Anansi - The Spider / Puppetmaster / Mimic 'frame

[Azamagon]

(Refined repost of a very old thread of mine)

I'll just go straight to the point with this Warframe:

Inspiration:
I got the idea for this Warframe from playing Dota 2, as Rubick. While that was the base of the idea (mainly as a Mimic), my ideas got expanded into making a mimic and puppeteer hybrid, as the abilit- ideas kind of merged with one another. Some of the abilities might have hints of feeling a bit like Nyx's, but still not quite.
EDIT: Further inspiration has been added thanks to @Archwizard, granting him a spider-esque touch too. (Note: Art is not up to date with this new spiderstyle in mind)

Name:
1) Anansi
Suggested by Archwizard - An African trickster entity who alternated between the forms of a spider and a man, who went around weaving stories.
The puppet theatrics and mimicry fit the storytelling aspect, the nooses and marionette strings fit the spider's silk (plus the cross-handle on his back could be fashioned into 4 legs), while the stealth play also fits into his trickster (and spider) nature.

2) Nessus
The first name I had for this 'frame (now scrapped). The namechoice is taken from a sci-fi novel, called Ringworld. Nessus is a character of an alien "puppeteer" race.
More namesuggestions are more than welcome!

Role:
Mimic / Puppetmaster, with the intention of having his 2 main strengths being centered around CC and stealth, with a sprinkle of damage.

However, due to the nature of his abilities, he is also very adaptable and might be able to change his role a bit, with every game possibly becoming very different from your previous run, depending on both the enemies you face, and the allies you have with you.

Stats:
Considering he is meant to be a frail caster, I'd suggest stats along these lines:
Shields - 100 (300 at rank 30)
Health - 100 (300 at rank 30)
Armor - 65
Energy - 150 (225 at rank 30)
Sprint speed - 1.05

Art:
Some old non-refined art. Note: This is not necessarily what he should look like or anything, it's just a point of reference (If anyone is willing to do some art for him, that'd be much appreciated!). Anyone ever saw Digimon? Partial inspiration for this drawing is based on Puppetmon:

Regardless, what this art is supposed trying to invoke (really badly, I presume), described in words:
The general idea is that it's a male Warframe with a mix of a metallical and "wooden" look (those "bars" you see on his legs and arms etc), with a grim and almost sadistic tone on him. Has a metallical "X" on his back (similar to one of those puppeteering devices), with energy coming out close to the tips. His fingers are quite long and claw-like, with energy(strings) flowing out from his fingertips.
EDIT: Suggested by Archwizard's based on his name-suggestion (Anansi) and its spidery lore -> The cross-handle on his back could be fashioned into 4 spiderlegs.

Abilities: Now here we come to the fun (and LONG) part! Note: Numbers are just examples, these can always change. The base mechanics and their intentions are what matters.

Passive
EDIT: Inspired by Archwizard's name-suggestion (Anansi) and its spidery lore -> Arachnid Stealth - He turns invisible when he is wallclimbing/wallrunning!

Ability #1 - Mimic

This ability has both a Hold and Tap-action.

Holdcast:

• While holding down this ability, Anansi prepares to copy an ability. Upon releasing the ability, he will copy the ablity from the one he aimed at. This costs 5 energy. Enemies have specific abilities to be stolen (list further down), while copying from allies always steals their 1st ability (details about that in a list further down).
• Copying an ability is a onehanded action
• Copying cast range is quite far, like 35/40/45/50 meters?
• You can only copy one ability at a time, which you will memorize for up to 60/90/120/150 seconds
• New idea: You can copy abilities from corpses, as long as they haven't despawned yet. This gives him some minor leeway in case you have very triggerhappy teammembers.

Tapcast:

• Use the copied ability you have memorized. Energycost this varies; Allied abilitiescost whatever they do for them, while most enemy abilities costs just 10 energy.
• Copied abilities from allies; The damage/range/duration/cost etc, is based on YOUR level, YOUR mods and YOUR augments, not your ally's level or modding. It only matters WHO your ally is, to the determine the base ability, nothing else.

