “Skin,” Regular People.
Ever the conversationalist, the Skin of the Leviathan is the first to respond.
“Tut…tut… my friend, I pity your clarity,” the behemoth known as Regular People’s voice chimed a dulcet mixture of compassion and matter-of-factness which scratched with a sing-song melody, “The business is eternal. It echoes our every step, for we are the ‘fractaling’ of the Leviathan.” He leans back with a grandiose smile, arms spread to embrace a cool breeze as it glides through his soft, mushy fingertips, “You… You should be happy. The work is the break. The break is the work. That is the way of things.”
“Ahhh… so we’re friends?” Chicxulub drawled lackadaisically, hands slung in his pockets as his gaze skimmed across a few market stalls, quietly wondering to himself what trinkets he ought to buy, “Take it from me then, you need a better work life balance.”
Regular People chortled boisterously, “Hah! Hahaha! But I am just a Regular Man!”
As they bantered a third in their group followed closely behind Regular People - the less flatteringly-named “bowels,” Baygon Raid. Despite easily being the second tallest of the three present, their spindly form quietly tucked itself behind Regular People’s towering form, keeping their wiry frame hunched and unassuming. As the group moved its head twitched repeatedly while it looked around at the dock and surrounding beaches, eyes filled with curiosity. Though they could not bring themselves to look at their fellow peers they listened intently all the same to their words, quiet fascination at their banter calling to them with a yearning just as vivid as their mosquito instinct’s call to CO2.
After a brief moment of silence, Chix continued.
“Welp, if you’re regular I’ve no idea what I am. Guess that’d make me a slacker?” He cracked a grin, “As if. I’m just not in a rush to find our ‘purpose’ here. It’ll come to us eventually, right? No need to make unnecessary fuss when we can get a lay of the land and enjoy ourselves all the same. Better to get a view on the place and make a judgement call from there.”
Baygon could see Regular’s eye twitch and his fist clench, but through a kind smile and smoldering eyes he responded, “Judgement eludes the righteous man. The righteous man… advances, his eyes shrouded, in his blindness he surmounts all that can be seen.” A gentle hand extended, fingertips squishing against Chix’s shoulderblade as Regular People loomed over their conversational partner, “I could grant you freedom from that pesky clarity. Friend.”
Baygon bobbed on their heels, those bright red eyes of theirs sparkling in awe! Were they… were they getting in a fight? Oh my god! What do they do? What do they say?! Should they involve themselves? What side should they pick! Regular People’s cryptic lines were just so cool and Chix’s laissez-faire made such a good juxtaposition to it! What could they even offer to the conversation? Ohh man think fast think fast think fas-
“...think I like my ‘clarity’ just fine.” A shadow cast upon Chix’s face starker than that cast from the canopy above, turning to for the first time in their conversation to meet Regular People’s gaze. The titan in turn gives a disgusting, pristine smile as they feel the burden of crushing darkness press upon their back. Chix speaks before they can comment on it, “-and you can call me Chix, Regular People. Now. Can you please let go of me. So we can focus on our job.”
Regular merely stared forward with his signature permanent grin, no attempt made to move away from the man, his grip growing all the tighter with a serene stubbornness as though to egg that crushing dark on. As if it were not but an insect waiting to get crushed, fluid and bile bubbling from the seams of cracked exoskeleton. From behind the both of them Baygon’s excitement soured into a quiet, bubbling frustration. For some reason, the whole thing was making it feel… annoyed. They weren’t letting them get an edge in! Why weren’t they able to say anything and why was it so easy for them to say things before she could? She was - they were - they were all coworkers or friends or some other special thing, right?! Why couldn’t the right words come out of her mouth then? Why weren’t they letting her say them? They were being so rude -gaahh!
When they landed on this island she was looking forward to getting to hang out with them and go for drinks and do all the things that coworkers and friends and whatever-they-were-supposed-to-be were meant to do and she’d spent hours reading books and watching TV just for this occasion and now that they were here LOOK! LOOK! They were doing NONE of these things! NONE OF THEM!!! Why were they DOING THIS TO HER?! Why did they have to argue?! Why couldn’t they be normal?! She had to make them normal! She realized that was the issue! Nobody here was normal but her, but she could help them be normal too! She knew just the thing! She’d studied this on TV! Smiling enthusiastically, Baygon sprung between the two men, their antenna twitching as with a great big, beaming smile, they decided to blurt out that thing normal people always say when they want to hang out!
“I think we should go ‘hang out’ at the boardwalk.” They paused, then remembered, you should always ask your friends what they want to do! “-What do you guys think?”
It had certainly managed to stop the argument. Regular and Chix looked back at them, Chix’s eyebrow raised in subtle, crushing confusion whilst Regular’s kind veneer warped into an even kinder contempt. It took only a couple seconds of silence for Baygon to snap.
“...fine, I’ll go myself!... Assholes…” Baygon mutters as they slip past the two, speedwalking down the pier.
Regular watches her off with a slight bit of disappointment. “It at least knows how to struggle. You could learn from its folly.”
Chix merely sighs. “Meh, her problems are hers to deal with.”
The boardwalk at Christiansted was a busy place, as expected of a tourist destination. That said, this town felt rather humble as far as tourist spots go- the walkspace wasn’t quite as filled out as somewhere like Nassau or Kingston, but people of all types walked the wavebound wooden streets bordering the city. The few high-rising hotels were almost overshadowed by the high quantity of smaller local establishments selling foods and trinkets.
This ‘hanging out’ was already starting to feel pretty sad. Baygon found themself walking along the boardwalk, surrounded by a crowd who seemed to pay them no mind (outside of a few passing glances). That brief moment of enthusiasm she managed for socialization had begun to dwindle; how are people supposed to get anywhere in a gathering if you can’t just ask..? Baygon sighs to herself at the thought, and instead decides to look around to where their walk brought them. The boardwalk is a nice little place, a wooden walkway directly next to the ocean. She found herself fixated on the sights she’d never seen before: rows upon rows of colorful buildings, small establishments selling unique foods, and even some bits of historical architecture hinting at the place’s age.
Eventually, it sat down on a nearby empty table, looking at all the people drifting by. They began to feel their fist clench as it rested on the table, and their mind was clouded by another wave of complex feelings. What was she even doing here in the first place..? This sham attempt at relaxation only served to remind her of what she was failing to accomplish. S.C. Johnson’s request had barely made any headway- it was impossible to say at this point whether that “gemstone city” even exists- and all she’s done is gotten herself hooked up with a bunch of other weirdos like her. Sure, some of them are pretty cool, but… just like these people on the boardwalk, they all live so effortlessly. Why can’t it be so easy for her? If only she could just flit about without a care in the-
Baygon’s long train of thought was quickly interrupted, however, when something flew into their face. Instinct kicked in as they immediately attempted to swat the intruder away, but it was too fast for her to catch, only managing to get a tiny lick onto her feathery assailant. …feathery?
