The further into the Wyld you go the more the land becomes a dreamstate. Tainted lands are the remnants of Wyld areas that have been shaped in such a way and then the Wyld has receded to leave the land unnaturally warped.
The greater the power of the Wyld is the less Creation's laws apply and the more powerful the dreams that exit there. The Wyld is not a realm of meaningless, always changing chaos but rather a place where random notions come together to form dreams and stories and then dissolve back again. Rather than a place where fish fall from the sky like rain and then turn into trees a character could find themselves in an orchard where the fruit makes them hungrier and hungrier until they die of starvation. There is a structure to this fantasy but it works in direct contradiction to one of Creation's rules because that rule doesn't exist there. Just like dreamscapes and stories the energy of the Wyld also coalesces into consciousnesses. These are the raksha. In a way stories themselves but they can determine what happens in their story. They have the power to shape the dreamscape around them to form part of it. The further into the Wyld you go the further the stabilising sea bottom of Creation sinks beneath you and the deeper the seas of possibility are until there is no stability, there are no rules except what the crazed whims of the raksha decide to apply. Thus in a freehold you might sit down for refreshments in a palatial suite over literally half a cup of tea or fall into the intrigues of a set of man sized playing cards that have arms and legs and can talk.
A waypoint isn't a physically measured area but rather a place where something happens. In pure chaos anything could happen. A freehold is an entire dimension in it's own right. A setting for a series of interlinked scenes. A waypoint could be as large as anything wants it to be within the notion of one tale. Although concepts such as distance, time and speed do exist in the Wyld it is not defined by them as Creation is but is defined by ideas. Such physical concepts exist within these ideas to give them meaning. From a storyteller's point of view a journey into the Wyld is literally a narrative and you could cast yourself as the freehold ruler who tells the story.
Only in the true freeholds based on Unshaped raksha in the endless Wyld the Fair Folk have complete control over the freehold and may totally reshape a waypoint with impunity unless another Fair Folk tries to interfere. As they get closer to Creation shaping the Wyld gets more and more exerting until they finally leave it altogether where changing the land into a story is like trying to ascend an infinite cliff. It's a matter of speculation whether when Creation was first made the notion of impossibility being conceived brought about the existence of Oblivion which was only discovered when things realised they might not exist. In comparison with this uphill struggle shaping pure chaos is as easy and effortless as taking a gentle walk, something you can not only do but do with Style.
In the Wyld there are not limits on what the raksha can or want to do. Those who become enamoured enough of Creation to dwell within it however often shape their stronghold and their minions in a way appropriate to their environment. These raksha aspire to elegantly encorporating the nearby element(s) nature into their forms. Most raksha who still live in the Wyld view this as treason becoming one with the elemental patterns of Creation instead of using their inconstrained fantasies.
Stories exist as a series of cause and consequence of the Fair Folk's actions. Time only has meaning as the pace of the narrative and it does not flow at a constant rate or of it's own accord. In pure chaos physical concepts such as space and time are utterly at the whim or the Fair Folk. Things don't happen in the flow of time because time is a constant and always flows. Things happen because the Fair Folk say they happen. Distances exist because the Fair Folk say they do. If the Fair Folk decide for two things that were apart to become next to eachother or meld with eachother then unless they can interfere they do. Just as easily they can dissect things. Physical objects don't exist in the Wyld not because of a lack of possibility like Oblivion but because it consists only of possibilities, things which are not yet made. It is impossible for anything to exist in the Wyld save as an idea. The Wyld is better described not as a place (for such a thing denotes a concept of area) but as a mind- an inordinately vast mind. Place is a meaningless concept in such an environment. It is impossible to travel through they Wyld in the term people would understand it. Fair Folk do not exist in a place but as a chain of reasoning- reasoning to which no laws or limitations apply. Imagine living as a though within the brain of someone utterly mad with limitless intelligence. That is the existence of the Unshaped Fair Folk.
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Manual of Exalted Power: The Lunars
I wasn't very keen on the Lunars based on their description in the Exalted rulebook. Not that I didn't like the idea but I way they wrote about the Lunars didn't enthuse me. This didn't do much good even compared to that. It's not the description of the Lunars' powers that bothers me it's the various factors included in their background. The writers seem to have come into this with a colossal agenda, possibly based on the Garou from the World of Darkness, that the purpose of the Lunars is to protect Creation. This wouldn't be such a bad thing except like in the Abyssals they insist that this has to be the source of the character's motivation. The other major disappointment is the Silver Pact and their project, the Thousand Streams River. Even from an out of game perspective it has the abominable aim of creating a world that can exist without the Exalted, even the Lunars. They should have junked this whole book and started again. The Thousand Streams River takes the form of 'experiments' that Lunars perform on societies, primarily barbarian ones, there's a distinct antipathy towards civilisation in the character of the Lunars as if that would endear them to readers. These take the form of all sorts of half arsed dabbling that characterises the Lunars as sociologists. How this monumentally crap idea got into print is a mystery.
Unlike the Solars who are given the power and the inclination to do whatever they want, a trait that should have been portrayed even more in the Lunars, the players' choices are considerably restricted. For one thing the Lunars are still an organisation unlike the Solars or Abyssals and the way the younger members are treated is rather patronising like they were at a kindergarte while the senior members talk about the real business. Their powers themselves aren't bad (although don't have the potential or the juice of the Abyssals') but if the Dragon-Blooded were more animalistic then their powers would have to be different. This would be a good thing because then they could be more orientated towards the Wyld which would be far more suitable. As such there are some powers that deal with the Wyld but not many and not in the way they could have dealt with it. As always making this book in colour would have been advantageous considering it's importance. The way they make the flow diagrams for Knacks is good, using dark colours to distinguish them, but it's something they should also have done for Charms. Writing Attribute Charms the same way as ability Charms makes abilities seem rather cheap by comparison.
Although this book is still useful, including at the end additional Wyld mutations including derrangements and Wyld diseases, they could still have done a much better job and the way they portray Lunar society isn't going to do storytellers' of characters' visions any good. When I bought the Abyssals I was disappointed that I couldn't realise the characters I had in mind the way I wanted to. I don't even have much desire to make characters based on this book. Altogether this is a creative failure and unfortunately for such an important group there's nothing else you can use in it's place. The Lunars would be far better portrayed as individuals, which in a way they are but in an annoying turnaround their society is strangely restrictive. If you have better visions of what the Lunars should be don't bother with this and use your own ideas.
As a few final points, to use the example of the Haslanti League in particular, human organisations in Exalted that seem to be doing things for themselves are all too often the result of some other party' scheming rather than the result of originality such as the Angry Ghosts of Scroll of the Monk. The way the Haslanti League believe they're making genuine technological advances and rediscoveries but are actually being led to them by Lunars is another example of such supernatural manipulation. This is especially out of place since the Lunars are trying to make self sufficient societies (I believe that a core of Lunar characters is that they should be self sufficient or at least individual) but guiding them all the while. It's very annoying. You'd wish that people could make their own discoveries and that it wouldn't be down to Exalted and other supernaturals to do everything, but at the same time they wouldn't do anthing as stupid as creating a world that didn't need them since they are in fact here and they're doing this all themselves. The very fact that people haven't created a world that doesn't need the Exalted proves they are required as if that needed saying. Secondly they have some sort of antipathy towards civilisation (despite the fact it makes humanity strong- look at Lookshy, they're not a bunch of club wielding neanderthals) and seem happy to debase humanity by breeding it with beast stock to create beastmen rather than humans. A final point is their relationship to the Solar Exalted. The Chosen of Luna were marked by a 'strong preference for individualists, iconoclasts and outsiders.' Especially considering the ways of their goddess why would they be so bonded to the Solars? It seems to go against everything the Lunars (should) stand for. Why would Luna want her champions to be seconds and partners dominated by other Exalted. It's far more fitting and desirable that they should have the opposite role. On a related point their demanded affinity for Creation is somewhat misplaced as well. I know Luna was Gaia's consort (although it was Gaia's loyalty that brought her into the rebellion, there's no reason the two of the shared exactly the same ideals.) In the section about the Charms the Lunars seem more like Chosen of Gaia than Chosen of mercurial Luna. The Chosen of Gaia are by extension the Dragon-Blooded who I think would be better served by animalistic Charms rather than pure elemental ones in the way that they are described.
