Normally calculating a square root without a calculator is a bitch.
This morning I looked up what an acre was and found it was an unwieldy figure of 4840 square yards and wondered what that actually meant. I created a method for calculating the approximate value of a square root. The method is easier to show than if I just explain it.
4840 1
484 10
121 40
This number is easy to work with 40 is a third of 120
120 / 3/2= 80 40 x 3/2 = 60
80+60= 140. 140 / 2 = 70 correct
I tested this with 6750
Here the last digit is helpful for dividing the number
665 / 5 = 135 (6 x 20 (hundred / five) = 120 + 15)
135 50
Seven divides almost exactly into 50 and exactly into 135 to create a ratio of 19:7
19 - 7 = 12
135 / 19/12 50 x 19/12
=85 5/19 =76 1/6
Totals added divided by two = over 80. Actual figure about 82.
Thursday, 8 September 2011
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
The Editorial: Learning
Everyone says that learning Japanese is hard. Even the people in my class go on (to my annoyance) about how hard it is. Well the truth is: it isn't. It's as easy as you make it to be. For a log time I tried to learn from A Guide To Reading And Writing Japanese. I tried to learn straight out of the book and learning faceless strings of definitions.
Despite my obsession over them my Kanji was still pretty poor, I spend more time working over them than learning them in an effort to make a large, comprehensive alphabetical Japanese English dictionary, everybody seems to arrange them according to stroke order. This went on during my Japanese course. It wasn't until recently that I started looking and the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. They don't have any information regarding their syllabus on their website so my teacher directed me to another website that has their former vocabulary lists. My first step towards understanding how to learn Japanese came from transcribing the dialogues in Take Off In Japanese. This was a very useful exercise but gave me unaccountable head pains.
When it really took off was when I started to learn the now out dated, but probably still accurate, vocab lists from JLPTstudy.com. Every day I write out cards with the Japanese word and it's meaning on one side and the Japanese writing of the word on the other. Then I make sentences using the words. Since I know quite a few of them already once I've used a word I put it into one pile, if I didn't know it I put it into another pile. Then I come back to the ones I didn't know until I've remembered them. The key to doing this is to make it fun. That's right learning can actually be fun (unlike writing on a damned computer) When I write sentences I don't write ones that make sense or even pay proper attention to grammar. I even write sentences so they're surreal and absurd. If you make something interesting you'll learn it much better. I don't particularly think much of the classroom environment or conventional ideas of education. One of the major problems is the idea of notes. Notes are the bane of a serious student. The whole purpose of taking lessons is to remember things. Notes are only a secondary educational tool to use as back up to cover what you don't remember. The idea of revision is overrated too. It seems people spend time sitting through boring, pedestrian, often pedantic lessons and them worry over the last few months of the year when revising for their exams. A lot of emphasis is placed on working hard. In my experience learning would be better facilitated by making it easy.
The lack of a pressurised environment where exams are the ultimate goal is far better at letting people learn. I learn from home, casually and do about forty minutes work a day on vocab, including cutting bits of paper for my cue cards. This seems rather childish doing hand crafts but actually helps. Contrary to my earlier methods, an essential part of studying a subject is to work in a learning environment not a testing environment. As soon as you start to think about anything other that the actual subject you start to lose it. When learning a language don't wrack your brain trying to remember a word, just turn over the cue card and look at it. Never try to push yourself when learning. As soon as you do you make it a mental strain and that impedes your ability to learn. I find that by doing less than an hour off casual work I can keep it fresh and happily work on it every day (rather than approaching it in big chunks) and absorb information far better than I would if I was stressing myself.
In context I'm covering twenty-five Kanji a day. I may not learn them all perfectly, but at the end of the week I do a recap. It actually helps to have something going on in my life other than just learning from a 'book.' The fact that teachinng is far more effective when students are enjoying themselves led to a perverse notion that children should work and earn the right to an education. Education would be a privilege, and an enjoyable one, rather than a tedious chore forced on them. The fact is that I have to pay to take Japanese classes and my exams from my own pocket and appreciate the value of work and education a lot more as a result. Crucially I actually want to be in the class room. This is someone talking from a great amount of life experience but nevertheless working this way suits me far better than formal education did.
