Need help with effects for an Archetype

[Indignation211]

[url="http://forum.yugiohcardmaker.net/topic/231254-record-of-agarest-war-set-need-some-suggesstions-for-effects/"]NEW THREAD HERE[/url]

I have an idea for an Archetype of cards and I have the general mechanics down, now i need to make some specific effects. This archetype is based off the SRPG Record of Agarest War (aka Agarest Generations of War). The cards are divided into five "generations", First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Final (Fifth). In each generation there is one "Spirit Vessel" card and three "Maiden" cards (except the Fifth, which only has a Spirit Vessel and no Maidens). Basically when you have a Spirit Vessel and one Maiden of the same generation face-up on the field, you can Tribute them to Special Summon the Spirit Vessel of the next generation. In addition, the Maiden adds a new effect to the new Spirit Vessel, which can then be passed on to the later generations as well, and the later Spirit Vessels gain 400 ATK and DEF for each effect they inherit. The later Spirit Vessels can be Normal/Special summoned through other means, but they do not gain additional power or effects if they are summoned this way. The final Spirit Vessel also gains an additional effect if he is Special Summoned after going through all of the previous Spirit Vessels; you instantly win if he causes any Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points (and with 3400 ATK and four other effects if properly summoned, that shouldnt be too difficult, aside from properly summoning that is >.>)

The five Spirit Vessels are done, and the mechanics for Special Summoning and inheriting and passing effects are in place. Now i need to make the effects for the Maidens, or rather the effects they give to the Spirit Vessels. Basically i want effects that individually aren't too powerful, but put any four of them on the same card and you've got something on the level of a God Card.

Here is the text for the Spirit Vessels so you can see how this works:

First Spirit Vessel Leonhardt
Level 4/EARTH/Warrior/1800 ATK/1400 DEF
You can Tribute this face-up card and 1 face-up "First Maiden" card to Special Summon 1 "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius" from your hand or deck.

Second Spirit Vessel Ladius
Level 4/EARTH/Warrior/1800 ATK/1400 DEF
When this card is Special Summoned through the effect of "First Spirit Vessel Leonhardt", this card gains 400 ATK and DEF. You can Tribute this face-up card and 1 face-up "Second Maiden" card to Special Summon 1 "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma" from your hand or deck, and that card gains all effects this card gained through the effect of a "First Maiden" card.

Third Spirit Vessel Thoma
Level 4/EARTH/Warrior/1800 ATK/1400 DEF
When this card is Special Summoned through the effect of "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius", this card gains 400 ATK and DEF for each effect this card gains through the effects of "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius" and a "Second Maiden" card. You can tribute this face-up card and 1 face-up "Third Maiden" card to Special Summon 1 "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran" from your hand or deck, and that card gains all effects this card gained through the effects of "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius" and a "Second Maiden" card.

Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran
Level 4/EARTH/Warrior/1800 ATK/1400 DEF
When this card is Special Summoned through the effect of "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma", this card gains 400 ATK and DEF for each effect this card gains through the effects of "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma" and a "Third Maiden" card. You can Tribute this face-up card and 1 face-up "Fourth Maiden" card to Special Summon 1 "Final Spirit Vessel Rex" from your hand or deck, and that card gains all effects this card gained through the effects of "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma" and a "Third Maiden" card.

Final Spirit Vessel Rex
Level 4/EARTH/Warrior/1800 ATK/1400 DEF
When this card is Special Summoned through the effect of "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran", this card gains 400 ATK and DEF for each effect this card gains through the effects of "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran" and a "Fourth Maiden" card. If this card gains four effects through the effects of "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran" and a "Fourth Maiden" card, this card also gains the following effect: If this card causes Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points, you win the Duel.

And here is how the Maidens work:

First Maiden Template (3 Maidens)
Level 3/EARTH/Warrior/1400 ATK/1100 DEF
When this card is Tributed for the effect of "First Spirit Vessel Leonhardt", 1 face-up "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius" gains the following effect: [Insert Effect Here]

Second Maiden Template (3 Maidens)
Level 3/EARTH/Warrior/1400 ATK/1100 DEF
When this card is Tributed for the effect of "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius", 1 face-up "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma" gains the following effect: [Insert Effect Here]

Third Maiden Template (3 Maidens)
Level 3/EARTH/Warrior/1400 ATK/1100 DEF
When this card is Tributed for the effect of "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma", 1 face-up "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran" gains the following effect: [Insert Effect Here]

Fourth Maiden Template (3 Maidens)
Level 3/EARTH/Warrior/1400 ATK/1100 DEF
When this card is Tributed for the effect of "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran", 1 face-up "Final Spirit Vessel Rex" gains the following effect: [Insert Effect Here]

Thanks in advance to anyone who can provide suitable effects for the Maidens.