Unlike the Solars who are given the power and the inclination to do whatever they want, a trait that should have been portrayed even more in the Lunars, the players' choices are considerably restricted. For one thing the Lunars are still an organisation unlike the Solars or Abyssals and the way the younger members are treated is rather patronising like they were at a kindergarte while the senior members talk about the real business. Their powers themselves aren't bad (although don't have the potential or the juice of the Abyssals') but if the Dragon-Blooded were more animalistic then their powers would have to be different. This would be a good thing because then they could be more orientated towards the Wyld which would be far more suitable. As such there are some powers that deal with the Wyld but not many and not in the way they could have dealt with it. As always making this book in colour would have been advantageous considering it's importance. The way they make the flow diagrams for Knacks is good, using dark colours to distinguish them, but it's something they should also have done for Charms. Writing Attribute Charms the same way as ability Charms makes abilities seem rather cheap by comparison.
Although this book is still useful, including at the end additional Wyld mutations including derrangements and Wyld diseases, they could still have done a much better job and the way they portray Lunar society isn't going to do storytellers' of characters' visions any good. When I bought the Abyssals I was disappointed that I couldn't realise the characters I had in mind the way I wanted to. I don't even have much desire to make characters based on this book. Altogether this is a creative failure and unfortunately for such an important group there's nothing else you can use in it's place. The Lunars would be far better portrayed as individuals, which in a way they are but in an annoying turnaround their society is strangely restrictive. If you have better visions of what the Lunars should be don't bother with this and use your own ideas.
As a few final points, to use the example of the Haslanti League in particular, human organisations in Exalted that seem to be doing things for themselves are all too often the result of some other party' scheming rather than the result of originality such as the Angry Ghosts of Scroll of the Monk. The way the Haslanti League believe they're making genuine technological advances and rediscoveries but are actually being led to them by Lunars is another example of such supernatural manipulation. This is especially out of place since the Lunars are trying to make self sufficient societies (I believe that a core of Lunar characters is that they should be self sufficient or at least individual) but guiding them all the while. It's very annoying. You'd wish that people could make their own discoveries and that it wouldn't be down to Exalted and other supernaturals to do everything, but at the same time they wouldn't do anthing as stupid as creating a world that didn't need them since they are in fact here and they're doing this all themselves. The very fact that people haven't created a world that doesn't need the Exalted proves they are required as if that needed saying. Secondly they have some sort of antipathy towards civilisation (despite the fact it makes humanity strong- look at Lookshy, they're not a bunch of club wielding neanderthals) and seem happy to debase humanity by breeding it with beast stock to create beastmen rather than humans. A final point is their relationship to the Solar Exalted. The Chosen of Luna were marked by a 'strong preference for individualists, iconoclasts and outsiders.' Especially considering the ways of their goddess why would they be so bonded to the Solars? It seems to go against everything the Lunars (should) stand for. Why would Luna want her champions to be seconds and partners dominated by other Exalted. It's far more fitting and desirable that they should have the opposite role. On a related point their demanded affinity for Creation is somewhat misplaced as well. I know Luna was Gaia's consort (although it was Gaia's loyalty that brought her into the rebellion, there's no reason the two of the shared exactly the same ideals.) In the section about the Charms the Lunars seem more like Chosen of Gaia than Chosen of mercurial Luna. The Chosen of Gaia are by extension the Dragon-Blooded who I think would be better served by animalistic Charms rather than pure elemental ones in the way that they are described.
Graceful Wicked Masques
Fantasy in fantasy
This is the first Exalted book in a long time I've read without skipping any of it. This is Exalted on a new better level. I wish they made all the books like this. There's no agenda the characters have to adhere to like in the Abyssals or the Lunars which really brings them down. They just tell the story of the Fair Folk as they are. The hardback series about supernatural denizens is more serious than some other Exalted publications but this is easily the best I've read. I just wish they did them all like this. The description of the Fair Folk and their world is brilliant. This book has descriptions of Shinmas which are mentioned elsewhere but not described, and what role they played in Creation and how they are relevant to the Fair Folk. It also includes things like aspects of thee Shinmas and secret names, the sort of occult fantasy lore than many people mention in their work but never describe.
After a general section about the raksha there's a chapter on Unshaped Fair Folk. These two chapters are exhaustive with Charms specifically for the Unshaped Fair Folk. Very interestingly from my perspective (because of my work on R'yuk) and probably to other with interest in Spirits as well they discuss in great detail the relationship between Spirits and their Virtues, in particular the unique way they Fair Folk relate to them. There is more magic in this book than you can shake a very big stick at. In addition to a tremendously lengthy chapter on Charms including four Fair Folk 'martial arts' styles, there are descriptions of other Grace (Virtue) magic including shaping and shaping combat (a unique form of Fair Folk battle,) Adjurations (oaths), behemoths, Fair Folk sorcery called Oneiromancy (not a direct companion to other sorcery), Treasures and how they make freeholds. There's also descriptions of Glamour and Gossamer and of course the various ways the Fair Folk feed from mortals.
If only they did the rest of the books on spirits as well as this one. It's far more serious and interesting than The Roll of Glorious Divinity. The Charms all have proper trait minimums including Graces and are presented in flow diagrams like they are for Exalted. The comics are also better than in most other books, reflecting it's more serious nature and more complete so you don't feel like you've read half the story. This book is if anything better than the main rulebook. If only they did it in colour. I'd recommend anyone who's interested in Exalted buying this to show what the designers can do when they put their minds to it.
This is the first Exalted book in a long time I've read without skipping any of it. This is Exalted on a new better level. I wish they made all the books like this. There's no agenda the characters have to adhere to like in the Abyssals or the Lunars which really brings them down. They just tell the story of the Fair Folk as they are. The hardback series about supernatural denizens is more serious than some other Exalted publications but this is easily the best I've read. I just wish they did them all like this. The description of the Fair Folk and their world is brilliant. This book has descriptions of Shinmas which are mentioned elsewhere but not described, and what role they played in Creation and how they are relevant to the Fair Folk. It also includes things like aspects of thee Shinmas and secret names, the sort of occult fantasy lore than many people mention in their work but never describe.
After a general section about the raksha there's a chapter on Unshaped Fair Folk. These two chapters are exhaustive with Charms specifically for the Unshaped Fair Folk. Very interestingly from my perspective (because of my work on R'yuk) and probably to other with interest in Spirits as well they discuss in great detail the relationship between Spirits and their Virtues, in particular the unique way they Fair Folk relate to them. There is more magic in this book than you can shake a very big stick at. In addition to a tremendously lengthy chapter on Charms including four Fair Folk 'martial arts' styles, there are descriptions of other Grace (Virtue) magic including shaping and shaping combat (a unique form of Fair Folk battle,) Adjurations (oaths), behemoths, Fair Folk sorcery called Oneiromancy (not a direct companion to other sorcery), Treasures and how they make freeholds. There's also descriptions of Glamour and Gossamer and of course the various ways the Fair Folk feed from mortals.
If only they did the rest of the books on spirits as well as this one. It's far more serious and interesting than The Roll of Glorious Divinity. The Charms all have proper trait minimums including Graces and are presented in flow diagrams like they are for Exalted. The comics are also better than in most other books, reflecting it's more serious nature and more complete so you don't feel like you've read half the story. This book is if anything better than the main rulebook. If only they did it in colour. I'd recommend anyone who's interested in Exalted buying this to show what the designers can do when they put their minds to it.
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Lunar Charms
Lunars' Charms disturbingly like the Fair Folk's are based on manipulation of reality. However unlike the Fair Folk rather than manipulating the world around them they change themselves. Because of the power of possibility of the Wyld Essence within them if a Lunar believes they can walk up a wall they can. Every surface they walk on to them is horizontal. They place themselves outside Creation's laws. if a Lunar believes they are so strong they could hurl a spear like a mere arrow then it happens. Possible downside- out of control subconscious thoughts become manifest. A Lunar could want to be the most stunning debutante the world has ever seen so for a moment they are. This is no mere glamour or illusion.