Here's my bitch. I hate maths. Most of all I hate the way it's taught. It's exemplary of the pedantic approach the academic establishment has. When I was at school doing a design and technology project the teacher seemed to be more concerned with the presentation of our work than with the work itself. This is one of the major issues I have with education. Once I was repremanded by a teacher for not taking notes. Issues at the time aside, the important thing is to let the information sink in. People approach lessons as time to take notes they can come back to later. Even in the library during revision time I see pupils writing out sets of notes from text books. Our history teacher during GCSE's gave us directions on how to write titles in correspondence to their importance. I may have taken such things a bit too seriously being rather literal minded at the time, but making notes is what the writers of text books should be doing. The pupil's job is to learn it and get all the information into their head. Learning should take place during term time, not a few months or weeks before final exams. By the time you get to the exams you should know everything. Having information on paper, no matter how well presented won't do you any good. In an exam all you're going to have is what you already know. Term time should be an intensive learning experience so that exams are easy, they are only a measure of your ability not the ultimate goal of learning. The ultimate goal of learning is to do just that not to get high grades in exams. Of course results are important, and the reason I'm learning the JLPT syllabus is because I want to take exams and get good results, but the real aim of the whole thing is to be proficient at writing and speaking Japanese.
Going back to why I hate maths apart from my personal grudge against the subject, two things stand out. Firstly is the ridiculous way of marking exams that puts method before results. It was the same in my electronics course work. Mark are given primarily for working not for getting the right answer. You could probably get every question wrong and still pass. How ludicrous is that! If someone handling the Apollo 13 mission (or any other space flight for that matter) made a mathematical error that caused the astronauts to be killed no one would give a fuck if they showed their working. Similarly in electronics coursework you're not marked on the basis of whether you managed to get your circuit to work (which is the point of the whole exercise- who's going to hire an electrician who can't construct a circuit properly) but how well you kept notes (there they are again) of what you did during the course of your work. They expect you to make a circuit, things to go wrong and you write about how you corrected them. You could be a prodigy who can make a complex circuit, working out the design completely in your head without making a single mistake and you would probably fail miserably.
Secondly is the way they teach people to solve maths problems. They always seem to work on the basis of a plodding, 'trench warfare' approach of working out the smallest units, then the next smallest ones until they finally get to the end. When doing maths away from the stultifying atmosphere of the classroom I tend to start with the largest part of the number and work towards the smallest. This way I know immediately roughly what the answer will be. Another key thing in maths is to take short cuts. I have to work out prices of numbers with awkward combinations. Say if you want to add £2.75 to a price, the conventional method is to add 5 p, then 70, then two pounds in a way that's very likely to cause numbers to overflow and add to the next figure in the calculation. The obvious way of doing this problem is to add £3, then take away 20 p, then 5p, or just take away 25 at once if it helps. Don't limit yourself by following a boring procedure when you know you can do better. Multiplication works the same way, look for short cuts. If multiplying a figure by 14, normally an awkward calculation, multiply the figure by ten to give you a rough idea of the outcome, add half that number again to effectively multiply by 15 and then take away the original figure to multiply by 14. Once I was thinking about how to work out the volume of a one foot cube of steel in metric measurements. A 1 foot cube is 12 x 12 x 12 inches. 12 x 12 is 144. So multiply that by 10 (to make 1440) then double the original figure and add that to the result. 1440 + 288, add three hundred (1744) subtract 12 (1732)
Then to work out how to convert that size into metric measurements the number of millimetres in an inch is 25.4. This plays into the hands of a clever mathematician. 25 x 25 is 225. To multiply that again by 25, divide it by four and multiply by a hundred. 200 divided by 4 is 50 (25 4's in a hundred, or just halve it and then half it again), 20 divided by 4 is 5, and 5 divided by four is 1 and a quarter. Use the way numbers relate to eachother to do sums faster. Think big and start with the whole of the result them whittle it down till have the right number. Doing maths isn't about being a human calculator, it's about using your imagination to make it easy and also more enjoyable. You can make pupils actually like a subject and they'll be better at it as a result.
Despite my obsession over them my Kanji was still pretty poor, I spend more time working over them than learning them in an effort to make a large, comprehensive alphabetical Japanese English dictionary, everybody seems to arrange them according to stroke order. This went on during my Japanese course. It wasn't until recently that I started looking and the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. They don't have any information regarding their syllabus on their website so my teacher directed me to another website that has their former vocabulary lists. My first step towards understanding how to learn Japanese came from transcribing the dialogues in Take Off In Japanese. This was a very useful exercise but gave me unaccountable head pains.
