Editing Walmart Apocalypse (section)

=====PATHS OF CEREAI=====

(Expanding fluffaggotry on the Cereai since I think they could easily be a viable PC class.)

Each Cereai follows a different incarnation, what they believe to be the shining example of their craft and one they should follow in spirit as much as possible. As a result, depending on the different incarnations of their mascots, as shown on the boxes and the occasional still-working adbot or screen, they have emerged with differing traits, fighting styles, and philosophies:

;Path of the Captain: These Cereai are natural leaders, and take the head of any situation. They are confident and tend to attract followers, who they lead with skill and valor. Cereai following this Path fight with skilled bladestrokes, but oftentimes lead their allies well enough that they never need to unsheath their blade at all.

;Path of the Tiger: The Cereai who worship their god they call Anthony the Great, value strength above all else. They oftentimes boast of their power, and will gladly take up any deed or challenge that allows them to demonstrate their strength (Their "Greatness"). Tiger Path Cereai fight with powerful bladestrokes, chopping down enemies and cleaving through their defenses.

;Path of the Rabbit: Rabbit Path Cereai fight with a fervor unmatched when faced with attacking Nevergrown, and seek so keenly to kill as many of them as possible that many have posited that there is some ancient enmity between the factions. These Cereai are skilled at disguises when not clad in their armor, able to impersonate other people well enough to pass cursory guards, and in battle display great relish in leaping forward in overhand strikes or jumping off of low shelves onto their foe, felling the opponents before they can raise their guard.

;Path of the Green Man: As with the Path of the Rabbit Cereai, these individuals seem to have an ancient grudge against the Nevergrown. However, in this case the history manifests itself as abject fear of the tiny figures, and a Cereai of this Path is hard-pressed not to flee in the face of them. When not encountered by the Nevergrow, the Green Man Cereai can move with incredible speed, and are unparalleled among the various Paths at setting up and executing ambushes, springing from target to target as if able to simply teleport at will, and they are as equally skilled as the Rabbit Path Cereai in disguises, even as inanimate objects or as part of a shelf. They cherish the Season of the Leafy Green Men, and the spirit of this Season so encourages them that this is the only time of the year that they can face Nevergrown in open combat (But even then they will still probably flee if vastly outnumbered)

;Path of the Three Brothers: The Three Brothers are rumored to be Cereai themselves, long ago, and have since been immortalized by the Great Sam in the form of iconography on the various cereal boxes. The Three Brother Path emphasizes teamwork, and Cereai in this Path always form groups of three or more, and seek to overcome incredible challenges and deeds in order to gain the attention of the Great Sam, and possibly become immortalized themselves. The Three Brother Cereai are a bit vain, and enjoy attention and praise and keeping both their armor and blades as spotless as humanely possible, but are deadly fighters, able to hear the faintest of footsteps stepping on tile, and in combat can corner they form unmatched fighting units, cornering an enemy with snaps from the flat of their blade, cracking them over the head with their blade's pommel, and then popping or breaking their necks to finish them.

;Path of the Dark One: Very little is known about this secretive Path. Even the boxes of cereal that they derive their Path and its philosophy are difficult to find, and these Cereai are perhaps the most strange of the lot. They file their front teeth into a single sharp point, and will often eschew use of their blade if they have grabbed a lightly armored opponent, instead biting into their exposed limbs or neck and causing massive bloodloss from the sharpened "tooth" (In addition, the very few rare survivors from these attacks usually die a few days later from the infection from the bacteria and scum in the mouth and on the tooth itself). Dark One Cereai also fashion their armor to form a great wing or cape which they can use to glide short distances. Often, this is used to descend onto a target group unsuspected, where they silently eliminate as many of the enemies before they are discovered and forced to draw their blade.

;Path of the Insect: This Path is somewhat uncommon, but the individuals within it are very skilled healers. They can fashion poultices from their Path's cereal that have astonishing restorative powers, and fight with a very odd, jerky style in which they dodge seemingly at random, making landing a single swordblow on them difficult in the extreme. Singularly out of all of the Paths, the Insect Cereai actually poison their blades with a toxic venom they call "Rednumbra Fortee," which can paralyze or kill a target within minutes if not properly treated. In addition, Cereai following this Path are akin to TopDwellers in that they prefer to be elevated, although if grounded they can still fight competently and effectively, slaying foes left and right with stabs from their envenomed blade. In addition, for reasons unknown these Cereai seem to be able to achieve much, much older age than the other Paths, even without the aid of Age'B'Gone.

;Path of the Bluebird: These Cereai, similar to those following the Path of the Dark One, tend to fashion their armor to make something resembling a pair of wings. This is ideal for them as they are the most reliant on elevation, often spending a battle gliding from shelf to shelf while making swings at enemies as they pass overhead. While these Cereai are slightly ungraceful both in movements and combat while grounded, they can perform outstanding aerial maneuvers, capable of evading even Dire Pigeons and the Taser Turrets for a time. Ranks for these Cereai is determined by colored stripes along their blade: The more stripes, the greater the rank and honor they receive from their peers. Given their propensity to attract turret fire, oftentimes they will make their way across the store to get an Elec to imbue their blade with embedded taserballs along the length , giving their blows an added punch.

;Path of the Rooster: These Cereai are supposedly the fallen, the outcast (Basically Ronin). Other Cereai treat them with shame, attacking them on sight if they dare to wear anything but blank cardboard armor. Especially prestigious Rooster path Cereai are allowed to instead use their Path's boxes for their armor, instead of remaining blank. However, these Cereai do not see themselves as shamed but enlightened, the "Sugarfree." They believe the honor and rigid caste path system is unnecessary, and shun it in favor of adopting whatever fighting style and techniques give them the greatest advantages, and so it is not at all uncommon to see one fighting with the style of the Tiger path while wearing armor that can glide like those of the Path of the Dark One. Obviously, the other Paths take a dim view on this, particularly those of the Dark One and Bluebird, and so will gladly take any given excuse to give the insolent Rooster a good thrashing.

There are other, smaller subfactions of Cereai, but these tend to be minor, like the Path of the Gorilla (Peace and diplomacy, make excellent negotiators and party faces, very calm and fluid-yet-forceful fighting style if the diplomacy fails), or uncommon due to other factors, such as the infighting between the Path of the Frog and the Path of the Bear over whose path is truly, as they say, "sweeter." (Their terms for honorable or dishonorable are "sweet," as in "This quest is sweet," and "bland," as in "Killing that innocent was bland.")