Octopus Style Part ze Two
Extending his Essence into tangible limbs channelling the ability of an octopus' limbs to think for themselves the character can ignore DV penalties from coordinated attacks.
Eightfold Tentacle Snaring Attack
The octopus overwhelms it's prey by it' sheer number of limbs. No matter what defences an enemy throws up they will always have something new to attack with. This plethora of sticking tentacles renders their enemies helpless.
The Charm supplements a flurry. The martial artist throws up one attack after another completely overwhelming their foe's defences. Not only may they make a number of martial arts attacks equal to their Essence but their constraining limbs inflict a internal penalty equal to the DV penalty inflicted by the flurry on their next action.
Octopus Form
The follower of this style can create new ethereal limbs out of Essence or imbue existing protrusions with it to use them like limbs. The number of separate limbs they can create/animate is equal to their Essence. They may in fact make more but only count as a number of limbs equal to the character's Essence.
These limbs are partially sentient and can act partly on their own autonomy. Reduce the parry DV penalty the character suffers for coordinated attacks by their number of tentacles to a minimum of 0. Also if they possess one tentacle per attacker they may avoid the surprise attack for being surrounded. These tentacles are used as features in other Charms of the style (as above.)
The character can reflexively activate the low Essence Charm below reflexively without it counting as Charm use.
Low Essence Charm
The character may make two separate actions if they involve using different (natural) limbs without multiple action penalties from one action applying to the other.
Phantom Weapon Control
When an octopus is in danger it can detach a limb which will writhe in the water like a snake and distract it's opponent. Practitioners of octopus style can put this ability to a deadlier use. If the character is disarmed (even literally) they can still control the removed weapon as if they still held it even giving as basic commands as move forwards or attack. The limb has a sensory range of character's Essence in yards and although it cannot perceive complex terrain it can detect living (or undead) beings within that distance.
High Essence Charm
Prerequisite: Eightfold Tentacle Snaring Attack
At this master of octopus style her Essence limbs gain not only animation but sentience. Rather than using her limbs to make extra attacks in a flurry each limb can perform it's own full action including a flurry if the owner wishes using natural unarmed attacks for offensive actions.
Eightfold Tentacle Snaring Attack
The octopus overwhelms it's prey by it' sheer number of limbs. No matter what defences an enemy throws up they will always have something new to attack with. This plethora of sticking tentacles renders their enemies helpless.
The Charm supplements a flurry. The martial artist throws up one attack after another completely overwhelming their foe's defences. Not only may they make a number of martial arts attacks equal to their Essence but their constraining limbs inflict a internal penalty equal to the DV penalty inflicted by the flurry on their next action.
Octopus Form
The follower of this style can create new ethereal limbs out of Essence or imbue existing protrusions with it to use them like limbs. The number of separate limbs they can create/animate is equal to their Essence. They may in fact make more but only count as a number of limbs equal to the character's Essence.
These limbs are partially sentient and can act partly on their own autonomy. Reduce the parry DV penalty the character suffers for coordinated attacks by their number of tentacles to a minimum of 0. Also if they possess one tentacle per attacker they may avoid the surprise attack for being surrounded. These tentacles are used as features in other Charms of the style (as above.)
The character can reflexively activate the low Essence Charm below reflexively without it counting as Charm use.
Low Essence Charm
The character may make two separate actions if they involve using different (natural) limbs without multiple action penalties from one action applying to the other.
Phantom Weapon Control
When an octopus is in danger it can detach a limb which will writhe in the water like a snake and distract it's opponent. Practitioners of octopus style can put this ability to a deadlier use. If the character is disarmed (even literally) they can still control the removed weapon as if they still held it even giving as basic commands as move forwards or attack. The limb has a sensory range of character's Essence in yards and although it cannot perceive complex terrain it can detect living (or undead) beings within that distance.
High Essence Charm
Prerequisite: Eightfold Tentacle Snaring Attack
At this master of octopus style her Essence limbs gain not only animation but sentience. Rather than using her limbs to make extra attacks in a flurry each limb can perform it's own full action including a flurry if the owner wishes using natural unarmed attacks for offensive actions.
Fear of the Dark
The vessel is an actual ghost ship the ghost of the god of a ship that sank and rotten at the bottom of the sea. The ship long since vanished but in the unlit depths of the ocean
When there is no sun they can pass between Creation and the Underworld which is permanently beyond the Sun's gaze. The Unconquered Sun doesn't just shine down on Creation he sees everything his light falls upon. The deep ocean is pitch black and often home to a myriad of horrors that at night rise up and walk upon Creation's shores. Such places as the darkest forests and the deeps of caves act as haunts where the things that cannot live under the Unconquered Sun's light lurk within Creation. In these places the boundary between Creation and the Underworld is blurred for there is no difference between day and night and ghosts can pass easily from one world to the other with the right Arcanos. Such is the instability that the deaths of the Primordials wracked upon reality. In the dark northern winter ghosts can walk freely for months at a time. The further north you go, not only does it get colder as the days get shorter, but ghosts can stay for longer in Creation.
Around the Pole of Fire the sky is blanketed by and endless cloud of smoke.
When there is no sun they can pass between Creation and the Underworld which is permanently beyond the Sun's gaze. The Unconquered Sun doesn't just shine down on Creation he sees everything his light falls upon. The deep ocean is pitch black and often home to a myriad of horrors that at night rise up and walk upon Creation's shores. Such places as the darkest forests and the deeps of caves act as haunts where the things that cannot live under the Unconquered Sun's light lurk within Creation. In these places the boundary between Creation and the Underworld is blurred for there is no difference between day and night and ghosts can pass easily from one world to the other with the right Arcanos. Such is the instability that the deaths of the Primordials wracked upon reality. In the dark northern winter ghosts can walk freely for months at a time. The further north you go, not only does it get colder as the days get shorter, but ghosts can stay for longer in Creation.
Around the Pole of Fire the sky is blanketed by and endless cloud of smoke.
Friday, 17 June 2011
"Any fool can drink." "Few can match my determination"
A shark faced bride
chewing the flesh off my face
her hands clenched around my spine
playing with it like a toy she could break at any moment.
crushing my body into splinters so she can feed me to her urchins
Her eyes glow red as the blood stains her fingers and she shivers
eyes closed and gasps as if I could bring her pleasure by dying
she can tear my body apart with her fingertips and wants to do so
licking the torn flesh from them like the rarest meats
What did she do to me to make me so sweet to her
Can she still taste the love in my veins for my precious beautiful whore?
or is it the relish of brackish sorrow of her memory in me
Nostalgic tears mixed with bloody passion. A passion that would have made me kill for her without question. Kill to save a beautiful whore. My blood is her whore's price. I wanted to be her lover, the only thing that adorns her fingers is my red blood. I wanted to save her from a life of whoredom and she's picking pieces of me from between her teeth.
chewing the flesh off my face
her hands clenched around my spine
playing with it like a toy she could break at any moment.
crushing my body into splinters so she can feed me to her urchins
Her eyes glow red as the blood stains her fingers and she shivers
eyes closed and gasps as if I could bring her pleasure by dying
she can tear my body apart with her fingertips and wants to do so
licking the torn flesh from them like the rarest meats
What did she do to me to make me so sweet to her
Can she still taste the love in my veins for my precious beautiful whore?
or is it the relish of brackish sorrow of her memory in me
Nostalgic tears mixed with bloody passion. A passion that would have made me kill for her without question. Kill to save a beautiful whore. My blood is her whore's price. I wanted to be her lover, the only thing that adorns her fingers is my red blood. I wanted to save her from a life of whoredom and she's picking pieces of me from between her teeth.
Wednesday, 15 June 2011
Lunar Excellencies (Damage System)
For the purpose of Excellencies the Attributes Strength, Dexterity and Stamina are known as Might, Grace and Fortitude.
Essence of Overwhelming Lunar (Trait)
The Lunar may spend up to Attribute x 2 motes. For every two motes spent they gain an extra dice.
Essence of Triumphant Lunar (Trait)
The Lunar learns to focus Essence from her Exaltation purely through her Attribute. A roll made with this Charm does not add their Ability but they suffer no penalties for conditions related to abilities such as not having one.