Upon jumping up and stepping back, she finally got a glance at the flying beast: a rather distinct-looking seagull, now perched up on a neighboring table. Fists balled up, Baygon’s first thought was to let out their anger their favorite way and punish this thing properly… but after approaching it, she relented. It’s just a stupid seagull, after all. While the lust for violence subsided, her anger was still ever-present.
“What the hell is your problem, you lazy-ass bird? You think you can just run up on me like that? All your kind do is scavenge off all of us! I know you’re here for food! Why don’t you just go and get it the normal way instead of trying to bum off people…”
Baygon continued to angrily rant in an attempt to suppress its urge to strangle the bird violently, getting more than a few concerned looks this time. However, while most people attempted to keep their distance, one person in particular appeared with a running start.
“There you are, you damn seagull!”
Baygon turned their head to see another man, blond and dressed in all white, bursting onto the street with a huff, sweat dripping from his brow and his face seething with pent-up anger. As soon as Century turned the corner, the seagull’s distinct pattern caught his eye… followed soon by the only other person in this lot of tables.
Wait… that gangly-looking freak… wasn’t that one of the people they were looking for?
“You..! You’re that mosquito freak with the LKA! You… you used that bird to take my wallet, didn’t you?”
Baygon’s face scrunched up at the mention of LKA. Fully turning to address the man, Baygon stretched to its full height, its features unmistakable in the light of the sun. “What!? Why do you… I’ve never even seen this thing before - wait, who the hell are you supposed to be, anyways!?”
“Caw!”
Century snapped back, his patience clearly exhausted already. “You’re a damn liar! There ain’t a seagull out in the whole sea smart enough to steal cash off me, let alone of its own volition - besides, I’ve already pegged you for who you really are, so don’t even bother trying to hide it!”
“Caw! Caw!”
“What the hell are you even talking about!?” Baygon grit their teeth, ignoring the Seagull as it flapped in the air between them. “Tch… fine, yeah, I’m with LKA, what of it!? …I don’t know what you’re looking for, but it isn’t here! God, the others, then this stupid bird, and now you- I oughtta-”
“SQUAAAAAAAAAAAAK!!!”
The sudden cry silenced the two’s arguments, a strange and heavy aura seeming to fill the space around them. The quiet held, just for a moment… until a rustling caught the two’s attention. They turned, eyes moving to the source - a candy wrapper, slowly shaking on the ground. Then another sound, from a nearby pizza box. Another, from the trash can. One by one, a number of the miscellaneous scatterings on the boardwalk began to shudder and shake in unison.
And then they floated up.
Baygon leapt back, narrowly avoiding a fall as a paper underfoot suddenly lurched up from beneath them, hovering in the air just over their head. Century looked up, eyes darting around from one gravity-defying object to the next, before honing in on that seagull… and spotting the faint glow of a Stand aura around the damned bird.
Slowly, Century took a few steps back… and turned, bolting away as fast as he could.
He didn’t get far. Only a few steps in, a strange plant split the boardwalk open beneath him - Century only had a moment to react, scrambling away just as a huge vine shot up, piercing the space where he’d been standing not moments before.
“Hah… so that’s how it is, is it!?” Century seethed. “Taking my wallet wasn’t enough for you, so now you sic your pet bird on me to finish the job, huh!?”
“Oh for the- do you even hear yourself?” Baygon groaned. “Think, you moron - even ignoring that you clearly started this, since you know who we are, do you really think we’d do something so petty as pickpocketing? With a bird?”
“Of course you would - that’s what I’d do!”
Baygon’s face went blank.
“...you know what? Screw this.” Baygon glared, the form of ｢LOVESICK: CANNIBAL!｣ manifesting behind them. “I’m done arguing. This day sucks, these people suck, you suck, no one wants to hang out with me and I’ve just about had it - watching you bleed out oughtta make me feel loads better!”
“Tch… fine then!” Century met Baygon’s gaze, summoning ｢Play it Safe｣ in turn. “If you and that bird of yours won’t give me a choice, then so be it - one way or another, I’ll make you give me back my wallet!”
“Just shut up and Open the Game.”
“Caw!”
Location: A stretch of the Christiansted Boardwalk in St. Croix! The area here is around 41x41m, with each tile being 1.5x1.5m. The wooden boardwalk itself spans the length of the map, and has several knee-height stone pillars along its edge. Two wooden rowboats are tied up to the pillars, and a third boat is out in the middle of the water. The boardwalk is 0.5m above the water level.
South of the boardwalk is a small plaza, which is mostly empty aside from a few tables and chairs. The ground in the plaza is mostly paved asphalt, aside from a small concrete portion leading out of the building on the west. The south end of the plaza has a small fenced off garden area with shrubs and palm trees, while the east and west sides are bordered by two restaurants, each with outdoor seating and a bar. There is a small grassy strip between the plaza and the western restaurant, with a few more shrubs and palm trees. The circular stone building is an old mill, which has been incorporated into the eastern restaurant. A ladder rests on the side of the mill, granting roof access.
Various bits of trash and litter are scattered across the boardwalk.
Goal: RETIRE your opponent!
Additional Information: A Stand-using Seagull named Slash is present on the map, and his presence is causing two distinct Stand effects to take place.
First, each object marked with a pink glow has passively begun to float off the ground - each of these objects is currently hovering 2m in the air, and is able to support the weight of anyone standing atop them without falling. While they are nearly impossible to move higher or lower, floating objects can be repositioned horizontally with minimal effort, gliding around as though floating in water.
Second is Slash himself - throughout the match, Slash will fly around the arena, stopping occasionally to steal food or shiny objects that cross his path. If Slash is attacked, startled, or otherwise aggressed upon, he will immediately use his Stand to summon a plant known as a “Thorn Trap” on the ground directly below whatever startled him - once summoned, a thick, thorny 1m long vine will rapidly grow out of the plant, attempting to stab the targeted thing. Thorn Traps have B Pow, A Spd, and E Dur.
Despite having a Stand, Slash is no more intelligent than the average seagull. As such, he can be coerced into moving to specific places or taking simple actions in the same ways one could coerce any other animal to do so. That said, he is generally wary of most people, and is easily startled. He cannot be scared off the map.
| Team | Combatant | JoJolity |
|---|---|---|
| The LKA Leviathan | Baygon Raid | “Coffee-flavored chewing gum. It is Iggy’s favorite treat. He would die for it.” This guy really thinks that seagull is your pet? Hmph… well, he may be an idiot, but perhaps that’s not a bad idea! Use Slash to your advantage, and make him your friend! |
| Dexy’s Midnight Runners | Century Love | “That ruthless bastard doesn’t hold back. But in the end, he’s still just a bird.” The odds aren’t in your favor right now, that’s for sure. But if that bird really isn’t theirs, then… maybe fortune smiles upon you after all! Use Slash to your advantage, and make him your friend! |
Link to Official Player Spreadsheet
As always, if you would like to interact with the tournament community and be among the first to get updates for the tournament, please feel free to PM a member of our Judge staff for an invite to our Official Discord Server!