When it really took off was when I started to learn the now out dated, but probably still accurate, vocab lists from JLPTstudy.com. Every day I write out cards with the Japanese word and it's meaning on one side and the Japanese writing of the word on the other. Then I make sentences using the words. Since I know quite a few of them already once I've used a word I put it into one pile, if I didn't know it I put it into another pile. Then I come back to the ones I didn't know until I've remembered them. The key to doing this is to make it fun. That's right learning can actually be fun (unlike writing on a damned computer) When I write sentences I don't write ones that make sense or even pay proper attention to grammar. I even write sentences so they're surreal and absurd. If you make something interesting you'll learn it much better. I don't particularly think much of the classroom environment or conventional ideas of education. One of the major problems is the idea of notes. Notes are the bane of a serious student. The whole purpose of taking lessons is to remember things. Notes are only a secondary educational tool to use as back up to cover what you don't remember. The idea of revision is overrated too. It seems people spend time sitting through boring, pedestrian, often pedantic lessons and them worry over the last few months of the year when revising for their exams. A lot of emphasis is placed on working hard. In my experience learning would be better facilitated by making it easy.
The lack of a pressurised environment where exams are the ultimate goal is far better at letting people learn. I learn from home, casually and do about forty minutes work a day on vocab, including cutting bits of paper for my cue cards. This seems rather childish doing hand crafts but actually helps. Contrary to my earlier methods, an essential part of studying a subject is to work in a learning environment not a testing environment. As soon as you start to think about anything other that the actual subject you start to lose it. When learning a language don't wrack your brain trying to remember a word, just turn over the cue card and look at it. Never try to push yourself when learning. As soon as you do you make it a mental strain and that impedes your ability to learn. I find that by doing less than an hour off casual work I can keep it fresh and happily work on it every day (rather than approaching it in big chunks) and absorb information far better than I would if I was stressing myself.
In context I'm covering twenty-five Kanji a day. I may not learn them all perfectly, but at the end of the week I do a recap. It actually helps to have something going on in my life other than just learning from a 'book.' The fact that teachinng is far more effective when students are enjoying themselves led to a perverse notion that children should work and earn the right to an education. Education would be a privilege, and an enjoyable one, rather than a tedious chore forced on them. The fact is that I have to pay to take Japanese classes and my exams from my own pocket and appreciate the value of work and education a lot more as a result. Crucially I actually want to be in the class room. This is someone talking from a great amount of life experience but nevertheless working this way suits me far better than formal education did.
Here's my bitch. I hate maths. Most of all I hate the way it's taught. It's exemplary of the pedantic approach the academic establishment has. When I was at school doing a design and technology project the teacher seemed to be more concerned with the presentation of our work than with the work itself. This is one of the major issues I have with education. Once I was repremanded by a teacher for not taking notes. Issues at the time aside, the important thing is to let the information sink in. People approach lessons as time to take notes they can come back to later. Even in the library during revision time I see pupils writing out sets of notes from text books. Our history teacher during GCSE's gave us directions on how to write titles in correspondence to their importance. I may have taken such things a bit too seriously being rather literal minded at the time, but making notes is what the writers of text books should be doing. The pupil's job is to learn it and get all the information into their head. Learning should take place during term time, not a few months or weeks before final exams. By the time you get to the exams you should know everything. Having information on paper, no matter how well presented won't do you any good. In an exam all you're going to have is what you already know. Term time should be an intensive learning experience so that exams are easy, they are only a measure of your ability not the ultimate goal of learning. The ultimate goal of learning is to do just that not to get high grades in exams. Of course results are important, and the reason I'm learning the JLPT syllabus is because I want to take exams and get good results, but the real aim of the whole thing is to be proficient at writing and speaking Japanese.
Going back to why I hate maths apart from my personal grudge against the subject, two things stand out. Firstly is the ridiculous way of marking exams that puts method before results. It was the same in my electronics course work. Mark are given primarily for working not for getting the right answer. You could probably get every question wrong and still pass. How ludicrous is that! If someone handling the Apollo 13 mission (or any other space flight for that matter) made a mathematical error that caused the astronauts to be killed no one would give a fuck if they showed their working. Similarly in electronics coursework you're not marked on the basis of whether you managed to get your circuit to work (which is the point of the whole exercise- who's going to hire an electrician who can't construct a circuit properly) but how well you kept notes (there they are again) of what you did during the course of your work. They expect you to make a circuit, things to go wrong and you write about how you corrected them. You could be a prodigy who can make a complex circuit, working out the design completely in your head without making a single mistake and you would probably fail miserably.