Just like the Wyld the Lunar Exaltation allows the creation of endless possibilities. Creation itself was shaped from the Wyld. Where Lunar Exaltations differ from others is that they were not transformed from Wyld energy but contain it. They are Wyld energy in an undeveloped form that can be changed according to the will of the host.
Every dice that results in a ten counts as a success regardless of the difficulty of the roll.
Indisputable Lunar (Trait)
Mins: Attribute 6, Essence 6
Prerequisite Charms: Essence of Triumphant Lunar (Trait)
This Charm expands Essence of Triumphant Lunar (Trait) making all the successes gained with it net successes that cannot be cancelled by external penalties. A Lunar with this Charm has a chance of fathoming the most incomprehensible mysteries of the Wyld, punching out a Yozi or singing a song so beautiful that even the Neverborn will stop screaming to listen to it.
Essence of Overwhelming Lunar (Trait)
The Lunar may spend up to Attribute x 2 motes. For every two motes spent they gain an extra dice.
Essence of Triumphant Lunar (Trait)
The Lunar learns to focus Essence from her Exaltation purely through her Attribute. A roll made with this Charm does not add their Ability but they suffer no penalties for conditions related to abilities such as not having one.
Just like the Wyld the Lunar Exaltation allows the creation of endless possibilities. Creation itself was shaped from the Wyld. Where Lunar Exaltations differ from others is that they were not transformed from Wyld energy but contain it. They are Wyld energy in an undeveloped form that can be changed according to the will of the host.
Every dice that results in a ten counts as a success regardless of the difficulty of the roll.
Indisputable Lunar (Trait)
Mins: Attribute 6, Essence 6
Prerequisite Charms: Essence of Triumphant Lunar (Trait)
This Charm expands Essence of Triumphant Lunar (Trait) making all the successes gained with it net successes that cannot be cancelled by external penalties. A Lunar with this Charm has a chance of fathoming the most incomprehensible mysteries of the Wyld, punching out a Yozi or singing a song so beautiful that even the Neverborn will stop screaming to listen to it.
Tuesday, 14 June 2011
Damage System
In the epic scale of Exalted if someone is hit (technically) then it's assumed it isn't just a scratch. The contravenes my previous idea about basing the damage dice pool on the attack bonus. I like my earlier idea more.
To recap: In the Damage System each dice roll is the Attribute in dice.
Threshold is the number scored by an individual dice. Difficulty is the number required to get a success. Because the dice pool is smaller than in normal White Wolf games dice rolls are resolved by the number of successes such as a damage roll (where every dice that meets the difficulty is a net success) or a number of successes to succeed by extra successes are not necessary like in Fatigue rolls.
Add the character's Ability to each dice.
This system requires reworking the Exalteds' Excellencies. I haven't worked them all out yet. The Third Excellency remains the same since it simply provides a reroll. In the First Excellency spend Essence up to Attribute + Ability for Solars, Essence for Sidereals or Ability for Dragon-Blooded. Every mote they spend adds to the threshold for the diceroll. I don't know what to do with the Second Excellency yet.
Lunar Charms: For their first two Excellencies Lunars spend up to Attribute x 2 motes since channelling Essence through Attributes is more demanding than channelling through an Ability. In the First Excellency Lunars gain an extra dice for every two motes spent. Dice adders are much more powerful in this system.
Indisputable Lunar (Trait) Lunar Attributes are known as Might, Grace and Fortitude for Strength, Dexterity and Stamina for the purpose of Excellencies. Every two motes spent doubles the result of a single dice, rolled seperately.
Scale of Difficulty
6 Basic difficulty. Someone with no skill has a reasonable chance of success. A master can do it with their eyes closed.
10 A novice has a cat's chance in hell of success. This is no significant test for an expert.
15 Impossible for a beginner without master crafted tools and expert help. The best in the field struggle to attain this level of perfection.
20 A challenge for the greatest of all Exalted without helpful equipment or the use of Charms.
21+ Truly supernatural feats worthy of the mighty heroes of the First Age.
30 Paradigm of Celestial grace.
40 Crowning glories of the Chosen of the Sun.
To recap: In the Damage System each dice roll is the Attribute in dice.
Threshold is the number scored by an individual dice. Difficulty is the number required to get a success. Because the dice pool is smaller than in normal White Wolf games dice rolls are resolved by the number of successes such as a damage roll (where every dice that meets the difficulty is a net success) or a number of successes to succeed by extra successes are not necessary like in Fatigue rolls.
Add the character's Ability to each dice.
This system requires reworking the Exalteds' Excellencies. I haven't worked them all out yet. The Third Excellency remains the same since it simply provides a reroll. In the First Excellency spend Essence up to Attribute + Ability for Solars, Essence for Sidereals or Ability for Dragon-Blooded. Every mote they spend adds to the threshold for the diceroll. I don't know what to do with the Second Excellency yet.
Lunar Charms: For their first two Excellencies Lunars spend up to Attribute x 2 motes since channelling Essence through Attributes is more demanding than channelling through an Ability. In the First Excellency Lunars gain an extra dice for every two motes spent. Dice adders are much more powerful in this system.
Indisputable Lunar (Trait) Lunar Attributes are known as Might, Grace and Fortitude for Strength, Dexterity and Stamina for the purpose of Excellencies. Every two motes spent doubles the result of a single dice, rolled seperately.
Scale of Difficulty
6 Basic difficulty. Someone with no skill has a reasonable chance of success. A master can do it with their eyes closed.
10 A novice has a cat's chance in hell of success. This is no significant test for an expert.
15 Impossible for a beginner without master crafted tools and expert help. The best in the field struggle to attain this level of perfection.
20 A challenge for the greatest of all Exalted without helpful equipment or the use of Charms.
21+ Truly supernatural feats worthy of the mighty heroes of the First Age.
30 Paradigm of Celestial grace.
40 Crowning glories of the Chosen of the Sun.
Saturday, 11 June 2011
Roll of Glorious Divinity I
You are the weakest link.
Among the outstanding Books of Sorcery series that brought us the White Treatise, First Age Glories of Wonders of the Lost Age and the advanced manse and artefact rules (very useful) of Oadenol's Codex this book stands out. Unlike in it's successor II the Charms for the gods and elementals are very bland compared to the Charms for ghosts in volume II which have Virtue minimums and are grouped into cascades. Unfortunately rather than having a proper set of individual powers demons use the same Charms as gods do. It makes for very uninteresting reading. As with much in Exalted it creates more potential in the mind of the player than it actually expresses itself. The idea of Spirit Charms being expressions of the spirit's nature and personality is excellent but they don't realise this idea in an interesting way. The definition of the ghosts' Charms in volume II is far better, as with Yu-Shan the atmosphere of this book is very bland. I think it would be better if they drew directly on mythological ideas or created characters and traits similar to them, the gods in Exalted both in this book and in Yu-Shan lack an elemental power that's present in mythology and other, more basic forms of fantasy. I was looking at a book of fantasy art one day and although it was primitive had a certain fundamental power that Exalted lacks and I think would be better if it had. Players not particularly committed are better off looking at Exalted Charms and creating their own gods' powers from original ideas or using the Glorious Divinity vol.II for inspiration.
Among the outstanding Books of Sorcery series that brought us the White Treatise, First Age Glories of Wonders of the Lost Age and the advanced manse and artefact rules (very useful) of Oadenol's Codex this book stands out. Unlike in it's successor II the Charms for the gods and elementals are very bland compared to the Charms for ghosts in volume II which have Virtue minimums and are grouped into cascades. Unfortunately rather than having a proper set of individual powers demons use the same Charms as gods do. It makes for very uninteresting reading. As with much in Exalted it creates more potential in the mind of the player than it actually expresses itself. The idea of Spirit Charms being expressions of the spirit's nature and personality is excellent but they don't realise this idea in an interesting way. The definition of the ghosts' Charms in volume II is far better, as with Yu-Shan the atmosphere of this book is very bland. I think it would be better if they drew directly on mythological ideas or created characters and traits similar to them, the gods in Exalted both in this book and in Yu-Shan lack an elemental power that's present in mythology and other, more basic forms of fantasy. I was looking at a book of fantasy art one day and although it was primitive had a certain fundamental power that Exalted lacks and I think would be better if it had. Players not particularly committed are better off looking at Exalted Charms and creating their own gods' powers from original ideas or using the Glorious Divinity vol.II for inspiration.