Power attributes' effects on Mimic:

Power Efficiency - Affects both the copying and casting cost.
Power Strength - No direct effect on Mimic (but affects the copied ability's strength though)
Power Range - Affects Mimic's cast range, as well as the copied ability's range-effects.
Power Duration - Affects Mimic's memory, as well as the copied ability's duration-effects.

Augment ideas:
None so far.

Quick silly illustration of the ability:

 

Ability #2 - Hangman

This ability has both a Hold and Tap-action.

Tapcast:
Sends forth a chaotic swirl of energy strings, in a medium-wide but very "tall" line (similar hit detection to Zenurik's ability, Void Pulse).

Holdcast:
While possessing an enemy his with #3-ability, or when controlling enemies as "puppets" with his #4-ability, holding down the button for Hangman will, rather than casting Hangman as a line of energy, instead cast Hangman only on the possessed and/or puppet targets you currently have under your control! Think of that as a "you are no longer of any use to me"-kind of move.

Regardless of which version which is used, these effects occur:

• Any enemy caught by these energy-strings will be hung up HIGH in the air (higher than the hanging from Void Pulse / Bastille, but still limitted by the ceiling), and the strings will silence these caught enemies, as well as completely incapacitate them (similar to Bastille / Void Pulse)
• Casting Hangman is silent, and enemies caught are also turned invisible to other enemies (for Anansi and his allies, they just look slightly transparent).
• The strings will strangle and/or crush them while they hang up there, causing damage over time. Damage is: 2% of target's current health (adapts constantly) as finisher damage + 20/30/40/50 finisher damage. Both the percentual and flat damage is multiplied by 4 if the caught enemy was unalerted (thus 8% of current health + 80/120/160/200 per second)
• Lifts enemies up for 8/10/12/15 seconds.
• Costs 50 energy to cast (both tap- and holdcast).
• When tapcast, the ability's range and width is similar to Void Pulse, but travels about twice as far forward. When heldcast, the range is unlimited (but as already mentioned, only affects targets affected by your #3 and #4-abilities).
• For some extra gorey fun: Enemies killed by it are severely dismembered.

Power attributes' effects on Hangman:

Power Efficiency - Affects the casting cost.
Power Strength - Affects the flat damage values, but not the "current health"-damage
Power Range - Affects the width and range (of the energy swirl-wave-thingy)
Power Duration - Affects the duration (the hangtime)

Augment ideas:
None so far.

Quick silly illustration of the ability:

 

Ability #3 - Possession

This is an enemytargetted ability, which functions like this:

• When you cast it, Anansi turns into energy and projects himself into an enemy, staggering it, then allowing full control of the enemy, such as moving around and attacking with it (as well as more abilities, more to that later).
• Possession is a silent cast.
• When Anansi controls an enemy, the possessed target is not targettable by other enemies, UNTIL Anansi (or rather, his possessed target) is seen attacking other enemies, only then he is open for enemy fire. So being sneaky and doing silent stealthkills with the possessed enemy will allow you to infiltrate safely.
• A note here on "friendly" fire: Similarly to Mind Control; If Anansi's allies attack the possessed target, the damage dealt will not be delivered until the possession expires (wether by duration or if Anansi leaves manually).
• Visually, you will see Anansi's (ethereal) hands and head above the target, with strings going from the fingers down to the possessed body (to clearly notify that you are possessing it)
• While in possession of an enemy, the possessed enemy will suffer all of the damage taken (Anansi is thus invulnerable).
• Anansi deals 150/200/250/300% bonus damage of what that enemy would normally do, but only towards enemies (you cannot friendly fire your allies with the possessed one's attacks.)
• Costs 75 energy to cast. Could potentially be a "toggle" too (with like 25 initial energy cost and then a drain of about 2 energy per second. That would probably be better for balance, no?)
• Possession cast range is 15/20/25/30 meters
• Possession duration of 15/20/25/30 seconds (if it's not a toggle)
• What Anansi can and can't do while in the body:
  • He can attack in various ways (shoot with weapons, melee and so on, those things are listed further down)
  • He can do a special stealth finisher when he gets behind an enemy: He will then project energystrings from the possessed unit, wrapping around the about-to-be-finished target and completely mutilates it. This could be an instant kill (similar to Covert Lethality).
  • He can cast the possessed enemy's special ability freely with #1. If he wants to STEAL this particular ability for later use with Anansi himself, he can hold #1 to do so, if you want to.
  • Anansi can cast #2, Hangman, out from the possessed body, possibly aiding in stealthy endevaours (or general mayhem). As mentioned on Hangman; If you hold-cast Hangman, Anansi will leave the body as well as cast Hangman on the possessed body (as well as any "puppets" from his #4)
  • Anansi can exit the body whenever he wants by casting #3 again (this also happens upon expiraton). This will quickly allow Anansi to start moving and such again. Leaving the body will also deal 150/250/350/500 finisher damage to the target and knock down the ex-possessed target.
    • Note 1: However, if the possessed target DIES while Anansi controls it, then Anansi is forced out of the body and Anansi is knocked down instead.
    • Note 2: Certain enemies cannot be possessed (like bosses). Casting Possession on them will instead just instantly deal the finisher damage to them.
    • Note 3: Since you can leave the possessed body by recasting it, that means you can use this as a mobility-ability, although it costs lots of energy, so it shouldn't be overused for that :P
  • Anansi can also cast his #4 ability, Puppet Army, out from the possessed body. This is a good way to cast his ulti, as Anansi is relatively safe while possessing a body, allowing him to posision himself well for the ulti to get as great effect out of it as possible
  • Besides basic movement, you can jump and sprint with the possessed enemy, but you cannot do any other parkour movement.

