Entranceway Application
Mar. 2nd, 2017 03:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
felineavengerName: Otter
DW username: N/A
E-Mail: themodestotter(at)gmail(dot)com
IM: AIM: Otterbeans
Plurk: N/A
Other Characters: Jean Kirstein @angewiesen
Character Name: The Judge (Pablo)
Series: OFF
Timeline: Post Special Ending
Canon Resource Link: OFF Wiki
Character History: The Judge is an almost aggressively loquacious feline NPC in OFF, and inhabitant of the first Zone of the Player and the Batter arrive at, Zone 0. He approaches, and immediately asks who has come to visit his Zone, which he thought was permanently empty.
The Batter introduces himself, and his divine mission to purify the world, but the Judge dismisses him as an unimportant, ectoplasmic cast-off, and asks after the Player instead. The Batter tells the Judge the Player’s name and gender, and says that they can see and hear everything happening, but cannot speak.
The Judge greets the Player, and offers his services in navigating Zone 0. The Player is given the choice to have a tutorial battle with the Judge, which can be accepted or denied freely. He then guides you through a few simple puzzles, and when you complete them, he gives you his Leo Card, which allows you to access the Nothingness and enter Zone 1.
This leads me to believe that the Judge is the Guardian of Zone 0.
To clarify: each Zone in the game, including the Room, has a Guardian that maintains it. When the Guardian is purified, you collect a Card from them, and the Zone changes to white and loses most of its defining characteristics. Throughout the entire game, Zone 0 is never purified, even after defeating Sugar. The Batter can only purify the Judge at the very end of the game, so we never get to see a purified Zone 0.
That's just my theory, though.
The Judge continues to appear in the game throughout Zones 1 and 2, usually right where he needs to be in order to give a well-meaning hint, usually in the form of a riddle, during a difficult puzzle or confusing situation. He seems to be genuinely interested in helping the Player complete the Batter’s mission, and acts with catlike curiosity and general aloofness.
In Zone 2, he begins to ask after the whereabouts of his brother Valerie, who lives there. As the Player works their way through the Zone, it becomes apparent that Valerie ate the Guardian of Zone 2, the Millennial Firebird Japhet, and Japhet has taken over his body. At the top of the library, the Judge pleads for his brother to stop this ruse and return with him to Zone 0, but Japhet reveals himself to the Judge, and as he takes his true form, it is made clear that Valerie is dead.
After you defeat Japhet, the Judge stops appearing the help the player. Zacharie, the fourth-wall breaking merchant of the game, takes his place instead, now wearing a cat mask. He reveals that the Judge’s real name is Pablo, not that that means very much. Zacharie is not very good at this new job. We all put up with him anyways.
If the Player decides to return to the purified Zone 2, they can find the Judge at the top of the library, pacing the roof and meowing into the nothingness. His sprite is no longer smiling. He says that as he meows, the echo that returns reminds him of something he used to know.
If the player searches each purified Zone for its specific “Grand” item, buys one from Zacharie, and gets one for killing the optional Zone 0 boss, Sugar, before defeating the final boss, they are treated to a special ending.
The Judge approaches the Batter before he flips the final switch to end the game, and the world. The Judge implores the Player to abandon the Batter, who he now deems as clearly evil from the start. He regrets that he did not end his senseless crusade earlier. If you so decide, you then take control of the Judge, and from his perspective, you see the Batter as he has been from the beginning, a beast of devouring destruction.
Once the Player takes control of the Judge, the Batter is easily defeated. The Judge then turns and utters his final words, “Hence nothing remains except for our regrets.” As the credits roll, he is seen traversing the purified land alone.
Abilities/Special Powers: The Judge is a powerful fighter. Damage is an extremely abstract concept in OFF, but when you have the ability to control the Judge, his competences are unquestionably the strongest in the game. It’s assumed that during his tutorial, and if you choose to fight him in the special ending, he is being held back somehow.
He can also pussyfoot with the fourth wall. He can tell when a character is being played by a Player, and when a character is simply an NPC. He also seems to be able to appear where-ever he likes, although he isn’t against just walking either.
However, he is not as aware as other game NPCs (coughZachariecough). He does not seem to realize that his world is a game, or is scripted in any way. He acts with sincere grief when his brother is killed, and is truly outraged at the Batter’s actions in the end. If he knew he was in a game, or that these matters would simply repeat, I don’t think he would have reacted in such a way. He cares about the world enough to stop its destruction, even after its been purified.
Third-Person Sample: “Valerie, Valerie, my dearest brother, I beg you to reply.”
He meows plaintively into the distance. The blank horizon melts into the placid stillness of the plastic, as everything is white, white, white. It all melds and melts and slowly disappears, receding in on itself. There is nothing left here, and without its guardian, it is no longer needed. It will all disappear.
