Zhen Mi's fame was no less than that of the two Qiaos from Jiangdong. There was a rumor among the people that "There are two Qiaos from Jiangdong, but Zhen Mi from Hebei is the prettiest." It is said that Zhen Mi was different from ordinary people since she was young. While other girls were learning housework, she preferred to read and learn to read, believing that without reading, one could not distinguish right from wrong.
Perhaps it was in line with the saying that "beautiful women have short lives", her life was very rough. She lost her father at a young age, and when she grew up, she was chosen by Yuan Shao to be the wife of his second son Yuan Xi. Later, Cao Cao led his army to capture Yecheng, and Zhen was chosen by Cao Pi because of her unparalleled beauty, and remarried to Cao Pi.
Originally, the couple lived in harmony, and Zhen Mi gave birth to Cao Pi's son Cao Rui and daughter Princess Dongxiang. However, after Cao Pi succeeded to the throne of King of Wei and became emperor, the number of concubines in the harem gradually increased. Cao Pi favored Queen Guo and ignored Zhen Mi. He took Queen Guo back to the palace, but left Zhen Mi in Yecheng. Zhen Mi felt lost, and her letters to Cao Pi also revealed some sad and jealous words. Cao Pi was furious, and ordered Zhen Mi to be executed and buried in Yecheng.
It is said that her death was extremely miserable. It was not until her son Cao Rui succeeded to the throne that she was given the posthumous title of "Empress Wen Zhao Zhen" and her coffin was moved back to the imperial mausoleum. Zhen Mi's life was indeed very miserable. Her ex-husband was killed, and her remarried husband was fickle and ignored her. In the end, she was depressed and was killed by Cao Pi. Although her son inherited the throne, unfortunately she could not see it.
Xie Mingzhe decided to design the skills of the Zhen Mi card based on the legendary "The Goddess of Luo River".
Cao Zhi's "Ode to the Goddess of Luo River" is a famous poem with beautiful literary style. Some say it was written for Zhen Mi, and the beautiful woman "Goddess of Luo River" described in it is Zhen Mi. However, because Zhen Mi was his sister-in-law, Cao Zhi could not name her, so he used the image of the Goddess of Luo River to describe Zhen Mi's beauty. However, there is another saying that Cao Zhi used the image of the Goddess of Luo River to express his longing for the righteousness of the monarch and his subjects, reflecting his frustration that his sincerity could not be understood by the monarch.
Regardless of the real history, Zhen Mi was therefore called "Lotus Goddess", and the words and phrases described in the Luoshen Fu were used as the names of her skills. For example, the phrase "as graceful as a startled bird, as graceful as a swimming dragon" in the Luoshen Fu describes a woman's light figure. These two phrases are not excessive when used to describe the beauty Zhen Mi, after all, Zhen Mi is indeed a famous beauty recorded in history.
Xie Mingzhe was good at painting beauties. He quickly drew a picture of an ancient beauty with a graceful figure on nebula paper, holding a round fan, which was very popular at that time.
Zhen Mi (Wood)
Level: Level 1
Evolution Star Level:★
Use times: 1/1 time
Basic Attributes: HP 800, Attack 1200, Defense 800, Agility 30, Crit 30%
Additional Skill: Graceful (Zhen Mi is a famous beauty, with a figure as light as a startled wild goose. When she activates the skill "Graceful", her dodge rate increases by 100%, and she can dodge all "non-locked" attacks and control skills of the enemy in the next 10 seconds; the cooldown time is 30 seconds)
Additional Skills: Gentle as a Swimming Dragon (Zhen Mi moves like a swimming dragon. When she turns on the "Gentle as a Swimming Dragon" state, her movement speed will increase by 500% for 15 seconds. During the "Gentle as a Swimming Dragon" state, she can lock onto one of the enemy targets with the lowest HP within 23 meters, move in front of the opponent at an accelerated speed, and attack the target with the fan in her hand. Each attack causes 80% wood-type critical damage. After three consecutive attacks, an additional 100% wood-type single-target damage will be caused; the cooldown time is 30 seconds)
This is a high dodge card that relies on dodge to avoid damage from the opponent.