Power attributes' effects on Possession:

Power Efficiency - Affects casting cost.
Power Strength - Affects the damage bonus and the "exit" damage
Power Range - Affects the cast range
Power Duration - Affects the duration (or the energydrain, if it's a toggle)

Augment ideas:
Ghastly Possession - The possessed enemy's weapons are now silent.  If the possessed enemy gets discovered, he starts lashing out at enemies within X range with energystrings, dealing Y slash damage with every lash, which has Z% statuschance. Performs max one lash per second. In addition, the possessed enemy gains X% evasion when attacked by other enemies.
 

Quick silly illustration of the ability:

 

Ability #4 - Puppet Army

This is an AoE-ability, centered on Anansi, which does this:

• On cast, throws out energy strings in all directions to make nearby enemies into his personal puppets! (Think: AoE Mind Control!)
• Costs 100 energy to cast
• Castrange is 8/10/12/15 meter in radius and is affected by line of sight!)
• Enemies can be controlled for 10/15/20/25 seconds.
• As "puppets" they will be considered your allies and deal 25/50/75/100% bonus damage as well as move 5/10/15/20% faster.
• Just like with Mind Control and Possession: If Anansi's allies or Anansi himself attacks the puppets, the damage dealt will not be delivered until the puppet status expires (wether by duration or if Anansi ends it early by recasting manually).
• Recasting ends the ability early, allowing you to take control of a new (or the same) group of enemies immediately.
• Expiration by any means (as in, if duration runs out, or manually ending it) also knocks down all the ex-puppets as well as deals 300/500/700/900 slash damage to them.
• While enemies are Anansi's puppets, they lose 0,5% of their current health every second. (This is to prevent continuous use of the same enemies over and over + could be explained lorewise that you are shooting in unstable void-energy in them to control them, thus hurting them)
• If you cast Hangman with the regular "tap"-cast, puppets won't be affected, as they are considered allies. But, as mentioned before, if you cast Hangman with a "hold"-cast, they will all be affected by Hangman, no matter where they are. Doing so will also instantly remove them from their allied "puppet"-status.
• Visually, there will be some clear strings going from the puppets' bodies up into the air (seemingly attached to thin air), as well as a mild body glow on the enemies, to signify that they are your puppet allies.

I do understand that this is an INCREDIBLY powerful ability, so other costs or restrictions can also be applied (Like, only max X enemies can be controlled at a time, or, drains energy over time while active (with a milder starting cost), or stuff like that).

Power attributes' effects on Puppet Army:

Power Efficiency - Affects casting cost.
Power Strength - Affects the expiration slash damage, as well as the puppet movement speed and attack damage bonuses (Or, max amount of enemies converted, depending on the penalties and restrictions it would have for balance)
Power Range - Affects the cast radius
Power Duration - Affects the puppet duration

Augment ideas:
None so far.