“Oh brother, my brother, we will retreat to Zone 0. I have made a bunker where we can drown our sorrows. We will be the last witnesses to this world’s end.”
The dome of the sky hollows in, and a reply echoes.
”My brother… drown… end…”
The cat’s ears perk. There is a distant banging. Whispers hang in the air like smoke. There is a muffled scream for help. The Judge lies down, his chin resting on the still-cold metal, and continues to meow.
“Yes, it will all sink into the nothingness soon. But Zone 0 belongs to us. It has always been empty, and it will always remain. I will keep the sun warm for you, my brother.”
Even now that the Queen is gone, the sun that powers this world, he will keep it warm. They can lie together, and sleep in the light that peeks through the northern windows.
He meows and meows, and the screams grow louder. Au secours, Au secours! The child’s voice sounds hysterical and choked with tears. Please, I am afraid of the dark!
It is suddenly silenced. The Judge lifts his head. Could the child really be gone? The very beating heart of the universe?
He can no longer remain here. It’s closing in even faster than before. It will be nothing in true if he does not do something. He stands. The perverted crusader must be stopped.
“I have found you guilty, Batter.”
First-Person Sample: What an absolutely delectable distraction!
[A frightening feline visage graces the viewer. While it registers more or less as a cat in shape and size, there is something particularly off about it. The eyes are too big, and the mouth gapes, full of crowded teeth pointing in all directions. It’s visibly smiling, which is something a normal cat shouldn’t be able to do. Maybe this is what cats look like in nightmares?]
Such an array of colours and textures! I find myself mourning my poor ability to see all the different shades, but oh, the sensations underneath my toes! The feeling of raking my claws over the various chairs and couches in this lovely building is nothing less than sublime.
I’ve been missing out my entire life, only able to sharpen them against the cold metal of Zone 0. It makes a most unpleasant sound, but one must endure. Hygiene is very important, children.
And they have even made me a little present. While I would prefer some fresh quarry to chase, or perhaps something to open those vexing little tins with, this device is more than satisfactory. It is made just for the charming, rounded shape of my paws.
[It kneads them against the screen, purring in a satisfied manner.]
Tell me, my well-kept inmates, what is the purpose of our prison? I was thoroughly convinced that my world had been reduced to nothingness, as my wanderings proved fruitless, and yet I am here, vibrant and alive! The puppeteers have made quite the tangle of strings here, but it does not bother me any more than any other ball of yarn, which we cats are so expert at unraveling.
I implore you to tell me all you know. I am very, very curious.
DW username: N/A
E-Mail: themodestotter(at)gmail(dot)com
IM: AIM: Otterbeans
Plurk: N/A
Other Characters: Jean Kirstein @
angewiesenCharacter Name: The Judge (Pablo)
Series: OFF
Timeline: Post Special Ending
Canon Resource Link: OFF Wiki
Character History: The Judge is an almost aggressively loquacious feline NPC in OFF, and inhabitant of the first Zone of the Player and the Batter arrive at, Zone 0. He approaches, and immediately asks who has come to visit his Zone, which he thought was permanently empty.
The Batter introduces himself, and his divine mission to purify the world, but the Judge dismisses him as an unimportant, ectoplasmic cast-off, and asks after the Player instead. The Batter tells the Judge the Player’s name and gender, and says that they can see and hear everything happening, but cannot speak.
The Judge greets the Player, and offers his services in navigating Zone 0. The Player is given the choice to have a tutorial battle with the Judge, which can be accepted or denied freely. He then guides you through a few simple puzzles, and when you complete them, he gives you his Leo Card, which allows you to access the Nothingness and enter Zone 1.
This leads me to believe that the Judge is the Guardian of Zone 0.
To clarify: each Zone in the game, including the Room, has a Guardian that maintains it. When the Guardian is purified, you collect a Card from them, and the Zone changes to white and loses most of its defining characteristics. Throughout the entire game, Zone 0 is never purified, even after defeating Sugar. The Batter can only purify the Judge at the very end of the game, so we never get to see a purified Zone 0.
That's just my theory, though.
The Judge continues to appear in the game throughout Zones 1 and 2, usually right where he needs to be in order to give a well-meaning hint, usually in the form of a riddle, during a difficult puzzle or confusing situation. He seems to be genuinely interested in helping the Player complete the Batter’s mission, and acts with catlike curiosity and general aloofness.
In Zone 2, he begins to ask after the whereabouts of his brother Valerie, who lives there. As the Player works their way through the Zone, it becomes apparent that Valerie ate the Guardian of Zone 2, the Millennial Firebird Japhet, and Japhet has taken over his body. At the top of the library, the Judge pleads for his brother to stop this ruse and return with him to Zone 0, but Japhet reveals himself to the Judge, and as he takes his true form, it is made clear that Valerie is dead.