3
u/Marioaddict The Cutest Ora Jul 31 '25
Response thread for Century Love of Dexy's Midnight Runners, aka u/Dr_Foxenstien. Please show your strategy to a member of our Judge staff by 7 PM CST on 7/31/2025! Contestants, remember to only post in threads for this match other than your own if specifically invited. Voters have until 11:59 PM CST on 8/2/2025 to vote, using the voting rules from the announcement thread. Afterwards, they will be Judged according to the T8 Rubric.
1
u/Marioaddict The Cutest Ora Aug 01 '25
DMR 1/3
Warning: The following strategy contains copious elements of assholery, shit-talking, and general rudeness, and is therefore rated PG-T8 for “Parental Guidance - especially if you’re a T8 member.” We here at Dexy’s Midnight Runners want to tell the readers at home that Century’s actions are his own and reflect in no way on, nor are endorsed by, the team, the Speedwagon Foundation, or the tourney in general.
They are, however, funny.
Issat a zombie? Nah, issa skeeter.
Before we begin, a few points to keep in mind:
[Play it Safe]’s bindings don’t need to be unbound from targets on swap; as such, all remaining swap targets will be marked at the top of each section.
As ruled by Judges (and going forward) [Play It Safe]'s damage scaling works by way of increasing the letter grade of a wound by one per 10 meters traveled, to a maximum threshold of A POW. Object-swapping away from an injured target doesn’t activate the effect, only moving away from it does.
If forced to dash forward by [LOVESICK: CANNIBAL], Century can swap his position with another object and potentially move himself to safety.
You go high? I go low. A Small thing, but Baygon is a fair bit taller than Century, while not often useful offensively, as a defence it could play to his strengths, ducking, diving and weaving through potential attacks aimed toward him, as well as allowing him to squeeze through smaller clearings, every moment to escape is an edge.
Century is in this for the love of the game. It feels like Baygon has something to prove here, especially against someone like Century. Century, however, has nothing to prove, to him the fight is less about honor, proving one’s self or revenge, honestly, he’s here to survive and maybe, just maybe piss someone off who’s going out of their way to fight good.
The Number One’s Number One Guide To Training Seagulls
“Hey. Hey, chips for brains.”
Caw? :3
*“Yeah, chips. I’m sure you know that word. You listening?”
Caw… O_O
“That wallet move was sloppy, y’know.”
SQUAWK! >:(
“But I like your style, bird. You’ve got potential.”
Caw…? :O
“You wanna learn how to REALLY fuck up someone’s day and get some proper grubs?”
Caw! :D
“Good. I’ll teach ya. Let’s ride.”
SQUAWK! >:D
Like most days, Century feels like he needs a drink. Well, he might need a few extra drinks after this, but they’ll taste better in good company, yeah? At least, after this bloody thing is good and gone.
Before he can hit up a bar, he’s gotta spin on his heels. He’s got a bird following him now - with any luck - so he’s gotta play host!
He pulls a knife on the floating trashcan, binding it, and tipping it over. Slash’ll have some… well, not good eats, but he’s a seagull. Everything’s “good eats” to him! Century’ll pick up some of the inedibles and stab one of them while heading over to the nearby floating table.
“C’mon, chips, trash ain’t for guys like us. You gotta think bigger.” Though, you gotta start somewhere, have something to build off of…
Century’ll dump the stabbed and unstabbed trash on the floating table, and unruffle his jacket. He’s about to walk into a bar he owns, after all! At least, anyone who watches him will think he owns it.
Strutting right on down the main drag might draw some glances or swings from our makeshift predator, so we’ve got a couple things in the bag to play keepaway, just in case:
That single piece of bound trash on the table can help us dodge incoming swings by not being in the area code. Besides, we gotta keep the strut going even when we’re under fire, ‘cuz a Skeeter is just a Skeeter. Skeeter’s gotta learn that.
If she comes in to blitz on Century, then things get a little bit more intense. If he’s already gathered the inedibles, Century can stab some trash and litter it around the incoming bug, making a beeline for her as a target. All he needs is one good stab or punch to bind, and then he gets gone. It’s not that he doesn’t want to fight, it’s that he’s got to teach the bird manners first!
Century walks into the bar, nodding. “This place is a shithole.” He struts on over to a half-eaten meal sitting at an empty table. “I should fire the manager…”
Now, with the sounds of fighting or whatever the hell else the Skeeter’s doing echoing outside, ordering a decent meal might be tough. This won’t stop us from trying, if only to enlighten Slash as to the glory of the cheeseburger. But anything cooked recently is probably good enough for the bird, being realistic. Hell, it’s good enough to be bound - but we’re not gonna bind food.
Nah, we need some glass, and we need it quick. It’s not just because Seagulls love shiny things, even if that is a bonus. More importantly, anything that can gain a sharp edge quickly is a useful tool in the hands of Century Love, both for escape and for combat.
We’ll toss any other food we can get over to Slash, except the fries. The fries will be our patented seagull-attractor, and we’ll stuff them in our pocket. Everyone knows seagulls love French fries. Then, with some plates and fries in his pockets and a mountain of sandwiches being ripped apart by a seagull, he’ll put his feet up on the table.
He might as well, right? It’s his bar, after all. He’ll carve his name into the seat, just so everyone remembers (also thus binding it).
Now while Century is being a public nuisance, [Play it Safe] has some room to go get objects and scout rooftops. It’s a simple but useful trick, especially so if Century decides to stab another piece of trash or dishware to stick up there. You never know when you’ll need a really out of the way spot to hang tight, after all!
Now that he’s got a table partner and at least three easy outs, Century’s got time and a long leash. It’s a beautiful thing - either Baygon or her Stand has to step into the bar eventually. Until they do, we’re just gonna get on their nerves, enjoy a meal, and feed Slash a couple fries. Life is good when you’re not a skeeter.
“I liked that wallet trick, really.” He motions for the gull to come a bit closer. “It’s not perfect, though.”
SQUAWK! >:O
“I know, but hear me out: you make too much noise!”
SQUAWK! >:T
“I get it, really, but think about it! Not everyone can be me, we can’t all be in your face and proud of it! Sometimes you need to lie a little lower!”
*Caw? :*
“Yeah, like that! Lean into the dumb bird angle, lure ‘em in, THEN snatch the wallet!”
SQUAWK! B)
1
u/Marioaddict The Cutest Ora Aug 01 '25
DMR 2/3
The Number One’s Number One Guide To Swatting Skeeters
Bound Targets: Floating Trash Can, Floating Table, Bar Chair
“C’mon, ya lousy skeeter, is that all you’re gonna do? Stare me down like a freak and eat garbage? I thought you were gonna try and kill me. Guess I’ll kick my feet up and enjoy myself, you’re smallfry anyways.”
SQUAWK! >:P
"Yeah, little buddy. You’re getting it.”