Most of the card skills in the Star Card Arena are not locked, but group attack or targeted skills. Therefore, once Zhen Ji activates the dodge function, she can almost be invincible and immune to damage for a period of time.
The second skill is the simplest and most brutal assassination skill. Relying on flexible movement speed, it assassinates the card with the lowest health. In team battles, because the opponent's cards are difficult to lock, the "lowest health lock" design is added to Zhen Ji's skill design, allowing her to quickly aim at the opponent's low-health card, rush over to reap it, and make up for the lack of our single attack.
The inspiration for making Zhen Ji a card with high dodge and high crit came from the description of "The Goddess of Luo River". Xie Mingzhe originally wanted to make her a deathrattle card, but Zhen Ji's tragic deathrattle skill would clash with Jia Yingchun's deathrattle skill in Red Mansions. It would be better to make her a high dodge card, which would be more useful in team battles.
After dealing with Zhen Ji, the only two brothers left are Cao Pi and Cao Zhi.
Xie Mingzhe originally wanted to make a "Jian'an Three Caos" linkage, letting Cao Cao, Cao Pi, and Cao Zhi write poems together, but this would at most create a buff, which is similar to other linkage cards and doesn't feel very innovative. Moreover, Cao Cao already has three skills, and making a linkage would reduce his attributes. Wouldn't it be embarrassing if he couldn't hold the hatred and died?
If Cao Pi and Cao Zhi were to be linked as a dual card, Xie Mingzhe had an ingenious idea.
That is the famous story of "Brothers fighting each other" in history.
The heirs of Wu and Shu were relatively mediocre, but Cao Cao's heirs were more outstanding than each other. There was the eldest son Cao Ang, and the "child prodigy" Cao Chong who could weigh an elephant at a young age. After the death of Cao Ang and Cao Chong, there were two more candidates: Cao Pi and Cao Zhi.
During Cao Cao's reign, the ministers were divided into two factions, some supporting Cao Pi and some supporting Cao Zhi. In the end, Cao Pi's faction won and inherited the throne as "Emperor Wen of Wei". However, Cao Pi was always ruthless. After becoming emperor, he was always jealous of his talented brother Cao Zhi, so he deliberately made trouble for Cao Zhi and asked him to write a poem within seven steps, otherwise he would execute Cao Zhi.
Cao Zhi knew what his brother was thinking. He immediately calmed down and thought, and within seven steps he actually composed a poem that has been handed down to this day: "Cooking beans to make soup, straining beans to make juice. The firewood is burning under the pot, and the beans are crying in the pot. We are born from the same roots, why are we so eager to hurt each other?"
These few simple lines of poetry not only reflect Cao Zhi's extraordinary talent, but also tell Cao Pi: you and I are brothers, and we should not be suspicious and resentful of each other. Cao Pi was ashamed after hearing this, and gave up the idea of killing Cao Zhi, and let Cao Zhi be a leisurely prince.
This story of "brothers fighting each other" can be made into a very distinctive joint skill, with Cao Pi taking the initiative, Cao Zhi responding passively, and then causing some impact on the surroundings.
Of course, before making the linked skills, you have to make the two cards Cao Pi and Cao Zhi first.
Cao Pi was a mean, ungrateful, vicious and cruel person. Although he was a very powerful politician, he ultimately lacked some humanity. He killed his wife Zhen Mi and almost forced his own brother to death. It can be seen that in his heart, the concept of human feelings was very cold.
But from the perspective of a monarch, Cao Pi was also a very capable emperor. After he succeeded to the throne, he insisted on holding all power in his hands, established the Secretariat, and adopted the official selection system of "Nine-Rank System", which was of great significance in the entire Chinese history. The creation of the imperial examination system in later generations was also influenced by Cao Pi's "Nine-Rank System".
In terms of literature, Cao Pi wrote a book called "Classics" and created "critical literature", which is considered the origin of critical argumentative writing and played a vital role in promoting the development of literature at that time. Among his poems, the most famous one is "Yan Ge Xing", which describes the social phenomena of the time from a woman's perspective, such as "I am a lowly concubine, alone in an empty room, thinking of you and dare not forget you, I don't realize that my tears are wetting my clothes", a man can write such a poem, which shows that Cao Pi's writing is still very delicate.