Quick silly illustration of the ability:

 

So, if you have read the ability-ideas, you might ask, how does he "play"?

For stealthplay:
Anansi possesses enemies with his #3, Possession, to go around stealthkilling enemies relatively safely, with its powerful stealthfinisher.
Alternatively / additionally, he can silently hang up multiple enemies with his #2, Hangman, and potentially shoot them down with quiet weapons.
If you cast his #4 and do a quickfollow up with a heldcast #2 (which hangs up all the units caught by #4 as well as the unit your are currently possessing), you can take out quite big groups of enemies at once. Positioning is very important for that though, since his #4 requires line of sight!
His #1 sees lesser use in stealth though, unless a good silent ability have been copied.

For open combat:
This is where his #4, Puppet Army, shines the most, letting you have an everscaling army by his side. Casting his ulti is not supersafe though (due to LoS-restrictions and Anansi's general frailty), so possessing a body with his #3, to run in with the possessed unit and ulti with it in the midst of the chaos is generally a wise choice. Furthermore, his #2 can be used as snap CC / damage, either as a direct means of battle, or as additional CC against new groups of enemies you might not have taken over with his #4. It's also good to use to finish off controlled puppets and/or your possessed target with a holdcast.
The possession ability can also be used seperately for open combat, as it gives you much needed indirect tankiness by using the ENEMY health instead of your own,  as well as giving quick access to that particular enemy's special ability. One just has to be careful not to die with the possessed unit in an enemy crowd though, since that leaves him very exposed (knocked down and all) to enemy attacks.
His #1, Mimic, is his most versatile and "free" ability, and probably mostly most suited for open combat.

 

Now, as for all those "more to that later"-comments, let's have a look at the abilities you can copy, and what kind of things you can do while possessing enemies:

Copying allied abilities (accessed by holdcasting Mimic on allies):

 

Work as expected with most Warframes, with a few notes / outliers;

* Equinox - Allows you to shift between day and night form (which has no visual difference on Anansi), but the only benefit from doing so is getting the temporary stat bonuses.
* Ivara - Always grants you the CURRENTLY selected Quiver Arrow that Ivara has chosen (or the one she used last?). Alternatively, if easier to program, it could ALWAYS grant you her Cloak Arrow (fitting his stealthier style)?
* Anansi - Grants you the ability he stole last. If he has nothing stolen, then you cannot copy from him.

Enemy abilities (accessed by holdcasting Mimic on enemies, or by possessing enemies and tapcasting "Mimic" during it):

 

Work in progress!

GRINEER:

* Butcher, Powerfist, Guardsman, Prosecutors & Shield Lancers - Speed Boost (like 30% movespeed for a few seconds?)
* Flameblade - Teleport (instant cast, probably without the "finisher" opener like Ash though?)
* Scorpion - Grappling Hook
* Ballista - ?
* Lancer, Elite Lancer, Trooper & Eviscerator - Plasma Grenade
* Hellion - Jet Flight (Weeeee! Steering similar to Wukong's "Cloud Walker" for a brief moment)
* Scorch - ?
* Seeker - Deploy Latcher (damage will be WAY higher than theirs though)
* Bombard/Napalm/Heavy Gunner/Spark - Seismic Shockwave
* Commander - Switch Teleport ("confuses" enemies too)
* Drahk Master - Summon 2 Drahks (Energy versions? Max 2 out at a time, summoning new ones kill the old ones. This costs 25 energy)
* Manic - Quickstep (miniteleport forward) (Note: Not possessable, so only accessible through Mimic)
* Drahk - ?
* Regulators, Latchers and Rollers probably shouldnt have an ability / be possessable.