Soul Devouring Infection
This Charm expands the effect of Chakra Violating Blow, changing it from a Crippling Effect into a Sickness Effect. If the initial blow is successful the victim has been infected with Abyssal Essence that will continue to consume them.
After a number of days equal to their Willpower, the infection makes an attack on their lowest Virtue using the same dice pool as the initial attack. If this destroys the targeted Virtue it may make another attack after another number of days equal to their Willpower have expired.
After a number of days equal to their Willpower, the infection makes an attack on their lowest Virtue using the same dice pool as the initial attack. If this destroys the targeted Virtue it may make another attack after another number of days equal to their Willpower have expired.
Like Oblivion, Dark Messiah Style doesn't focus a practitioner on petty ideas like cruelty or bloodlust. The nature of Oblivion does not seek to kill but to destroy. Other, weaker martial arts might focus on the torment and manipulation of their victims, Dark Messiah Style is used to feed on them.
While it's possible for a Dark Messiah to tear an enemy's soul apart, with a greater Charm it's possible to tear it out of their body completely.
Resolve the damage from an unarmed martial arts attack with an external penalty equal to the sum of the target's Virtues. Victims of Chakra Violating Blow cannot be affected by this Charm since a part of their soul has already been destroyed and replaced with Abyssal Essence so it cannot be stripped away. If the attack succeeds the Dark Messiah tear the opponent's heart from their chest and their soul with it killing them instantly.
The power of the victim's soul now becomes their's. While the magically preserved heart is still in their possession they may use the soul's Virtue channels for their own dice rolls as if they were their own (these cannot be combined with the character's own Virtue channels) and use the number of the soul's remaining Virtue channels in place of the own Virtue rating for a related roll. They may use any Willpower points the target has and gain no Resonance for doing so (the dead soul of another Exalt no longer has an Exaltation to cause the tormented spirit Limit Break.) The character may also bite into the heart consuming it's Essence as a Miscellaneous Action and decreasing it's Essence rating by one. Doing so gives the character access to ten extra motes of Essence until the end of their next action. A spirit reduces to zero Essence is destroyed and it's heart shrivels and dries up into dust.
While it's possible for a Dark Messiah to tear an enemy's soul apart, with a greater Charm it's possible to tear it out of their body completely.
Resolve the damage from an unarmed martial arts attack with an external penalty equal to the sum of the target's Virtues. Victims of Chakra Violating Blow cannot be affected by this Charm since a part of their soul has already been destroyed and replaced with Abyssal Essence so it cannot be stripped away. If the attack succeeds the Dark Messiah tear the opponent's heart from their chest and their soul with it killing them instantly.
The power of the victim's soul now becomes their's. While the magically preserved heart is still in their possession they may use the soul's Virtue channels for their own dice rolls as if they were their own (these cannot be combined with the character's own Virtue channels) and use the number of the soul's remaining Virtue channels in place of the own Virtue rating for a related roll. They may use any Willpower points the target has and gain no Resonance for doing so (the dead soul of another Exalt no longer has an Exaltation to cause the tormented spirit Limit Break.) The character may also bite into the heart consuming it's Essence as a Miscellaneous Action and decreasing it's Essence rating by one. Doing so gives the character access to ten extra motes of Essence until the end of their next action. A spirit reduces to zero Essence is destroyed and it's heart shrivels and dries up into dust.
Chakra Violating Blow
As they have lost the last dot of a Virtue that is a defining part of their soul they can never do anything associated with that Virtue. Those without Valour cannot face danger, without Conviction they cannot stand for their own beliefs, without Temperance they cannot repress their urges, without Compassion they can never help other except purely to serve their own ends.
Roll Martial Arts + Essence adding a number of automatic successes equal to their Avatar, comparing against the target's Dodge MDV plus their targeted Virtue (doubled if it's their Primary Virtue.) If the roll succeeds the target loses all points in that Virtue and all related Virtue channels. Furthermore, if they suffer an internal penalty equal to what their Virtue used to be, or an external penalty if their Primary Virtue was destroyed. If the combined penalty exceeds the character's Willpower they slip into a coma.
The effects of Chakra Violating Blow are permanent. It is impossible for anyone to heal someone affected without the use or Charms or healing artefacts. To heal someone they must spend a Willpower point and make an Intelligence + Medicine roll at a difficulty of the attacking character's Essence at the time the Charm was used with an internal penalty of what the character's Virtue was (or an external penalty in the case of a Primary Virtue.) The roll must score more threshold successes than the attacker's Avatar rating to overcome the consuming effects. A healer can only return someone's lost Virtue to a rating equalling their own. Returning someone's spiritual state to a level higher than their awareness is beyond their capability. When someone is healed they immediately enter Limit Break and suffer a Flaw for the related Virtue. This Flaw ends after the proscribed time. It is impossible for them to exert partial control and they gain no Willpower bonu for entering Limit Break.
Roll Martial Arts + Essence adding a number of automatic successes equal to their Avatar, comparing against the target's Dodge MDV plus their targeted Virtue (doubled if it's their Primary Virtue.) If the roll succeeds the target loses all points in that Virtue and all related Virtue channels. Furthermore, if they suffer an internal penalty equal to what their Virtue used to be, or an external penalty if their Primary Virtue was destroyed. If the combined penalty exceeds the character's Willpower they slip into a coma.
The effects of Chakra Violating Blow are permanent. It is impossible for anyone to heal someone affected without the use or Charms or healing artefacts. To heal someone they must spend a Willpower point and make an Intelligence + Medicine roll at a difficulty of the attacking character's Essence at the time the Charm was used with an internal penalty of what the character's Virtue was (or an external penalty in the case of a Primary Virtue.) The roll must score more threshold successes than the attacker's Avatar rating to overcome the consuming effects. A healer can only return someone's lost Virtue to a rating equalling their own. Returning someone's spiritual state to a level higher than their awareness is beyond their capability. When someone is healed they immediately enter Limit Break and suffer a Flaw for the related Virtue. This Flaw ends after the proscribed time. It is impossible for them to exert partial control and they gain no Willpower bonu for entering Limit Break.
Abyssal Backgrounds
Whispers is the character's level of psychic connection to the Neverborn and how much their voices reverberate through the character's mind. The Labyrinth is filled with the voices of the Neverborn, things like the Labyrinth that are constantly being consumed by Oblivion yet never diminish. Abyssal characters may have Whispers from character creation without ever having been to the Labyrinth. They appear in the character's mind with no known cause like the visions in the mind of Jack Walters.
Avatar represents the character's connection to the Void. All Nephwracks have it as well as Spectres unless you'd rather have Spectres being ghosts that serve Oblivion whereas Nephwracks have been 'consecrated' by it. The dark hunger that exists within the Void exists in them.
Avatar represents the character's connection to the Void. All Nephwracks have it as well as Spectres unless you'd rather have Spectres being ghosts that serve Oblivion whereas Nephwracks have been 'consecrated' by it. The dark hunger that exists within the Void exists in them.
Those Who Wake Under the Moon
Only in the absence of the Sun's gaze is Luna's glory evident. Under the dark sky when mortals are dreaming and Fair Folk are lured by their hunger Lunars stir.
The Wyld doesn't endanger Lunars any more than their Essence does. The Fair Folk are things made from the Wyld that have made themselves lies to exist in Creation. Lunars are Creation-born who've become host to an Essence that contains Wyld energy and connects with their own soul. This interaction between their soul, their identity as a being and the fusion of Wyld Essence with it through the intergration of their Exaltation is what makes shapeshifting possible. Through changing their now mutable Essence they can change their physical form.
The Wyld doesn't endanger Lunars any more than their Essence does. The Fair Folk are things made from the Wyld that have made themselves lies to exist in Creation. Lunars are Creation-born who've become host to an Essence that contains Wyld energy and connects with their own soul. This interaction between their soul, their identity as a being and the fusion of Wyld Essence with it through the intergration of their Exaltation is what makes shapeshifting possible. Through changing their now mutable Essence they can change their physical form.