[Zeppeli Gyro Supreme]

I'm not really sure how that would work... I guess you could just say "If this card was Special Summoned by ________, it gains the following effect(s): *_______________ * _________________"

You're sort of overthinking the concept, unless I read something wrong.

[Indignation211]

I probably am over-thinking the concept >.> Basically what this is based on is Hero A marries Girl A and has a son Hero B who marries Girl B and has a son Hero C ect. Also the kicker is that there are 3 different maidens for each Spirit Vessel, which means different possible effect combinations.

Anyway here's a "flowchart" for how this would work:

Tribute "First Spirit Vessel Leonhardt" and "First Maiden Fyuria" to Special Summon "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius"
-Ladius gains Fyuria's effect and 400 ATK and DEF.

Tribute "Second Spirit Vessel Ladius" and "Second Maiden Valeria" to Special Summon "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma"
-Ladius' effect passes Fyuria's effect to Thoma. Thoma also gains Valeria's effect. Thoma gains 400 x2 = 800 ATK and DEF.

Tribute "Third Spirit Vessel Thoma" and "Third Maiden Lavinia" to Special Summon "Fourth Spirit Vessel Duran"
-Thoma's effect passes Fyuria's and Valeria's effects to Duran. Duran also gains Lavinia's effect. Duran gains 400 x3 = 1200 ATK and DEF.

Tribute "Fourth Spirit Vessel Druan" and "Fourth Maiden Hilda" to Special Summon "Final Spirit Vessel Rex"
-Duran's effect passes Fyuria's, Valeria's, and Lavinia's effects to Rex. Rex also gains Hilda's effect. Rex gains 400 x4 = 1600 ATK and DEF. Because Rex gained four effects, its instant win effect is unlocked.

Also to be clear, the Maidens themselves cannot use the effects they pass on to the Spirit Vessels.

[Kyakan]

Would a Level-Up system work here well?
Something like Horus the Black Flame Dragon etc...
And they gain different effects based on what is used to summon them?

[Indignation211]

This is similar to a Level-up system, but the actual Level-up doesn't quite cover what I want.

And yes the effects are different depending on which Maidens are Tributed to summon them aka which girls the heroes marry.

BTW, there are 81 combinations for Rex, only counting those that go all the way back to Leonhardt.

Note: the effects described below are not the actual effects, they are purely for illustrative purposes

Example 1: "First Maiden Fyuria" is used to summon Ladius. Ladius has the effect "This card cannot be destroyed by Trap Cards", and gains 400 ATK (2200)

Example 2: "First Maiden Elaine" is used to summon Ladius. Ladius has the effect "Once per turn this card cannot be destroyed by battle", and gains 400 ATK (2200)

Example 3: "First Maiden Fyuria" is used to summon Ladius, then "Second Maiden Valeria" is used to summon Thoma. Thoma has the effects "This card cannot be destroyed by Trap Cards" and "When this monster destroys an opponent's monster by battle, you can draw 1 card", and gains 800 ATK (2600)

Example 4: "First Maiden Luana" is used to summon Ladius, then "Second Maiden Yayoi" is used to summon Thoma. Thoma has the effects "This card is unaffected by Spell Cards" and "When this monster destroys an opponent's monster by battle, your opponent must discard 1 card from his hand", and gains 800 ATK (2600)

Example 5: Ladius is normal summoned without the effect of Leonhardt. "Second Maiden Valeria" is used to summon Thoma. Thoma has the effect "When this monster destroys an opponent's monster by battle, you can draw 1 card", and gains 400 ATK (2200)

AAAAAAND one more thing to note: all of the inherited effects stay until the Spirit Vessel is removed from the field. Say you got Rex up to 4 effects, 3400 ATK, and his Instant Win enabled, only to get him destroyed by a Mirror Force x.x then you use Monster Reborn to bring him back. What comes back is a kid with only 1800 ATK and no additional effects.

[Zeppeli Gyro Supreme]

Well, that seems a bit too complex to be played out, especially with five generations... Maybe you should simplify it?

[Indignation211]

It could be simplified by only using say three Spirit Vessels and the two generations of Maidens in between, and not necessarily the first ones, especially if you want a later generation's effect. Or only include one Maiden of each generation. Using all five generations could be made easier with support cards- I have some ideas there too. Players could take as much or as little as they want from this set. Those who just want one or two specific effects on their trump card need only include those cards, and those who want to go through a long complicated process to summon a ridiculous game-breaking monster can do that too (they seem to do that alot in the anime anyway >.>)

Also, perhaps we should be glad that these AREN'T actually real cards- I can just see the judges at tournaments getting migraines over Rex, not to mention his Yugioh Wiki page (tips AND rulings) being absolutely enormous. o.o Well what do you expect from a kid who slays not one, but SIX gods in one game?