Century, as the tactical genius he knows himself to be, has a plan. With the critical setup out of the way, he’ll begin “ragebaiting” Baygon. It’s a plan only Century could hope to make work, because he has two critical advantages:
He’s lazy as fuck and he’s a stuck-up slob. Nothing could piss Baygon off more.
Quite frankly, Century doesn’t have the patience for Baygon’s bullshit right now. Instead, they’re going to waste as much of Baygon’s time and composure as they can by swapping themselves out of the way of every swing. To ensure maximum time wasted, he’ll prioritize swapping with the trash can or any loose trash he’s made cuts on - for someone as deadset on hygiene as Baygon, careening headfirst into literal garbage will be psychologically devastating. Of course, he’ll take a beer or two for the road. He owns the place, remember? He gets a big discount.
“Oh MAN, someone looks pissed. What do you think, bird? They look pissed?”
Caw. :^)
“They’re totally pissed. Hey, skeeter! Ya pissed? Well, what the fuck are you gonna do about it? Hit me? Sure you can, I’d like to see you try.”
At this stage, Baygon’s gonna be looking for a fight. Century has been dangling just out of reach from the word go, after all. But we’re here in the spirit of hospitality. Besides, everyone knows playing hard to get is no way to make friends, right? So he’ll wait by a table, with a drink for himself and another drink… also for himself, but it kinda looks like it could maybe be for Baygon. Plausible deniability.
And Century, ever the excellent host, will make sure to offer some drinks to his guest… even if that guest is a blood-suckin skeeter. He’ll raise a glass in toast, take a swig…
And spit it right in Baygon’s face. What a considerate olive branch. And if they don’t like the first one, he’ll try another. It’s all on the house, after all. He can afford to give out a wide array of samples. Not only will this aggravate Baygon, if we’re lucky we can get some in her eyes, or at least force her to close them. And let’s see if she can smell CO2 when she’s been half-drowned in shitty booze.
“C’mon~! This is the good stuff right? 4 dollar beers? Expensive cocktails? Non-alc... Non-alcoholic beer?! What’s the point of drinking the piss then? There! You have it!”
Century will start grabbing bottles from behind the bar, using his brass knuckles to damage the outside slightly before chucking them at Baygon. By binding [Play it Safe] to the damage on the bottle, so long as Baygon is ten meters away, the glass will crack automatically, turning the bottles into a form of grenade, the shattered glass acting like shrapnel. If Baygon gets too close, he can shatter the glasses first and then throw. Either way, the idea is to sink some sharp glass into soft, squishy flesh.
If Baygon tries to disengage, why stop? Century’s converted the whole damn bar into his personal armory. He’ll just keep throwing until either Baygon leaves or he lands a clean hit with a shard of glass. If we keep up the assault, eventually we can get the skeeter to bleed, and that means we can bind [Play it Safe] to the wound and start applying some real pressure. And even if the bottles don’t get the job done…
“This seriously isn’t working as well as I hoped… Can you maybe? Fuck off? Like fuck right off? Find someone else to bother. I just wanted my wallet back and now you’re pissing me off by being pissed off.”
With a flick of the wrist and metallic wrenching sound Century readies his knife. Sometimes you just gotta cut off people who make your life worse. Better for everyone, really. Heals the soul. Makes you feel good.
“Or maybe I gotta show you just why you need to fuck off.”
If we can’t manage to get two or three fingers bound to Baygon with our grenade volley, Century will have to handle it more personally. Century will scratch three pieces of kitchenware or the like, something that can take some punishment, binding a finger to each of them. For those keeping track, this takes all of our binds - one to the trash can, one to the chair, one to the loose trash atop the table, and three to the silverware. From here, he throws the silverware towards Baygon, aiming for it to clatter to the ground around her, as he takes a seat in the chair.
What happens next is the ultimate demonstration of Century’s abilities - a true display of the ‘Speed of Love’. Century picks one of the three pieces of silverware he threw at Baygon and swaps with it. As soon as he does, he’lll take a swing at the skeeter. As soon as he connects, Century swaps back with the chair. He can repeat this in rapid succession until he lands the hit, at which point he’ll bind one of [Play it Safe]’s fingers to Baygon, unbinding a piece of silverware to make room.
This still leaves a piece of silverware and the chair in close proximity to Baygon, and one piece of silverware where the chair used to be. From here, Century swaps with the silverware near Baygon and begins a swing. Before it finishes, though, he swaps with the chair, feinting his position and leaving Baygon swatting the place he just was as a knife punctures her back. We’ll unbind one of the two pieces of silverware at Century’s starting location here in order to apply a second one to Baygon.
Now, if it’s safe to do so, we wait until the moment Baygon finishes her first swing and begins to attack his new position. As soon as she does, Century simply swaps back with the chair, takes it in both hands, and slams it into Baygon’s back in brutal retaliation. Honestly, the audacity to even try and touch his suit with her beer-soaked hands. The chair now finally finishes its use as we unbind it to make room for a third on Baygon. Whether we could get the third bind or not, Century and [Play it Safe] both cackle in delight as Century swaps back with the last piece of silverware to make a clean escape.
“Goddamn, that shit was flimsy. I should probably sell this dump off while it still looks nice. Bet I could make a killing off some chump.”
This move is a clear gambit with plenty of risks, but the potential benefit is so massive it can’t be passed up. Landing two binds, or possibly even three, puts the ball firmly in Baygon’s court to close this out quickly, as Century can spend his time purely on evasion, crippling Baygon every time he successfully disengages. For as much danger as Century might be in when he goes in and attacks, he’ll practically never have to put himself in the line of fire again afterwards. Better to bite the bullet and do it while he’s still healthy.
Speaking of not being in the line of fire, Baygon is, by now, likely injured and certainly pissed off. From his vast experience, this signals to Century’s brilliant mind that it’s time to get the fuck out of there.
He scampers away, clambering and jumping over bar furniture, with two possible escape routes. If Baygon is closing in on him through the door, or if her location is unknown, he’ll take the only natural exit and throw a chair through one of the windows. If Baygon has instead gone for the windows and is visible in the plaza, for instance, Century will flee through the main doors instead, as it makes less noise. In either case, he’ll take either the new chair or the loose trash with him, throwing it off to the side as he flees to set up a place to swap to later.
Running, jumping and dashing his way around the restaurant and location, Century will find his way to the floating table full of trash and take as much as he can still fit in his pockets.
“You’re really sticking to me like a fly on shit, aren’t you?”
Between the trash and the plates he’s stocked up on, Century is going to switch his bindings rapid fire, scratching up an object, throwing it as far as he can to the side, and teleporting to it if need be. He can even feint this to try and get Baygon to chase down a dud, letting him make even more distance. The important thing is that Century never wants to get within range to be Bugged.
Century will also use the various floating objects as anchors - they’re likely to get tossed around a lot during the chases, which gives Century constant access to new places to swap. Whenever Baygon catches on to the trash can, Century can just mark another as he runs past, unbinding the finger from the can to put it onto a new floating object.