Friday, 10 June 2011
Serial Experiments Exalted
I thought one permutation of the scientific, sci fi nature of magitech by synergysing it with BLAME! was making a truly VAST world that was a completely artificial construct where it and the remnants of humanity was threatened with destruction by dysfunctional beings created long ago. BLAME! is a lot like Necromunda.
One further way of going is that the world is surrounded by a computer generated dimension, the Wired, where anyone's dreams can come true. In this realm the basic geographical area is called a site. Perhaps as a dreamworld it lives only in people's heads but they think they are outside reality which may in fact be true.
One further way of going is that the world is surrounded by a computer generated dimension, the Wired, where anyone's dreams can come true. In this realm the basic geographical area is called a site. Perhaps as a dreamworld it lives only in people's heads but they think they are outside reality which may in fact be true.
With the exception of Social Attributes Lunars can learn attributes and their Charms on their own. They don't need outsiders to teach them. Even with Social Attributes, because they are so innate the Lunar improves them by interacting with others, not being trained. One cannot change what someone is, the level Lunar Charms work on, with outside training. Learning Charms and Knacks is a development of the Lunar's self.
"the raksha takes hold of the malleable reality around him and shapes it to fit the story of his existence."
Maybe what all Lunars desire is freedom. This is what gives the Wyld Lunar Essence the ability to bond with them and what gives them the desire to use it.
"most are inconsistent even in defining their own inherent qualities." It is this reliance on their inherent qualities that allows Lunars to survive in the Wyld since they live by what they are not what they are defined as within Creation. It' also what attracts a Lunar Exaltation to a host. In fact they need their Attributes to be able to understand and act in the Wyld. To say Lunars are less powerful than Solars is to misunderstand their purpose. They are less powerful than Solars in Creation, which is not the realm for which they were made. Just as the raksha are able to pass through the Gate of Sundraprisha and take on a physical form that lets them exist within Creation, so the Lunars' Essence is made from the stuff of the Wyld, extending it's power through their body and allowing the Lunar to shape it for their own purpose. They fact that they can change shape in Creation is just a side effect. Because of it they can enter the Wyld and become part of it like the Unshaped Fair Folk.
The basic Charms of a Celestial Hero martial art are just a way of attaining an understanding of the style's true precepts that allows them to learn the later (Exalted type) Charms.
The Wyld is a realm so inchoate and ephemeral that notions can become 'real.' As the Fair Folk can make such abstract things real, so the Lunars can turn real things including themselves into abstractions that can live within the Wyld. Or rather they can turn physical things into expressions. The most important is their beastman or Spirit Shape- nothing more than what they are as an idea- that can enter the Wyld freely. Many Lunars prefer to wear it in Creation than their human shape. Through the Sacred Hunt and the use of Knacks they learn to express themselves in different ways. A Lunar can do this at any time due to the Wyld Essence in their Exaltation that makes their body a small Wyld zone, but their true potential is only revealed once they enter the Wyld, or use their powers against those within it. For instance in normal circumstances the Lunars' Excellencies are far weaker than the Solars', more akin to the Dragon-blooded except more flexible. Since many Fair Folk powers work in conflict with a being's Attribute + Essence however Lunar Excellencies are ideal.
"The first thing to understant when creating a raksha character is to understand that everything about the character is a deception engineered wo facilitate an interaction between and shaped being of Creation and and an entity so far removed from Creation as to be utterly beyond mortal comprehension." In the first part Lunars must be the opposite. They must open themselves up and be so honest that their intentions can exist in and of themselves. In the second they have to so the same. Although Lunars cannot become the same unformed masses that dwell within the Wyld they are able enough to attune with this realm that they are able to become like a part of one. Although the Fair Folk would be able to tell the difference a Lunar can exist within the Wyld (with enough practise) as easily as an Unshaped Fair Folk' Emanation. The most powerful and skilled Lunars are able of venturing into Pure Chaos.
Magical materials make for more potent stuff for creating in the Wyld. By far the best for this purpose is moonsilver.
"the raksha takes hold of the malleable reality around him and shapes it to fit the story of his existence."
Maybe what all Lunars desire is freedom. This is what gives the Wyld Lunar Essence the ability to bond with them and what gives them the desire to use it.
"most are inconsistent even in defining their own inherent qualities." It is this reliance on their inherent qualities that allows Lunars to survive in the Wyld since they live by what they are not what they are defined as within Creation. It' also what attracts a Lunar Exaltation to a host. In fact they need their Attributes to be able to understand and act in the Wyld. To say Lunars are less powerful than Solars is to misunderstand their purpose. They are less powerful than Solars in Creation, which is not the realm for which they were made. Just as the raksha are able to pass through the Gate of Sundraprisha and take on a physical form that lets them exist within Creation, so the Lunars' Essence is made from the stuff of the Wyld, extending it's power through their body and allowing the Lunar to shape it for their own purpose. They fact that they can change shape in Creation is just a side effect. Because of it they can enter the Wyld and become part of it like the Unshaped Fair Folk.
The basic Charms of a Celestial Hero martial art are just a way of attaining an understanding of the style's true precepts that allows them to learn the later (Exalted type) Charms.
The Wyld is a realm so inchoate and ephemeral that notions can become 'real.' As the Fair Folk can make such abstract things real, so the Lunars can turn real things including themselves into abstractions that can live within the Wyld. Or rather they can turn physical things into expressions. The most important is their beastman or Spirit Shape- nothing more than what they are as an idea- that can enter the Wyld freely. Many Lunars prefer to wear it in Creation than their human shape. Through the Sacred Hunt and the use of Knacks they learn to express themselves in different ways. A Lunar can do this at any time due to the Wyld Essence in their Exaltation that makes their body a small Wyld zone, but their true potential is only revealed once they enter the Wyld, or use their powers against those within it. For instance in normal circumstances the Lunars' Excellencies are far weaker than the Solars', more akin to the Dragon-blooded except more flexible. Since many Fair Folk powers work in conflict with a being's Attribute + Essence however Lunar Excellencies are ideal.
"The first thing to understant when creating a raksha character is to understand that everything about the character is a deception engineered wo facilitate an interaction between and shaped being of Creation and and an entity so far removed from Creation as to be utterly beyond mortal comprehension." In the first part Lunars must be the opposite. They must open themselves up and be so honest that their intentions can exist in and of themselves. In the second they have to so the same. Although Lunars cannot become the same unformed masses that dwell within the Wyld they are able enough to attune with this realm that they are able to become like a part of one. Although the Fair Folk would be able to tell the difference a Lunar can exist within the Wyld (with enough practise) as easily as an Unshaped Fair Folk' Emanation. The most powerful and skilled Lunars are able of venturing into Pure Chaos.
Magical materials make for more potent stuff for creating in the Wyld. By far the best for this purpose is moonsilver.
Enlightenment of Solar Understanding
In contradiction of divine law, the Creation Ruling Mandate and conventional metaphysics, R'yuk it seems can actually learn Solar Charms.
Believing to have unlocked the Unconquered Sun's creation of the Exaltations or the Primordials' creation of the gods, this site is devoted to the creation of spiritual beings. Facilities for both creating the art from hypotheses and practising it are here.
At the centre of the manse is a forging chamber. Where the hearthstone should be is the circle where the demon is bound during artefact creation.
Did he manage to outlive himself by creating his artefact? Perhaps R'yuk was part of an attempt to make himself immortal.
Sorcery's not meant to be easy to learn. If you want something easy to learn, learn thaumaturgy.
Perhaps he was attempting something as noble as trying to escape the Great Curse.
The Exaltation chose him to complete Amarec's work.
what if Amarec completed his experiment but the components ceased to be conscious when he was killed. His abstract notes, made only to make sense to himself didn't reveal the true nature of his work and the artefacts were buried with him. He completed R'yuk last to be his greatest achievement and manifestation of his Primary Virtue (which was conviction.)
Now his Exaltation has returned in the form of a hedonistic Nexus libertine. Perhaps four different beings were used in his creations, a god, a demon, a ghost and a raksha. Is this the only manse he made or the last?
