Blue Reformer (MUGEN)

Blue Reformer is a Mugen helper-body / groove-damage style character: the visible fighter is a helper, while the master player is hidden and invulnerable. Combat and defense scale with Explod 801 attack tiers, palette-based durability, and routing that rewards putting the opponent into the character’s flinch/groove behaviour.

• Author: compressionbox (Japanese: 圧縮箱).
• Version: 1.0 (per original readme).
• Engine: Classic MUGEN (author disallows Ikemen and “new MUGEN” ports for stability).

Documentation index

File	Purpose
docs/TRANSLATION.md	Japanese source text, move glossary, encoding notes, and licence quotations.
docs/log.md	Creator notes, excuses, and release commentary (from the original readme).
apply_english_comments.py	Optional script to re-apply English comment fragments in .cns / .air (writes CP932).

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Story setup (English)

The folder’s fiction centers on “Executor unit 8000000” — she insists she is ice-ordained “god-humanity” and the keeper of a pale rose / crystal motif. She idolizes Princess Yorihime (依姫), mirrors her tastes, and ends up on odd jobs and support duty. Other characters find her theology inconsistent; her moves often feel like something other than classical divine power.

A parallel profile documents Ajaeon, the ice magical girl rebuilt into an immutable shell after a lab accident: memory stripped, senses dulled, but finally stable control over destructive ice—fulfilling her wish for eternity in a cruel, hollow way. That backstory is optional reading for match context; see docs/TRANSLATION.md for the full Japanese narrative and glosses.

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System architecture — “fight mode”

1. Master vs helper split

• Config.cns spawns helper ID 10000000 (HelperType = Player, Name"Hontai") that receives inputs and attacks.
• The master (Name = "Blue Reformer", !IsHelper) is invisible, no collision, hitby-none, and its life bar tracks helper damage through scripted VarAdd / LifeSet math.
• SysVar(0) on the helper tracks the state machine id (movement, normals, hit reactions, supers). SysVar(2) mirrors GameTime for guard helpers.

This pattern is why the readme stresses high HelperMax—many helpers and Explods coexist.

2. Explod 801 — attack power tier

• Explod 801 encodes attack tier 0–6+. Few normals upgrade it; supers and installs push it upward.
• AttackMulSet scales damage in bands (Lv1…Lv4 atkmul states in Config.cns) so the helper hits harder as the tier rises.

3. Groove / flinch damage routing

• When the helper is hit, recent damage is funneled through GetHitVar(Damage) with multipliers that depend on whether the helper is in a “hit/groove” state range and on sysfvar(1) durability palette.
• If the opponent avoids triggering those states, incoming damage is shaved—this is the mechanical heart of the “groove damage” description.

4. Palette / durability (sysfvar(1))

• sysfvar(1) picks how much life is deducted per helper hit (0–10+ bands). Custom palette 1 can stay damage-neutral while CPU palettes tighten damage reduction tiers—mirroring the author’s “durability only” palette note.

5. AI and automation toggles

• var(59) — AI on/off for local testing.
• PowerAdd “cheat” block — optional automatic meter gain (author calls it ゲジマシ style).

6. Extra barrier helper

• When Explod 801 >= 3, a barrier helper (123456789) can appear for additional defense scripts.

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Moves, animation roles, and counter-play

Commands Route through CNS/Rose_Cmd.cns into helper states in CNS/Rose_Hel.cns. Use the movelist table in docs/TRANSLATION.md for inputs → move names (Japanese 冰* names glossed in English).

Design counters (conceptual)

You face…	Why it matters
Grapple / command grab stacks	Routing leans on hit reactions; grabs may skip routes that enable full damage.
Low-hitstun chip	If you never enter the flinch states the author expects, damage reduction stays high.
Helper limits	Exceeding HelperMax silently breaks MUGEN; keep the author’s minimum.
Ikemen / derivative engines	Unsupported — author forbids for bug-avoidance; respect that when distributing edits.

Animation-wise, SYS/Rose.air labels call out idle loops, slash trails, kicks, hurtboxes, hitboxes, and “sword dance” FX—now commented in English after localization.

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Required Mugen settings

From the author (see docs/TRANSLATION.md):

1. mugen.cfg → [Config] → HelperMax = 56 (author: mandatory).
2. [Sound Win] → WavChannels >= 60 (45+ “probably fine,” author says).

Avoid matching against opponents that disable damage or KO globally unless those features are toggled off on their side.

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License and redistribution

Character permissions (compressionbox, original Japanese readme): Unpermitted modification, redistribution, and asset reuse are explicitly OK, aside from the technical / engine restrictions above (Ikemen/new MUGEN ban, helper/audio limits, DtC/step-control matchups).

English documentation added in this repository pass (README.md, docs/*.md) is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (“CC BY 4.0”): you may share and adapt it with attribution (link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

This does not replace the author’s own terms for the .sff / .snd / code distribution—always keep compressionbox credited for the character.