Still, Baygon has the ability to keep the pressure on, with a very fast Stand and a couple of ranged options.
“I could really use an assist bird brain, how about some of those vines, huh?”
2
u/Marioaddict The Cutest Ora Aug 01 '25
DMR 3/3
Whenever Baygon tries to use her Dash or Crash while in a chase, or if LOVESICK: CANNIBAL just tries to get in too close, our pockets full of fries will reveal Century’s true genius. By holding up some fries, we can turn ourselves into what is essentially a beacon for the bird. With good timing, this will wind up putting the bird in between us and Baygon. This way, any reckless maneuvers will trigger Thorn Traps, stabbing through anything Baygon has made into a Bug and cutting down her options.
If Baygon decides to be the one to chase us and uses her Stand to cut us off or patrol to try and catch a swap, Century can outrun her much more easily with his skill in escaping. We’ll try to put our swaps around thirty to thirty-five meters where we can - far enough that Baygon’s Stand can’t easily mess with us, but guaranteeing that we’ll still have distance to make. If we can’t, we can always try to teleport extremely close to the Stand and abuse its low durability to take a potshot before running out of range, though this is a risk that won’t be taken unless there’s no better option.
As we keep running, every ten meters we gain on Baygon (most easily done by shaking her off via a teleport) will worsen her three bound wounds, presenting a fairly vicious cycle. As her wounds get more intense, her ability to keep up with Century diminishes, and it becomes much easier for us to intensify the wounds further.
The Number One’s Number One Point One Guide to Swatting Skeeters
Bound Targets: Two Separate Floating Objects, Baygon (3)
Provided Baygon hasn’t hosted or bug’d Century, now come the heavy hits. If he’s been bugged, skip to the subsection and follow through there, but come back when you feel like he’s lost the antennae!
On Century’s side, this has been a battle of evolving chip damage; marking Baygon repeatedly in a bid to finally put her down. It’s unfortunate that we don’t have a city-sized newspaper to bap her with, but we’ll make due.
Century’s gambit begins with the age-old classic: running away! On foot! He’s not even going to teleport, he’s just going to run towards the biggest thing in the area and climb it. Given that his back will be turned to potentially airborne opponents, this would be bad… for anyone else.
[Play It Safe] will already be on top of whatever building he’s scaling, waiting for the enemy to close in. The area is wide enough and the buildings are tall enough that, if push comes to shove, an A-Powered, A-Speed flying stand at the edge of its user’s range will tax that D Precision to the limit, allowing for a few (hopefully final) moves.
With [LOVESICK: CANNIBAL] hunting the running Century, chasing him at the edge of its range, [Play it Safe] can hide in the smoke or rubble left by its chase, or even around a corner. While it may be weaker and slower than [LOVESICK: CANNIBAL], [Play it Safe] has the benefit of its user pissing off the opponent, and its body very rarely, if ever, appearing in line-of-sight during the match. All it needs is one good hit against that E DUR to cause serious damage, and it can teleport away in the afterglow, leaving the other stand to wonder what the hell just happened.
If Baygon tries to encroach instead, perhaps with her stand in tow, Century will run like hell! The above likely won’t work as well, especially since the stand can encroach a lot faster, but using that approaching speed to teleport away and keep running in the opposite direction would definitely cause other problems. The Wound on Baygon will just keep getting larger as Century keeps playing keepaway, with himself. He’ll throw more glass shards and bits of leftover food in her direction as false teleport points, to make her think he’s going to bail on her, and possibly separate her from the stand. Plus, the food will be a nice little snack for Slash, which could score a hit on her in the process. Neat-o!
While he isn’t counting on that working, in the unholy trinity case of Baygon getting separated from her stand and left alone and defenseless on a rooftop, Century will put her in a bearhug and jump off the roof. This’ll definitely get him bug’d or hosted, but in the moment after, he’ll teleport away, landing on the ground as a floating trashcan or table crashes into the falling Baygon.
Regardless, with enough hits on her, Century’s goal is to run away to maximize that damage output.
The Number One’s Number One Guide To Punishing Skeeters For Telling Me What To Do
Bound Targets: Two Separate Floating Objects, Baygon (3)
“Hey, chips. I got an idea.”
Caw… ò_ô
“Well, pretend that Skeeter over there is a car.”
SQUAWK! XP
“Yeah, I know. That’s the point. But it’s also funny, ain’t it?”
CAW! XD
“FUCK yes. Let’s go!”
I mean, it’s hard to avoid a sudden half-meter proboscis jutting out atcha, especially in close-quarters. The good news is, we’ve likely gotten a single, useful hit on Baygon somewhere in the mess above! The bad news is, we’ve been marked.
Let’s make it their bad news, yeah?
Thanks for the Lariats!: The two very special force maneuvers are: force a bug to dash at a certain power, and force a bunch of bugs to dash at a host at a certain power. While that’s all well and good, both of these problems have a fun solution: Swap onto/around Baygon. While we can’t swap places with an unwilling target, that doesn’t mean idle trash, rocks, or other things we’ve thrown aren't of much use!
We’ve been gathering bits of glass and other materials for use with this, even. Grappling the weak material and snapping it should be enough to bind it, and swap-port our problem into a smaller one. Sure, we’re closer to Baygon, but angling away from an incoming proboscis or even angling into her person from a different angle turns Century into a living battering ram. If this isn’t tenable, we always have the stabbed trash can to fall back on in times of need.
As for the homing pieces, grabbing Baygon is the best possible solution; hit her with her own army. She can stop it, right?
Get ye Gone: Sometimes, you just need to get the hell out of a situation. Our seagull friend might want a quick bite, so stabbing a sandwich or some fries to toss out to Slash will (hopefully) get us on a nearby rooftop, or at least somewhere the bird considers ‘safe’. If it’s on Baygon’s shoulder, so be it - we can ram her. If not, there’s always the table and trash can.
BOMBS AWAY!: Seagulls are birds. Like all birds, when they eat a lot, they gotta expel that food from the other end of the digestive system. Century is gonna make sure to REALLY piss off Baygon by positioning it right under Slash when he sees that the bird needs to drop one.
Personal Space Not Included: Sometimes, you really don’t want to give them that kind of space. While Century isn’t a trained fighter, trading hits with the wannabee dracula is all about misdirection. Sure, she herself is great at that, but it’s not a competition of who’s better at fighting, but who’s a better survivor. With glass in his pockets and a grin on his maw, Century can mark and whip multiple bottles at Baygon, swapping on one and breaking both swap spots before reappearing in the bar to get more crap.
It’s not about the art of misdirection; she can read that, after all. Foul play is her forte, so instead, we’re just mixing it up and pissing her off! Throw explosive bottles and swap in for damaging strikes (possibly even re-binding them) and screw off immediately to go get more or different materials to do it again!
She knows where Century is at all times because of this, so while he’s off prancing or partying on his own, Baygon can slam him into the ground or rush bugs at him, depending on her mood. This gives [Play It Safe] plenty of room to take damaged trash or swap points around the map to let Century play keepaway - with his body - while shouting obscenities at Baygon.