They have lain dormant till now. The Sidereal hit squad wouldn't have been able to understand what was written in the book because it was in an inhuman language and a set of Solar Circle Spells. Such an unknown language wouldn't just be an unknown set of letters but an entirely different way of thinking.
Believing to have unlocked the Unconquered Sun's creation of the Exaltations or the Primordials' creation of the gods, this site is devoted to the creation of spiritual beings. Facilities for both creating the art from hypotheses and practising it are here.
At the centre of the manse is a forging chamber. Where the hearthstone should be is the circle where the demon is bound during artefact creation.
Did he manage to outlive himself by creating his artefact? Perhaps R'yuk was part of an attempt to make himself immortal.
Sorcery's not meant to be easy to learn. If you want something easy to learn, learn thaumaturgy.
Perhaps he was attempting something as noble as trying to escape the Great Curse.
The Exaltation chose him to complete Amarec's work.
what if Amarec completed his experiment but the components ceased to be conscious when he was killed. His abstract notes, made only to make sense to himself didn't reveal the true nature of his work and the artefacts were buried with him. He completed R'yuk last to be his greatest achievement and manifestation of his Primary Virtue (which was conviction.)
Now his Exaltation has returned in the form of a hedonistic Nexus libertine. Perhaps four different beings were used in his creations, a god, a demon, a ghost and a raksha. Is this the only manse he made or the last?
They have lain dormant till now. The Sidereal hit squad wouldn't have been able to understand what was written in the book because it was in an inhuman language and a set of Solar Circle Spells. Such an unknown language wouldn't just be an unknown set of letters but an entirely different way of thinking.
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Damage, expanded dice roll system
Roll 1D per Dexterity + bonus melee + accuracy
DV difficulty number parry DV when unarmed is halved against armed opponents
Injury roll 1D per Strength + damage (weapon + attack bonus successes)
Existing Excellencies would have to be revised since Attributes and Abilities are more separated.
Or you could switch everything around and use the Ability as their base dice pool so if they had no points in an Ability they would be unable to make a roll. Attributes would power Ability rolls so they would need high Attributes to have a hope of the roll succeeding more like a traditional skill roll (see Warhammer Quest.)
Some weapons could ass pre soak successes to the damage roll.
What if you balanced skill and power by requiring them to make a certain number of successes at a certain difficulty (number) rating.
Dice poll for injury roll- net successes on attack roll (including basic success) that way a glancing blow wouldn't be fatal.
What if you roll one trait in dice (possibly with a bonus against a difficulty) and add another trait to the number of successes.
With 1D per trait with a bonus of another trait you would have to have high ratings in both of them to succeed. Put weapon strength and armour soak into pure numbers, this will eliminate rolling outrageous numbers of dice.
vs DV need high dice roll and lots of successes to land a good blow.
I personally prefer rolling number of dice equal to an ability and adding an attribute so if someone has no knowledge or skill they can't succeed. Although this wouldn't work on more intuitive abilities.
I also like my earlier idea of basing the damage dice pool on strength and adding weapon damage to each dice result. However basing the number of injury dice on the number of attack successes is far more realistic since it determines the severity of the blow by how well it was struck. I also like adding one trait to the dice results with the number of dice based on another trait so a character will have to have high levels in both of them in order to be competent. The only problem I have is that strength and damage will have to be combined and added to each dice which seems a bit impersonal and doesn't put enough emphasis on strength. Exalted has a very streamlined system for dice rolls where you basically just add more dice. That reduces complecations but causes problems with weapons that have very high damage like a Heavy Implosion Bow which has damage of 50 or 60. The two separate elements of damage are severity and probability on injury. How well the blow was placed is the first component of severity which is why the damage pool is based on it. If you attack someone with a Grand Grimscythe and only score a glancing blow it will hardly do a thing. The character's strength and the damage of the weapon determine probability of injury but the size of the weapon is a secondary feature of severity as well. Attack someone with a small knife and the amount of physical injury you can do will always be limited. You could hit them in the neck or something but the actual severity of the injury is limited by weapon size as well as attack placement.
DV difficulty number parry DV when unarmed is halved against armed opponents
Injury roll 1D per Strength + damage (weapon + attack bonus successes)
Existing Excellencies would have to be revised since Attributes and Abilities are more separated.
Or you could switch everything around and use the Ability as their base dice pool so if they had no points in an Ability they would be unable to make a roll. Attributes would power Ability rolls so they would need high Attributes to have a hope of the roll succeeding more like a traditional skill roll (see Warhammer Quest.)
Some weapons could ass pre soak successes to the damage roll.
What if you balanced skill and power by requiring them to make a certain number of successes at a certain difficulty (number) rating.
Dice poll for injury roll- net successes on attack roll (including basic success) that way a glancing blow wouldn't be fatal.
What if you roll one trait in dice (possibly with a bonus against a difficulty) and add another trait to the number of successes.
With 1D per trait with a bonus of another trait you would have to have high ratings in both of them to succeed. Put weapon strength and armour soak into pure numbers, this will eliminate rolling outrageous numbers of dice.
vs DV need high dice roll and lots of successes to land a good blow.
I personally prefer rolling number of dice equal to an ability and adding an attribute so if someone has no knowledge or skill they can't succeed. Although this wouldn't work on more intuitive abilities.
I also like my earlier idea of basing the damage dice pool on strength and adding weapon damage to each dice result. However basing the number of injury dice on the number of attack successes is far more realistic since it determines the severity of the blow by how well it was struck. I also like adding one trait to the dice results with the number of dice based on another trait so a character will have to have high levels in both of them in order to be competent. The only problem I have is that strength and damage will have to be combined and added to each dice which seems a bit impersonal and doesn't put enough emphasis on strength. Exalted has a very streamlined system for dice rolls where you basically just add more dice. That reduces complecations but causes problems with weapons that have very high damage like a Heavy Implosion Bow which has damage of 50 or 60. The two separate elements of damage are severity and probability on injury. How well the blow was placed is the first component of severity which is why the damage pool is based on it. If you attack someone with a Grand Grimscythe and only score a glancing blow it will hardly do a thing. The character's strength and the damage of the weapon determine probability of injury but the size of the weapon is a secondary feature of severity as well. Attack someone with a small knife and the amount of physical injury you can do will always be limited. You could hit them in the neck or something but the actual severity of the injury is limited by weapon size as well as attack placement.
Exalted 117
A force of elite, superhuman warriors in powerful armoured suits travel Creation desperately fighting against enemies that threaten to destroy humanity. Featuring full scale Yozi invasions and an ancient zombie plague that could destroy life in Creation: there's never been a better time for heroes.
Love Exposure
When I saw the trailers for this it looked like a zany hero fantasy and stereotypical Japanese perv movie. But like Death Note it turned out to be very different from my expectations. This is the longest movie I've ever seen but I wasn't thinking about time at all, even though I stayed up until dawn.
It's not a matter of the plot moving slowly. This is simply a very long story. It slowly takes a turn into a nightmarish land where I wished someone would just come in and off some of the characters or there would be a sudden change and a happy ending. But it keeps getting darker and harder to watch until I wished I could watch something as simple as Audition. But this is far more disturbing. Like some other films that delve into depths of genuine severity it's uncomfortable to sit through the later part of the film but it doesn't have the amorality that really turns me off those movies. A dilemma of writing a film review is you have to describe the film while saying as little as possible about what actually happens.
The earlier part of the film is comic in a way that's rather disarming but doesn't jar abruptly with the later part. It's far removed from the sort of Japanese extreme cinema you'd seen from ten years ago. It's not quite so overpoweringly cinematic despite the frequent use of classical music. In aesthetic it's more similar to Death Note.
This is quite a hard film to write about. It doesn't have the sort of definition that earlier Japanese films do and yet I can sense something that's waiting to come out. A bit like when I watched Jin Roh it would only really hit me the morning after. It's definitely absorbing and I'd recommend it to anyone, especially J film fans like me. There is a bit of blood in it (these things are relative) but it doesn't have the deliberate gore of some other extreme films. Mitsushima Hikari (Sayu) has a leading role in this film.