After you defeat Japhet, the Judge stops appearing the help the player. Zacharie, the fourth-wall breaking merchant of the game, takes his place instead, now wearing a cat mask. He reveals that the Judge’s real name is Pablo, not that that means very much. Zacharie is not very good at this new job. We all put up with him anyways.
If the Player decides to return to the purified Zone 2, they can find the Judge at the top of the library, pacing the roof and meowing into the nothingness. His sprite is no longer smiling. He says that as he meows, the echo that returns reminds him of something he used to know.
If the player searches each purified Zone for its specific “Grand” item, buys one from Zacharie, and gets one for killing the optional Zone 0 boss, Sugar, before defeating the final boss, they are treated to a special ending.
The Judge approaches the Batter before he flips the final switch to end the game, and the world. The Judge implores the Player to abandon the Batter, who he now deems as clearly evil from the start. He regrets that he did not end his senseless crusade earlier. If you so decide, you then take control of the Judge, and from his perspective, you see the Batter as he has been from the beginning, a beast of devouring destruction.
Once the Player takes control of the Judge, the Batter is easily defeated. The Judge then turns and utters his final words, “Hence nothing remains except for our regrets.” As the credits roll, he is seen traversing the purified land alone.
Abilities/Special Powers: The Judge is a powerful fighter. Damage is an extremely abstract concept in OFF, but when you have the ability to control the Judge, his competences are unquestionably the strongest in the game. It’s assumed that during his tutorial, and if you choose to fight him in the special ending, he is being held back somehow.
He can also pussyfoot with the fourth wall. He can tell when a character is being played by a Player, and when a character is simply an NPC. He also seems to be able to appear where-ever he likes, although he isn’t against just walking either.
However, he is not as aware as other game NPCs (coughZachariecough). He does not seem to realize that his world is a game, or is scripted in any way. He acts with sincere grief when his brother is killed, and is truly outraged at the Batter’s actions in the end. If he knew he was in a game, or that these matters would simply repeat, I don’t think he would have reacted in such a way. He cares about the world enough to stop its destruction, even after its been purified.
Third-Person Sample: “Valerie, Valerie, my dearest brother, I beg you to reply.”
He meows plaintively into the distance. The blank horizon melts into the placid stillness of the plastic, as everything is white, white, white. It all melds and melts and slowly disappears, receding in on itself. There is nothing left here, and without its guardian, it is no longer needed. It will all disappear.
“Oh brother, my brother, we will retreat to Zone 0. I have made a bunker where we can drown our sorrows. We will be the last witnesses to this world’s end.”
The dome of the sky hollows in, and a reply echoes.
”My brother… drown… end…”
The cat’s ears perk. There is a distant banging. Whispers hang in the air like smoke. There is a muffled scream for help. The Judge lies down, his chin resting on the still-cold metal, and continues to meow.
“Yes, it will all sink into the nothingness soon. But Zone 0 belongs to us. It has always been empty, and it will always remain. I will keep the sun warm for you, my brother.”
Even now that the Queen is gone, the sun that powers this world, he will keep it warm. They can lie together, and sleep in the light that peeks through the northern windows.
He meows and meows, and the screams grow louder. Au secours, Au secours! The child’s voice sounds hysterical and choked with tears. Please, I am afraid of the dark!
It is suddenly silenced. The Judge lifts his head. Could the child really be gone? The very beating heart of the universe?
He can no longer remain here. It’s closing in even faster than before. It will be nothing in true if he does not do something. He stands. The perverted crusader must be stopped.
“I have found you guilty, Batter.”
First-Person Sample: What an absolutely delectable distraction!
[A frightening feline visage graces the viewer. While it registers more or less as a cat in shape and size, there is something particularly off about it. The eyes are too big, and the mouth gapes, full of crowded teeth pointing in all directions. It’s visibly smiling, which is something a normal cat shouldn’t be able to do. Maybe this is what cats look like in nightmares?]
Such an array of colours and textures! I find myself mourning my poor ability to see all the different shades, but oh, the sensations underneath my toes! The feeling of raking my claws over the various chairs and couches in this lovely building is nothing less than sublime.
I’ve been missing out my entire life, only able to sharpen them against the cold metal of Zone 0. It makes a most unpleasant sound, but one must endure. Hygiene is very important, children.
And they have even made me a little present. While I would prefer some fresh quarry to chase, or perhaps something to open those vexing little tins with, this device is more than satisfactory. It is made just for the charming, rounded shape of my paws.
[It kneads them against the screen, purring in a satisfied manner.]
Tell me, my well-kept inmates, what is the purpose of our prison? I was thoroughly convinced that my world had been reduced to nothingness, as my wanderings proved fruitless, and yet I am here, vibrant and alive! The puppeteers have made quite the tangle of strings here, but it does not bother me any more than any other ball of yarn, which we cats are so expert at unraveling.
I implore you to tell me all you know. I am very, very curious.