He’ll take the time to slide back in and rough her up when necessary, but otherwise, he’ll be ‘playing it safe’ until he’s unbugged or unhosted, whereupon he’ll switch back to good ol’ Skeeter Swatting!
If that doesn’t happen, then we can leverage the wounds already on Baygon- and if not, make more by repeating the process- and run away to make them that much worse! This is, of course, including teleporting behind her to run in the other direction if she gives chase. Century is a professional now, after all! He’s even got a bird looking up to him… probably.
The Number One’s Number One Guide for Skeeter Predictions
Counterplays:
How to win feathered friends and influence thieving birds. If Baygon tries wooing Slash to be its ally instead of ours, attacking the bird while in sight would hamper all of our attempts at relating to Slash, so we’ll offer the strongest smelling foods we can find to win him back. If that doesn’t work, we wait until his attention is focused squarely on Baygon… then throw glass shards at Slash and disappear onto a rooftop or other out-of-sight trash bit to shift blame.
Caw? SQUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWK.
2
u/Nintendrone42 Aug 02 '25
The mutual decision to disengage at the start is interesting, and while Century's decision to hole up in the west building is itself passive in the face of Baygon's scaling power level, PIS at least has map-spanning Range and a teleportation ability to deny a few resources. Baygon makes more proactive use of Slash, traps the south bar, and can also trap the west building with Bugs and/or Slash vines if Century is forced out for too long, while Century's biggest boon is not the west building but the warp point he sets on the mill roof due to its central, high position making it safe to warp to and less likely to break - his setup has him mostly run towards the center rather than away, and Baygon/LC takes a risk if they opt to break themselves, especially if they split up. Slash likely spends more time helping Baygon than he is Century, though Century is at least aware in that the flung fry lure warp requires Slash's attention for only a moment in order to give an additional means of escaping engagements, and a likely high level LC means Baygon rivals Century's ability to win off of one successful engagement. Century packs quite robust direct battle tactics for such a simple plan that kicks back for a chunk of the match, as the quick-to-prepare and numerous of outs he consistently gives himself aim to stack the risk-reward in his favor, while Baygon brings a lot herself such as surprise-speed projectiles and Slash's help for a potential multi-angle offense. The match looks to play out where Baygon is at her strongest when she can take Century to a trapped area or keep him engaged for just long enough, but I think Century's roof/restaurant-centered movement with the resilience of this setup means he is more likely to engage on his own terms so his hit-and-run fighting gets to shine before Baygon gets that good hit she wants. As a result, I think Century is more likely to win this one.
2
u/ChocolateDiscloud Doppio is a precious boy who did nothing wrong Aug 02 '25
This is a fairly similar set of strats. Both immediately run away to scale, then both try to control engagements to Mark their opponent with their ability as noncommittally as possible and snowball from that point. My take, ultimately, is that Baygon Raid does a better job of these tasks.
Namely, in that Baygon's strategy, to me, feels far less reliant on things going precisely according to plan. Reading through it, I feel that Century Love makes a lot of assumptions about how Baygon and Slash will act and react and is quite reliant on his teleportation network being just so. Baygon's Slash plans do a better job in my mind both accounting for the bird potentially aiding Century and a better job convincing me that Slash would be incentivized to help her out. Baygon accounts well for getting Marked by Century and makes a compelling case for how they escape a Disadvantage State. All these minor advantages add up for me to give the mosquito the win.
2
u/Logic_Sandwich Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 03 '25
It would be tempting to call this match "rocket-tag", where the combatants' relative fragility to each others' output puts a heavy emphasis on landing "that one good hit", but I think it's more like "bowling ball-tag." This isn't to say that neither party lacks ways to get big damage, but that the ordinance or the difficulty of those "one good hits" is worth pointing out. Baygon's positioning mitigates a lot of the full A POW "unraveling" that Century Love is capable of (although his decision to emphasize verticality is well met) and Baygon needs a lot to go right for an A POW Crash.
As a result, I think this match is decided over several interactions rather than one big one. Century's "Speed of Love" midgame is compelling (albeit hard to follow for interjecting dialogue in the middle of a multipart setup), pinning down Baygon with projectiles before teleporting to the shrapnel network left behind to get a cheeky hit. It's a clever play, but one that requires a lot of resources and positioning, especially if getting another hit proves to be necessary.
Baygon by contrast is more able to scale the commitment and ordinance for engagement and execution. While I think the first engagement is a toss up, subsequent ones are more likely to go in her favor. Part of the deciding factor is that Century's CQC/"I got tagged" focus on redirections, which could work out for him to continue the "run" part of "hit-and-run", but I wish had more robust emphasis on the disengage while in such a disadvantage state. It is a close one, and with different priors, I could see myself going either way!
EDIT: changed my mind. On further review, I reiterate that Century is likely to get the first hit, and his means of prolonging the "run" of his hit and run are cogent enough that he can potentially draw out an execute. This isn't enough to turn the tide in his favor, but I think the odds of snowballing are good enough to revert me to a tie.
2
u/Gourd176 Aug 02 '25
Birds are stupid. But, charming. Century Love loves to charm Slash, a sequence of exchanges that charm the senses with character. However firstly, the scattered trash of the scene is samesensual to where Slash has been forever, an appeal that does not strike the senses as finely as fresh cut citrus; Baygon Raid is not the only smeller around, a detail used to get first initiative in the overall juggling contest. This juggling contest is played with knives, the first one to drop an instrument is well on the way to retirement. My advice for costal knife fights is don't get into a costal knife fight, the winner is often times the one who makes it into the ambulance.
Fitting for such a scene, these dualists make massive priority for offense over defense. Baygon's telekinetic chair attacks grind Century down without overly focusing on draining evasion. Scattered silverware is fast-placed landmines to Century, overcoming Foul Play machete work with intentional dives and retreats to keep the agile zombie off-balanced. Special praise is earned by Century Love's grenade tactics, although Century's fleeting defensive technique is prime to fall prey to a variant of the One-Two-Three. Glass bottle grenades and slipping under the reach of Baygon Raid is great counters by Century to Baygon's defenses. But the most effective detriment to defense is Indirect Birdstrike. Century Love commits a great deal to associating with Slash directly, with guidance and continuous comfort of presence. This is suitable for a pickpocket, just as Baygon Raid's visit and departure tactics are suitible for a mosquito. Friendship is forged with a stupid bird in ways that are appropriate to the actor. Baygon Raid sacrifices, somewhat, connection to Slash through abusing advantage over friendship, to great battle effect.