Considering how hard this film is it's difficult to actually like it, but if you can watch all of it it's not an experience you should miss.
It's not a matter of the plot moving slowly. This is simply a very long story. It slowly takes a turn into a nightmarish land where I wished someone would just come in and off some of the characters or there would be a sudden change and a happy ending. But it keeps getting darker and harder to watch until I wished I could watch something as simple as Audition. But this is far more disturbing. Like some other films that delve into depths of genuine severity it's uncomfortable to sit through the later part of the film but it doesn't have the amorality that really turns me off those movies. A dilemma of writing a film review is you have to describe the film while saying as little as possible about what actually happens.
The earlier part of the film is comic in a way that's rather disarming but doesn't jar abruptly with the later part. It's far removed from the sort of Japanese extreme cinema you'd seen from ten years ago. It's not quite so overpoweringly cinematic despite the frequent use of classical music. In aesthetic it's more similar to Death Note.
This is quite a hard film to write about. It doesn't have the sort of definition that earlier Japanese films do and yet I can sense something that's waiting to come out. A bit like when I watched Jin Roh it would only really hit me the morning after. It's definitely absorbing and I'd recommend it to anyone, especially J film fans like me. There is a bit of blood in it (these things are relative) but it doesn't have the deliberate gore of some other extreme films. Mitsushima Hikari (Sayu) has a leading role in this film.
Considering how hard this film is it's difficult to actually like it, but if you can watch all of it it's not an experience you should miss.
Friday, 3 June 2011
Solars use Essence to supplement their powers directly such as actually sensing with Essence to perform Heightened Sense Method. Lunars use Essence to improve their powers themselves, working more indirectly.
They should put more emphasis on Luna and less on Gaia in the Lunar Exalted.
Does sorcery mean sending your Essence into Creation? Sorcerers actually move their Essence outside their bodies to connect with Terrestrial or Celestial power.
Solars and Lunars should be opposite sides of the same coin. Lunars don't serve the Solars, it's against their nature and that of Luna, but they do make a matching pair.
What if sorcery is extending your Essence, not into an ability but into the world. Lunars find this a particularly demanding discipline since their Charms and Knacks are based on inward focus. To many Solars it's a natural extension of their Charms which are about affecting the world around them. However it's difficult for them too since expending Essence in the world is very different to moving your Essence outside your body.
(Terrestrial Projection) Terrestrials, being bound to Creation through their ties to the Elemental Dragons and being of limited skill are unable to transcend the limits of Creation with their consciousness. (Astral Projection) The Lunars and Sidereals, as children of the Incarnae are able to channel Celestial Essence.
It takes an immense amount of practise and intense spiritual control to be able to extend their Essence outside their body and then connect with the Essence of the world. (Divine Projection) Only the Solars have been given the gift of connecting with the gods themselves. The Terrestrial Exalted can channel the Essence of the world the Elemental Dragons were born from, the Celestial Exalted can channel the Essence of the face of the Heavens, the Solars can connect with the power of the gods and command Creation as the Unconquered Sun once did.
I got this idea when reading about the Everqueen in Caledor (p. 305) when it talks about her being outside her body connected to it by a slender thread when casting a spell.
They should put more emphasis on Luna and less on Gaia in the Lunar Exalted.
Does sorcery mean sending your Essence into Creation? Sorcerers actually move their Essence outside their bodies to connect with Terrestrial or Celestial power.
Solars and Lunars should be opposite sides of the same coin. Lunars don't serve the Solars, it's against their nature and that of Luna, but they do make a matching pair.
What if sorcery is extending your Essence, not into an ability but into the world. Lunars find this a particularly demanding discipline since their Charms and Knacks are based on inward focus. To many Solars it's a natural extension of their Charms which are about affecting the world around them. However it's difficult for them too since expending Essence in the world is very different to moving your Essence outside your body.
(Terrestrial Projection) Terrestrials, being bound to Creation through their ties to the Elemental Dragons and being of limited skill are unable to transcend the limits of Creation with their consciousness. (Astral Projection) The Lunars and Sidereals, as children of the Incarnae are able to channel Celestial Essence.
It takes an immense amount of practise and intense spiritual control to be able to extend their Essence outside their body and then connect with the Essence of the world. (Divine Projection) Only the Solars have been given the gift of connecting with the gods themselves. The Terrestrial Exalted can channel the Essence of the world the Elemental Dragons were born from, the Celestial Exalted can channel the Essence of the face of the Heavens, the Solars can connect with the power of the gods and command Creation as the Unconquered Sun once did.
I got this idea when reading about the Everqueen in Caledor (p. 305) when it talks about her being outside her body connected to it by a slender thread when casting a spell.
If mankind lived in barbarism under the Dragon Kings (skip the r from Dragon) then under the guidance of the Unconquered Sun the Solars civilised mankind. The Twilights didn't just create great Wonders at the height of the Fist Age they were the first to teach people writing. The Legend of Sigmar would offer a close parallel to a living god bringing civilisation to man.
300 mortals chosen by the king of the gods to bear his power and rest their race from the grip of the Primordials while the gods sought to do the same.
Mankind had never fought before so needed people to instruct them in how to fight and lead them in battle. Creation was great and messengers were needed to travel from one side to the other in great haste.
The Exalted had one massive advantage on their side: surprise. The Primordials never thought the gods would do anything so bold as attempt their complete overthrow.
300 mortals chosen by the king of the gods to bear his power and rest their race from the grip of the Primordials while the gods sought to do the same.
Mankind had never fought before so needed people to instruct them in how to fight and lead them in battle. Creation was great and messengers were needed to travel from one side to the other in great haste.
The Exalted had one massive advantage on their side: surprise. The Primordials never thought the gods would do anything so bold as attempt their complete overthrow.
Nephwracks
"The creator of the Shadowcrafting path, now a chattering invalid, maintains during brief moments of lucidity that strange shadow entities wait in every darkened corner. Certainly the shades conjured by this path give credence to such notions, but the Kindred in question asserts that these beings devour light and feed upon the very essences of those who would dare truck with them."
-Clanbook Tremere
What if these beings are Nephwracks, beings so devoted to the Neverborn or the Labyrinth that they have transformed into something like them like a ghostly apotheosis. They have gained the power to locally control the Labyrinth. Plasmics, creatures from the very stuff of the Labyrinth sometimes make their way into the Underworld.
Are ghosts imprisoned in soulsteel or are they sacrificed to it to create something that is like Oblivion?
What if Whispers does more than just giving a psychic connection to the Neverborn. It actually changes people. The character can hear the psychic screaming of the Neverborn as if they were in the Labyrinth or at the tombs of the Neverborn.
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Eclipse Caste
Just as the Twilight Caste are driven by a sateless hunger for knowledge the Eclipse Caste are moved by inspiration and wonderlust.
Of the Solar Exalted Eclipse Caste are the most 'of the moment.'
Obvious out of Caste abilities- Performance, Survival, Craft (Air)
Character Example- Indiana Jones
From a subversive, poetic libertine to a high court artist in residence.
Backgrounds- smuggler, merchant prince, bandit scavenger lord, intrepid explorer
By trading they learned the ways of foreign countries and sampled all the experiences the world had to offer.
Unusual character example- Alexander the Great
War- the sharp ended cousin of trade. Another way to experience what the morld has to offer, but much more forcefully.
Of the Solar Exalted Eclipse Caste are the most 'of the moment.'
Obvious out of Caste abilities- Performance, Survival, Craft (Air)
Character Example- Indiana Jones
From a subversive, poetic libertine to a high court artist in residence.
Backgrounds- smuggler, merchant prince, bandit scavenger lord, intrepid explorer
By trading they learned the ways of foreign countries and sampled all the experiences the world had to offer.
Unusual character example- Alexander the Great
War- the sharp ended cousin of trade. Another way to experience what the morld has to offer, but much more forcefully.
It's this emphasis on fundamental expression, rather than expression through a particular medium which is the cause of the Lunars' ability to enter and become part of the Wyld because they are literally able to express themselves; and the reason their powers are based on attributes. They are unrestrained by the notion of using a framework. That's what attracts a Lunar Exaltation to a host.
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