Secondly is the way they teach people to solve maths problems. They always seem to work on the basis of a plodding, 'trench warfare' approach of working out the smallest units, then the next smallest ones until they finally get to the end. When doing maths away from the stultifying atmosphere of the classroom I tend to start with the largest part of the number and work towards the smallest. This way I know immediately roughly what the answer will be. Another key thing in maths is to take short cuts. I have to work out prices of numbers with awkward combinations. Say if you want to add £2.75 to a price, the conventional method is to add 5 p, then 70, then two pounds in a way that's very likely to cause numbers to overflow and add to the next figure in the calculation. The obvious way of doing this problem is to add £3, then take away 20 p, then 5p, or just take away 25 at once if it helps. Don't limit yourself by following a boring procedure when you know you can do better. Multiplication works the same way, look for short cuts. If multiplying a figure by 14, normally an awkward calculation, multiply the figure by ten to give you a rough idea of the outcome, add half that number again to effectively multiply by 15 and then take away the original figure to multiply by 14. Once I was thinking about how to work out the volume of a one foot cube of steel in metric measurements. A 1 foot cube is 12 x 12 x 12 inches. 12 x 12 is 144. So multiply that by 10 (to make 1440) then double the original figure and add that to the result. 1440 + 288, add three hundred (1744) subtract 12 (1732)
Then to work out how to convert that size into metric measurements the number of millimetres in an inch is 25.4. This plays into the hands of a clever mathematician. 25 x 25 is 225. To multiply that again by 25, divide it by four and multiply by a hundred. 200 divided by 4 is 50 (25 4's in a hundred, or just halve it and then half it again), 20 divided by 4 is 5, and 5 divided by four is 1 and a quarter. Use the way numbers relate to eachother to do sums faster. Think big and start with the whole of the result them whittle it down till have the right number. Doing maths isn't about being a human calculator, it's about using your imagination to make it easy and also more enjoyable. You can make pupils actually like a subject and they'll be better at it as a result.
Tuesday, 6 September 2011
Lookshy: Shinobi, Gunzosha Commandos
I got the impression from a mention in Scroll of Kings that the Rangers were a highly elite fighting force and started getting some preconceived ideas about what they would be like. It wasn't for a long time that I got my hands on the Scavenger Lands and had a look at them properly.
Lookshy stands out in Exalted for having a fairly solid cultural identity (namely Japan.) Although I didn't think they played on this to it's fullest extent. My vision of Lookshy is centred on medieval Japan and I decided to do something about the Rangers. Obviously the thing to do would be to base them on ninjas so I did. But I couldn't use a name as obvious as ninja, so they're called Shinobi instead.
The Shinobi come from Dragon-Blooded clans and are taught hereditary skills in the villages they live in away from the city. The closeness to nature and isolation from civilisation gives them excellent opportunity to learn and practise their skills. The fact that Forest-Blooded Terrestrials have the skills best suited to become Shinobi is an excellent advantage and most Shinobi come from this bloodline.
Shinobi are exclusively Dragon Blooded. Enlightened mortals may practise the martials arts that Shinobi are known for but they lack the ability to learn other Charms that are essential for their use on the battlefield.
The three ranks of Shinobi are as follows:
Genin: regular, rank and file (although highly trained) soldier Shinobi.
Chunin: leaders of small units of Shinobi, often 'fang' sized.
Shonin: leader of an entire clan of Shinobi. A veteran Dragon Blooded of fearsome skill who commands dozens of warriors.
Gunzosha Commandos are another group worth mentioning here. One thing that struck me is their numerical allocation. The Scavenger Lands has 125 Gunzosha Commandos to a unit of about 1300 Seventh Legion warriors. 1 out of 10 is a far too high ratio for such an elite unit. 125 per field force is more realistic and conveys the rarity of such dedicated individuals. Also the effectiveness of Gunzosha Commando Armour should be reviewed. Rather than just being armed with unnamed Essence weapons and great swords and great axes, Gunzosha Commando Armour could make Essence weapons attunable through the suit allowing them to wield devices like Concussive Essence Cannon in a way that normally only Exalted can. Essence weapons are regarded as standard issue among their ranks. Enlightened mortals are welcomed among Gunzosha Commandos as they have a potential longer life expectancy.
Lookshy stands out in Exalted for having a fairly solid cultural identity (namely Japan.) Although I didn't think they played on this to it's fullest extent. My vision of Lookshy is centred on medieval Japan and I decided to do something about the Rangers. Obviously the thing to do would be to base them on ninjas so I did. But I couldn't use a name as obvious as ninja, so they're called Shinobi instead.