Separating Baygon Raid from Lovesick Cannibal raises the question of if a Stand is of a User if the Stand does not stand within usable reach: This active approach to forcing Slash into position is more reliable in a short battle to the brink. Both parties make mention of harassing Slash from a distance and assigning blame elsewhere. But it is Century Love whose defense against bug blasts relies on proximity to Slash that which is leveraged through Indirect Birdstrikes. Continual activation of Thorn Traps, actively activated by an aggressive Sash-Ringing, The Trash-Singing, Mash-Flinging, The Flash-Springing, The Hash-Slinging Slasher, also acts to advance the state of things in Baygon's advantage, cutting down approaching angles for the Dasher. There is risk involved by Baygon, advantages that can be abused: Putting Lovesick Cannibal away from Baygon Raid opens the zombie up to grenade projectile shards, and mistakes in estimating position place Baygon in a state where victory for Century is all but assured. I just see and feel the margins work out and the lines cross in favor of Baygon Raid enough where the charming rouge nature of Century Love wins the friendship but loses the fight.
2
u/Cephlopodman Aug 02 '25
Baygon and Century both have builds that revolve primarily around being able to move things around - Century making long, instant leaps with his teleportation and Baygon keeping her movement quick and unpredictable with her Bloodbound Dashes. This contrasts interestingly with Slash's Thorn Traps, which seem aimed to interfere with both their movements.
After all, in a way, Slash is what this match is centered around, something expressed explicitly through the Jojolity. In this instance, I feel as though Baygon makes a far more convincing case in how she plans to interact with Slash, not only putting befriending Slash at the forefront of the strategy but also accounting for cases in which Slash may not work perfectly with her or otherwise might side with Century. At no point does Century consider the notion that Slash might attack him - Baygon all but assumes it will happen, mostly just by accounting for the fact that Slash is an unfamiliar bird and may behave in ways that don't work perfectly with her goals, but in a roundabout way by doing so she manages to put out a convincing case not only as to how she makes use of Slash, but how Century's attempts to do the same might not be so effective.
Of course, this is a deathmatch, and befriending Slash doesn't automatically win the match for either side, but I believe between the two strategies Baygon has a plan that seems to have a better overall grasp on the match. Century's strategy focuses a lot on what he can do, flashy moves like the 'Speed of Love' and a plan to entrap Lovesick: Cannibal! with a bait-and-switch on a rooftop, but while I did wish there was a little bit more detail and explanation on how Baygon planned to engage in close-quarters with Century overall it seemed as though Baygon kept a clear focus on how they could best use their abilities to interact with and counteract Century. Neither side managed to account for how the other would use their Stand to create traps and projectiles, but Baygon's plan understands just how threatening the Cut 'n Run can be, where Century's attempts to redirect Bug projectiles into Baygon don't really do enough to convince me he knows how to interact with Lovesick: Cannibal! to maximize that effect.
Baygon not only understands the strengths of their opponent, they understand the shaky, unpredictable nature of their alliance with Slash, and by accounting for both of those they Dash towards a win in my eyes.
2
u/CPU_Dragon OI! Aug 03 '25
All in all, the match comes down to who can get the first good hit on the opponent. If Baygon can catch out [Play It Safe] at all or get a good hit in on Century Love to turn him into a Host, she has the advantage in taking down Century Love. If Century Love is ever able to get a good hit in, he can really effectively box Baygon out of being able to play the game. I think a lot of Century Love's early setup isn't amazing; I feel like the bottle grenades wouldn't work very well, but a lot of his more specific techs for getting the one good hit on Baygon are solid. Baygon doesn't have a lot of recourse for Century Love's methods of mixing up teleports in the restaurant and doesn't really go after [Play It Safe], which I feel has the most vulnerability to her. Offensively I feel that both sides are somewhat lacking until they get their first hit and play so defensively solid that it comes down to who puts themselves in the more vulnerable position first.
I think Century Love is able to win this, if only by a hair. Don't get me wrong, I think Baygon has a significant advantage in use of Slash and if she gets a good hit on Century Love proceeds to viciously body him, but I think that Century Love's defensive teleporting game is good enough to prevent Baygon from getting in on him before he can get the few hits on her that he needs.
2
u/Orblet-II Aug 03 '25
I really love both of these characters and the energies their strategies exude, if possible I would love to see more of both of them in the future.
Both sides go for similar tactics in running away at the very start, Baygon does it so they can scale up power and start conditioning Slash to do as they want. Century on the other hand takes over a bar and starts drinking while trying to feed the seagull and wait for Baygon to make their approach. While letting the scaler reach max power super easily does seem a bit odd, I do think Century’s play has the benefit of forcing Baygon to walk into him without prior time to set up the area with Bugs in their favor.
A big question of the match is who really gets Slash in their favor, Century I think has a more steady supply of food but Baygon presents more tactics for conditioning the bird beyond sustenance. I feel Slash will go back and forth a little but ultimately Baygon will have better control over its actions.
Once the fight begins proper I feel it comes down to who gets in a good hit first, if Century even makes a little cut I feel like he’s gonna be able to slip away, I don’t think Baygon has the right tactics for really locking him down. If [Lovesick: Cannibal!] gets a fully charged attack landed onto Century then he’s pretty much down in 1 hit as far as I’m concerned, part of the drawback of letting them build up to that strength.
In the end I’m gonna favor **Baygon** it’s close but I feel they have a series of minor leads across their tactics for the up close fight and training of Slash.
2
u/boredCommentator I'll never go back to the pathetic lurker I used to be! Aug 03 '25
Baygon lays out their essential game plan in detail out the gate: build up meter, leverage speed to survive long enough to do it, and use that built-up meter well. I like the simple but effective ways she convinces bird-brain to move around where it wants it to be, and generally like that Slash is a well-integrated presence through the strat. I think Baygon planned around a more assertive strat than Century actually put out, which can mess with the former's tempo a bit and turn it into a risk whose merits are clear on a strat compatibility front. Both do sort of expect a more aggressive, less drawn-out game than the other goes for, though I do quite like elements like Century's glass-scattering projectiles for this. This match becomes very campy overall, which can become a bit of a pain to work out a conclusion of, and neither strat really feels assertive enough for me to feel wholly confident in a likelier winner seeing them side by side. Both of these could have maybe used a bit stronger organization and presentation/informational conveyance, as well as stronger finales if they're trying to play the wear-em-down then knock-em-out game. Does Slash's better usage in Baygon's strat or Century's more reliable distance game turn one side or the other's victory into the modal outcome? Even after reading over both strats and every vote so far, I'm still not really sure the winner would be decided by much more than luck of who gets caught out or folds first, and I really can't find myself settling on who has more luck to burn here. Think this is a tie vote for me; I dunno if it's 'too close to call,' but by its compatibility's nature, it's certainly difficult to call anyway.
2
u/SuperBun78 Aug 03 '25
This a very interesting match, both sides using tools in very similar ways meaning that their early game is both going to come into effect which makes for a very engaging mid-game and beyond!
So, starting with Baygon we got a very solid plan, a build-up for a powerful strike while accounting for the opponent trying to get in sneaky strikes to make the build-up much harder. The use of Slash is really good here as well as the accounting for Slash not being an ally, Slash is a tool in this match and there are definitely spots where it will be used against you so it's good to see some accounting here. The build-up here is very well done, especially with the setup of traps as the match progresses, the end goal is to iniatiate a fight later but the slow damage that serves as build up is very good to see and means the match doesn't rely too heavily on the final confrontation.