Grineer enemies who are not Possessable:
* Manic
* Regulators
* Latchers
* Rollers (or maybe? :D)
* Grustrag Three
* All Grineer Bosses

CORPUS:

* Crewman & Elite Crewman - Plasma Grenade
* Detron Crewman - ?
* Sniper Crewman - Summon Ratel Spawning-pad (Costs 25 energy)
* Tech - Deploy Shield Osprey (Energy Version? Can only deploy 1 at a time, casting it again destroys the old one. Costs 25 energy)
* Prod Crewman - Speed Boost (like 30% movespeed for a few seconds?)
* Nullifier Crewman - ?
* MOA - ?
* Railgun MOA - ?
* Fusion MOA - Deploy Drone (Energy Version? Can only deploy 1 at a time, casting it again destroys the old one. Costs 25 energy)
* Anti MOA - ? (The bouncing and exploding energyprojectile is their weapon)
* Shockwave MOA - Shockwave Stomp
* All Bursas - Shockwave Bash (Note: Not possessable, so only accessible through Mimic)
* Leech Osprey - Leech (Could grant you shield regeneration when hitting enemies, even if THEY don't have shields?)
* Mine Osprey - Drop Mine
* Oxium Osprey - Charge (No suicide though :P)
* Sapping Osprey - Sapping Orb
* Shield Osprey - Shield Repair (This is seperate from the passive shieldbuffing ability (the one where you link to nearby allies, buffing their shields), this ability restores a little bit of shields instantly, similar to the pulses of Guardian Eximus units)
* Drone - ?
* Scavenger Drone - Vacuum (Like a personal "AoE Greedy Pull"?)

Corpus enemies who are not Possessable:
* Bursas
* Ratels (or maybe?)
* Zanuka
* All Corpus Bosses

INFESTED:

* Charger & Runner - Speed Boost (like 30% movespeed for a few seconds?)
* Leaper - Pounce (though not with the 10x damage taken effect!)
* Volatile Runner - Goo-splosion! (No, when used with Anansi, you won't suicide :P You'll just do radial damage and stagger. If you possess a Volatile Runner and use its ability though, it WILL suicide. Using it manually, when possessed could potentially cause WAY more damage, to make it feel worthwhile?)
* Crawler - ?
* Nauseous Crawler - Paralyzing Fluid (yuck!)
* Toxic Crawler - Deploy Toxic Cloud (similar to their death effects)
* Electric Crawler - ? (The lightning is their ranged weapon)
* Lobber Crawler - ? (The "lob" is their ranged weapon)
* Mutalist Osprey - Toxic Charge
* Swarm-Mutalist MOA & Tar-Mutalist MOA - Shockwave Stomp (The swarm & tar is their regular ranged weapon)
* Ancient Healer, Ancient Disruptor & Toxic Ancient - Grappling Hook
* Boiler - ? (Spawn a Pod, which summons a random eligible Energy-Infested? Only one at a time though. Costs 25 energy)
* Brood Mother - Summon 4x Maggots (summoning new ones kills the old maggots)
* Juggernaut - Charge / Toxic Rain? (Note: Not possessable, so only accessible through Mimic)

Infested enemies who are not Possessable:
* Juggernaut
* Maggots
* All Infested Bosses

CORRUPTED:

Corrupted Lancer & Corrupted Crewman - Plasma Grenade
Corrupted Butcher - Speed Boost (like 30% movespeed for a few seconds?)
Corrupted Nullifier - ?
Orokin Drone - Shield Repair (This is seperate from the passive shieldbuffing ability (the one where you link to nearby allies, buffing their shields), this ability restores a little bit of shields instantly)
Corrupted Heavy Gunner & Corrupted Bombard - Seismic Shockwave
Corrupted MOA - Deploy Drone (Energy Version? Can only deploy 1 at a time, casting it again destroys the old one. Costs 25 energy)
Corrupted Drone - ?
Corrupted Ancient - Grappling Hook

Infested enemies who are not Possessable:
* All Corrupted Bosses (Currently only Corrupted Vor)

SENTIENTS + STALKERFACTION:

Oculyst - Nothing, I guess, since they are just a quest-unit? If anything, maybe a codex-scanning ability, enabling you to scan for energy instead of credits? :P
Battalyst - Prism (the omnidirectional laser). Anansi using it is still mobile and can attack etc.
Conculyst - Whirlwind. Anansi is still mobile and can attack etc.

Sentient/Stalker enemies who are not Possessable:
* Probably none of them would be Possessable!

 

Enemy actions (accessed by casting Possession on enemies):

 

Work in progress!