When designing this card, Xie Mingzhe thought of three skills.
The first skill is based on Cao Pi's political tactics. He was very good at political struggles. After winning a struggle, he would not kill his opponent directly, but would exile his opponent to a remote place. For example, Emperor Xian of Han, and later Cao Zhi and Cao Zhang were all exiled to far away places by him so as not to affect his power. Designed as a card skill, it can instantly expel the card from a certain range.
The second skill is centralization. He believes that as an emperor, one must grasp power and not let it be dispersed. Centralization can be used as a skill to absorb attack power, allowing Cao Pi to gain a very strong burst in a short period of time.
There is also his literary contribution. "Dianlun", as the first critical treatise in history, can criticize designated cards and use them as control skills.
After thinking about Cao Pi's card skills, the next one is Cao Zhi.
Compared to his brother Cao Pi's ruthlessness, Cao Zhi was actually more suitable to be a leisurely poet. His political talent was not as good as Cao Pi's, which was also the key reason for his failure in seizing power.
Cao Zhi's most famous story is "Poetry in Seven Steps", which is a card skill that allows him to recite a poem within seven steps and have some impact on enemy targets within the range. In addition, his "Ode to the Goddess of Luo River" is a poem that has been passed down for thousands of years. It is beautiful and has been praised by many poets and lyricists in later generations.
Cao Zhi was fond of drinking and writing poetry, and he even made mistakes while drinking. Once, when Cao Cao was away, Cao Zhi got drunk and rode in the royal carriage without permission, and opened the main gate of the palace, the Sima Gate. Not only that, he also drove the carriage at will on the forbidden road, which was only used by the emperor for ceremonies, which was a crime of treason.
Cao Cao was furious and extremely disappointed with Cao Zhi. Cao Zhi also lost his father's favor and was at a disadvantage in the competition for the throne with Cao Pi.
Drunkenly Entering Sima Gate is considered an important turning point in Cao Zhi's life. It is designed as a card skill and can be used as a disturbance skill against the enemy group, completely disrupting the opponent's formation.
Xie Mingzhe kept the skill designs of the Cao Pi and Cao Zhi cards in mind and drew their images closely.
The brothers are both good-looking, but their temperaments are completely different.
Cao Pi looks more feminine. As an emperor, he wears a black dragon robe that symbolizes supreme status, and an imperial crown on his head. He is ruthless and has a sharp look in his eyes that makes people dare not look at him. Cao Zhi is a leisurely poet. His clothes are not so formal. Cao Zhi, who often drinks, looks very romantic and unrestrained.
Xie Mingzhe drew Cao Pi and Cao Zhi according to his own understanding, and then designed skills for them.