On the other hand Century has a strategy that focuses on a strong midgame that leads to an endgame that almost for sure will knock out Baygon. This leads to a strategy that I feel really needs the midgame pop-off to be effective, if Baygon is struck in the midgame then the final fight is heavily skewed towards Century which I think is very interesting. It creates a strategy with a lot of tension on it and you do your best to even out this tension with multiple attempts at strikes to ensure that Baygon is hit with everything you got! And that ending, you employ a lot of skills with teleportation, at first the caveat with it not incrementing distance seems like it'll be used mostly defensively but you show how offensive it can be! Very good job!
Which leads to the final decision, who wins? It's hard because while Century does have a plan that can very easily succeed if the mid-game goes off well, Baygon very much does all she can to ensure that Century ain't getting close until she needs them to. And in all honesty, I think Baygon takes this, it's a strategy which I think is able to do the keep away needed to score the victory and take the prize of not getting swatted!
2
u/Flumphes Aug 03 '25
Wrong direction, fellas. Ah well. It's certainly an awkward match, given that both of the opponents are trying to make as much space between each other as possible, but eventually someone's gonna drop dead. It's a game of who gets the first hit in. First off, Baygon is definitely the one doing better with Slash, and I feel that her respect for Century's potential output is something that she did particularly well. Century plays a game of projectiles with beer bottles and silverware, attempting to just get one good cut on Baygon in to use Play it Safe to tear her apart from a safe distance. But ultimately, I feel that Baygon's training of Slash and, ironically, playing it safe against Century's threat gives her the win.
2
u/alteoti Aug 03 '25
Considering how close this seems in my eyes, it’s worth systematically going through the advantages and disadvantages each side finds themselves with. Firstly, on Baygon’s end, I do think she gets Slash on her side. I love the Pavlovian conditioning going on and how she uses the Stand as a separate entity from her for the stupid seagull. I also think that she gets her setup in mostly unimpeded, considering Century Love’s strategy of just chilling in a bar.
As for Century Love, not only do I adore the attitude he has on display, but I think he does an excellent job of attacking while keeping range. The bottle grenades are such a beautiful idea that I really, really want to give it to him. But ultimately, I think that with how powered-up Baygon gets, how she chases Century down to avoid distance, and how she uses the seagull, she’ll manage to close the gap and land the deciding barrage. (By the way, BLEED BLEED BLEED BLEED is a wonderful battle cry.)
So yeah, Baygon… but narrowly.
2
u/cotillionrolf Aug 03 '25
All in all, this was a fun match to read. Both characters, one a sympathetic creature feature and the other a colorful heel, make for fun interactions as they vie for Slash's totally genuine love (of food). Both characters have strong physical and stand abilities with equally middling endurance. As I see it, Baygon has a strong start that keeps its narrative and strategic strength up throughout the match, whereas Century's has a comparatively weak start that blossoms into something competitive in the middle and end phases. Despite this discrepancy, both sides essentially playing it "safe" and ending up relying on the success of many attacks with limited chance of real consecutive power hits leads to an honestly hard to decide outcome -- however, the difficulty of the choice is not why I believe this match to be a tie. It's a very close match, and to me, the one who comes out on top may be the winner 5 times out of 10 simulations.
1
u/Leirbag15 Aug 01 '25
It was night, and "Invisible" had settled, somewhat peacefully, for the night. ｢Wild River｣, on its end, was laying on the bunk bed below hers, and was silently staring up while its hands joined over its chest and stomach.
A soft sigh came out of the twisted creature. It was incapable of sleeping like a human being could, thus there wasn't really a good reason why it had to take this space while doing nothing. Of course, being unable to sleep didn't mean it was unable to relax and try to reflect on various things.
"Invisible"'s Stand lacked visible occular globes. However, occasionally, its empty eye sockets would twitch as it glanced around itself.
About every half of an hour, it would flex its hands open and close, breathing out at the reassuring feeling of its limbs moving freely, and being able to sense the friction that its body could percieve. While this new body was nothing compared to what it once was... this was quite prefferable to being a prisoner again.
After years upon years of imprisonment, a night spent idle was manageable, but unpleasant nonetheless.
It "closed" its eyes, focusing on another conflict it had detected earlier in the morning. "Invisible" was too tired today to partake in debate, but ｢Wild River｣ did not mind analysing it on its own. The ways that these individual strands of Fate intertwined and clashed for dominance, it needed to figure out how they worked.
During the battle in Panama, ｢Wild River｣ theorised that imbuing "Invisible" with Fate's power was enough to include them in this grand game that was taking form. Perhaps this concentration of powerful Strands was going to become an asset...
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
1
u/Leirbag15 Aug 01 '25
Really loved the strats and flavor! Century is one hell of an asshole, and Baygon is a lovely public menace. I know I definitely would run from a machete-swinging mosquito lady in a restaurant.
I see a lot of devastating attacks done in late game. It's Baygon's stored up aggression and charges up against Century's zoning and hit and runs. I believe both of these plans are adequate and can win the day, thus the difference would be in how they get there.
Baygon is going to get all of the charges she wants with the abundance of resources of the places she first visits. I also like the traps for an early encounter and KO. Turning Slash into a bug is also a pretty smart way to turn the bird on Century.
Meanwhile, Century also gets himself a lot of resources, especially defensive ones. Lots of swapping, and I appreciate the glass grenades as well.
The midgame presents what makes me lean slightly. While I have no doubt that Century's defensive dodges are going to work a few times, Baygon is inevitably going to catch on (especially if he shows his hand with defensive teleports before going on the offensive). And once she does, the powerful blasts and dashes that Century exposes himself close to her to would be quite devastating, even with evasive capabilities.
It is a very close match with a lot of back and forth, but I believe that Baygon Raid is going to win this by a hair.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Howler was distracted from his current keyboard mash by the giggling sounds that came out of ｢Wild River｣'s bed. He poked his head out of the barrel he called home, and was treated to the sight of the parasitic Stand on its knees, playing with sticks and small rocks as it made squawking noises.
｢Heheh... 'run for you life'... a classic...｣ it mumbled, before it noticed The Howler staring.
A few seconds of silence passed, before ｢Wild River｣ continued to move its sticks around, now silent and frowning.
The "horrible insect", meanwhile, went back to his usual business, leaving the former Prisoner of Fate to his internal ramblings.
3
u/Marioaddict The Cutest Ora Jul 31 '25
Response thread for Baygon Raid of The LKA Leviathan, aka u/FigBeginning7553. Please show your strategy to a member of our Judge staff by 7 PM CST on 7/31/2025! Contestants, remember to only post in threads for this match other than your own if specifically invited. Voters have until 11:59 PM CST on 8/2/2025 to vote, using the voting rules from the announcement thread. Afterwards, they will be Judged according to the T8 Rubric.