• #1 button - Use the unit's active ability (What all those abilities are, are listed in the previous "Enemy Abilities" list)
• Regular attack (Mouse 1) - Basic / ranged attack. This would let you do the following
  • Most melee units: Attack with your basic melee weapon / melee attack.
  • Most ranged units: Shoot with your basic ranged weapon
  • Grineer Helions: While on the ground, you shoot with their Grakatas. While flying (by using the jetpack with the #1-button), the attack switches to their cluster-rockets!
  • All Corpus & Corrupted Ospreys/Drones: Shoot with laserweapons (even "utility" ones, like Leech/Shield/Mine/Sapping Ospreys, as their "utility" is their abilities)
  • Most Infested units: Attack with their ranged spit
  • Mutalist Osprey: Spit toxic shot (the "charge" is its ability)
  • Ancients: Arm-extension-attack (not the grappling one, that is its ability)
• Melee attack (E) - "Extra" melee attack for enemies with ranged weapons, which means:
  • Most melee units: Same as regular attack, attack with your melee weapon
  • Most ranged units: Bash with their guns
  • Shield Lancer: The annoying shieldslam, knockback and all!
  • All MOAs: Kick
  • All Corpus & Corrupted Ospreys/Drones: Shortrange continuous electric shock (So they get some melee possibilities)
  • Most Infested units: Swing with their basic melee attacks, like swiping with their claws/arms etc. This includes Volatile Runners (Suiciding is their ability, which also occurs passively if they are killed)
  • Mutalist Osprey: Shortrange continuous toxic puff (So they get some melee possibilities)
  • All Ancients: Melee powerslap, knockdown and all!
• Melee attack (E) on unalerted enemies - Anansi will do a special stealth finisher: He will project energystrings from the possessed unit, wrapping around the about-to-be-finished target and completely mutilates it. This could be an instant kill (similar to Covert Lethality).
   
• Furthermore, if you possess a unit with "passive" abilities, you provide this passive ability for your team too. Passives would be things such as:
  • Auras, such as those from Eximus units and Prosecutors (Energydrain could maybe instead become an Energy Siphon-esque aura for Anansi and his team?)
  • Shield osprey's shieldbonuses
  • Nullifiers shieldbubble
  • Grineer Shield Lancer's shield will block attacks. Note: When firing (primary fire), the shield will be moved to the side, just like how the enemy Shield Lancers do (or did?)
  • Volatile Runners will explode when killed

Thoughts, ideas and criticism are all highly appreciated!

Edited September 22, 2017 by Azamagon

[Azamagon]

So, Archwizard gave a namesuggestion; Anansi.

The lore he gave me:
An African trickster entity who alternated between the forms of a spider and a man, who went around weaving stories.
The puppet theatrics and mimicry fit the storytelling aspect, the nooses and marionette strings fit the spider's silk (plus the cross-handle on his back could be fashioned into 4 legs), while the stealth play also fits into his trickster (My own comment: and spider) nature.

Now this gave me TONS of inspirations.
Nessus Anansi getting a spideresque theme, inspired this passive idea: Arachnid Stealth - He turns invisible when he is wallclimbing/wallrunning!

Now imagine him stealing Valkyr's Ripline... he'd become Spiderman! :D

That Ripline thing in turn gave me some more ideas:

What if:
Mimic's holdcast is Nessus Anansi shooting webbing out at his target which, when connected, makes him copy the ability of the enemy he has shot + it made him be pulled towards the target (or environment?), maybe being pulled as an optional feature (like, if pressing jump within 1 sec after casting, or he has to be airborne for it to pull him somewhere?)?

Or, alternatively (and probably better)
Possession (now renamed Haunt?)
Instead of being a targetted ability -> When activated, he becomes "ethereal" (thus invulnerable and invisible) and flies forward at great speed (guideable by aiming your crosshair), with a max flight-distance or with a constant energydrain. If he hits a wall, he will cling to it (great for his passive and general stealthiness). If he collides into an enemy, he will possess the enemy, as already suggested. Now it's a mobility AND possession ability!

Edited June 18, 2017 by Azamagon

[Archwizard]

By the by, if you name him Anansi, that would make him...

... a Spyder.

[Azamagon]

18 hours ago, Archwizard said:

By the by, if you name him Anansi, that would make him...

... a Spyder.

... a spy spider? Hah. Someone's been hanging out with Ordis for too long :D