Cao Pi (Wood)
Level: Level 1
Evolution Star Level:★
Use times: 1/1 time
Basic Attributes: HP 800, Attack 1200, Defense 800, Agility 30, Crit 30%
Additional Skill: Exile (Cao Pi is very good at political struggles. He will not directly execute those who threaten him, so as not to be criticized. Instead, he will use "exile" to exile the opponent to a remote area where he will not be affected. When Cao Pi activates the "exile" skill, he can exile the designated card to any location 30 meters away from himself, and make the card unable to move for 5 seconds; the cooldown time is 60 seconds)
Additional Skills: Criticism (Cao Pi likes to criticize some bad articles, and has written a critical treatise; when Cao Pi turns on the "Criticism" skill, he can criticize and educate the enemy's designated card, making the enemy silent and unable to release skills for 5 seconds; cooldown time 60 seconds)
Additional Skills: Centralization (Cao Pi believes that leaders must concentrate important powers in their own hands so that their subordinates can obey. When Cao Pi activates the "Centralization" skill, he can use 5 seconds to absorb 2% of the basic attack power from all friendly and enemy cards within 30 meters of himself. After absorbing, he will attack in the specified direction, causing 220% wood-type critical damage to all enemy targets on the path; can only be used once per game)
Additional Skills: Brothers Fight Each Other (Linked Skill; when Cao Zhi is present, Cao Pi worries that his brother will threaten his position, so he forces his brother to write a poem within seven steps. If Cao Zhi cannot write a poem within seven steps, Cao Pi kills Cao Zhi; if Cao Zhi successfully uses the skill, Cao Pi feels guilty and banishes Cao Zhi to a designated location, making Cao Zhi immune to all damage for the next 5 seconds)
Cao Zhi (Wood)
Level: Level 1
Evolution Star Level:★
Use times: 1/1 time
Basic Attributes: HP 1200, Attack 800, Defense 1200, Agility 30, Crit 30%
Additional Skill: Poem in Seven Steps (Cao Zhi is a man of great literary talent, and can write a poem in seven steps. When Cao Zhi activates the "Poem in Seven Steps" skill, he quickly walks seven steps from his original position to the designated position to compose a poem. During the walk, he is immune to all control and damage. When he reaches the end, Cao Zhi recites a poem, and the enemy targets within 23 meters admire Cao Zhi's literary talent and fall into silence for 3 seconds; the cooldown time is 60 seconds)
Additional Skill: Lament of the Goddess of Luo River (Cao Zhi wrote a poem "Ode to the Goddess of Luo River" to describe a beautiful woman. Unfortunately, he could only meet this Goddess of Luo River in his dreams. Cao Zhi recites the poem "Ode to the Goddess of Luo River", and his sadness infects the surrounding hostile targets, reducing the defense of all hostile targets by 50% for 5 seconds; the cooldown time is 60 seconds)
Additional Skill: Drunken Breaking into Sima Gate (Cao Zhi usually likes to drink, but this time he got drunk and was not sober, so he rode his horse into the forbidden area and made a big mistake; when the "Drunken Breaking into Sima Gate" skill is turned on, Cao Zhi can summon his mount, climb on the horse, increase the movement speed by 500%, and rush into the enemy camp from the specified direction, knocking back the enemy target by 3 meters; the cooldown time is 5 minutes)
Additional Skills: Brothers Fight Each Other (Linked Skill; when Cao Pi launches a linked skill and forces Cao Zhi to write a poem within seven steps, Cao Zhi can use the "Seven Steps to Poetry" skill to respond to his brother's linkage. If this skill happens to be cooldown, Cao Zhi will be killed by Cao Pi. After Cao Zhi dies, the "Brothers Fight Each Other" deathrattle skill is triggered, making all enemy cards stunned and fall into a state of fear, unable to perform any operations for 3 seconds)
This brotherly linkage is the most fun one among all the linkage techniques designed by Xie Mingzhe so far.
Because it's optional linkage.
When Cao Pi releases the linkage, if Cao Zhi can compose a poem in seven steps, Cao Pi will not kill Cao Zhi but exile him, which is equivalent to letting Cao Zhi teleport to the designated location. Cao Zhi then uses the skill "Drunkenly Entering Sima Gate" to disrupt the enemy's formation. It can be said to be a teleportation control with the cooperation of the brothers.
If Cao Zhi did not respond to the seven-step poem, Cao Pi would kill Cao Zhi in seconds, and then trigger the collective fear control of "brothers fighting each other".
When they really get on the field, their opponents might be really stunned.
——Uncle Fat is a madman. The cards he made went crazy and even killed his own brother.
What can we do if you kill your brother and still scare us collectively? We can only watch you two brothers perform to our heart's content.
The author has something to say:
Some readers suggested that we just play the game instead of writing the cards. But if I don't write these card designs, and just let Xie Mingzhe lead Cao Cao, Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, Zhuge Liang and Huang Yueying to kill the opponent's 20 cards in seconds, will such a game be interesting to watch? It will definitely be confusing, and most readers will not understand it.
This book is about card battles, and cards are the core. I want to be responsible for this book and for every card that Pipizhe has carefully designed.
I hope everyone will like these cards instead of just watching the protagonist get slapped in the face. How can you play the game without cards, right? ;)