The Shinobi come from Dragon-Blooded clans and are taught hereditary skills in the villages they live in away from the city. The closeness to nature and isolation from civilisation gives them excellent opportunity to learn and practise their skills. The fact that Forest-Blooded Terrestrials have the skills best suited to become Shinobi is an excellent advantage and most Shinobi come from this bloodline.
Shinobi are exclusively Dragon Blooded. Enlightened mortals may practise the martials arts that Shinobi are known for but they lack the ability to learn other Charms that are essential for their use on the battlefield.
The three ranks of Shinobi are as follows:
Genin: regular, rank and file (although highly trained) soldier Shinobi.
Chunin: leaders of small units of Shinobi, often 'fang' sized.
Shonin: leader of an entire clan of Shinobi. A veteran Dragon Blooded of fearsome skill who commands dozens of warriors.
Gunzosha Commandos are another group worth mentioning here. One thing that struck me is their numerical allocation. The Scavenger Lands has 125 Gunzosha Commandos to a unit of about 1300 Seventh Legion warriors. 1 out of 10 is a far too high ratio for such an elite unit. 125 per field force is more realistic and conveys the rarity of such dedicated individuals. Also the effectiveness of Gunzosha Commando Armour should be reviewed. Rather than just being armed with unnamed Essence weapons and great swords and great axes, Gunzosha Commando Armour could make Essence weapons attunable through the suit allowing them to wield devices like Concussive Essence Cannon in a way that normally only Exalted can. Essence weapons are regarded as standard issue among their ranks. Enlightened mortals are welcomed among Gunzosha Commandos as they have a potential longer life expectancy.
Exploding Shurikens
Exploding Shurikens (low level artefacts) have several blades (often a large number) of varying designs attached to an artefact core. The blades themselves are disposable. A variant houses dart-like projectiles. When the weapon is thrown it travels to the target and then explodes, sending the blades flying in all directions, in an arc or against a single target as the thrower intends. Some exploding shurikens have dozens of blades and are highly lethal. This weapon makes up for the lack of lethality of the individual projectiles by their sheer number. In addition to being able to launch many blades at once a thrower can hurl three shurikens simultaneously, making them highly dangerous.
After throwing the core is still intact and can be retrieved and reloaded. Some assassins and other unconventional troops mount them on long ropes made of magical materials so they can be recovered quickly without having to change position. A few enterprising fighters have even turned them into unwieldy but surprisingly effective close combat weapons by using them like flails while the blades remain attached.
After throwing the core is still intact and can be retrieved and reloaded. Some assassins and other unconventional troops mount them on long ropes made of magical materials so they can be recovered quickly without having to change position. A few enterprising fighters have even turned them into unwieldy but surprisingly effective close combat weapons by using them like flails while the blades remain attached.
Friday, 2 September 2011
Artefact clothing, armour, power armour and Warstriders
Terrestrials of the Threshold learned that they could take on the characteristics of an animal by wearing a jade hide in the shape of it's skin. In ordinary artefact armour this direct physical effect is limited, pelts of northern animals protected against the cold. This evolved into the magitech artefacts known as Dragon Armour where they became half like the animals they represented and finally the ultimate expression in the Warstriders. Magitech armour is inseparable from the wearer, it's truly a part of their body and they experience everything through it at first hand. With a Warhawk it's possible to experience unrestrained flight. In a Warkraken they can swim through the darkest depths. Attuning to a Warstrider doesn't just connect them to a suit of armour- they actually become a creature and live as it does. This is why Magitech is so advanced and valuable.
The Warstriders were created by the Celestial Incarnae and the Elemental Dragons for the Exalted to fight against the Primordials.
Because Warstriders become part of the wearer's body it is not armour and does not prevent them from using martial arts.
The original Warstriders dating from the First Age were great heroes given form. At the pinnacle of this art where the Royal Warstriders, reserved for the Celestial Exalted, not least because of the massive difficulty in making them. All Warstriders made for the Celestial Exalted were they forms of heroes the Exalted could become by attuning to them. The Royal Warstriders even had their own spirits the Exalted who piloted them became.
The Warstriders were created by the Celestial Incarnae and the Elemental Dragons for the Exalted to fight against the Primordials.
Because Warstriders become part of the wearer's body it is not armour and does not prevent them from using martial arts.
The original Warstriders dating from the First Age were great heroes given form. At the pinnacle of this art where the Royal Warstriders, reserved for the Celestial Exalted, not least because of the massive difficulty in making them. All Warstriders made for the Celestial Exalted were they forms of heroes the Exalted could become by attuning to them. The Royal Warstriders even had their own spirits the Exalted who piloted them became.
Thursday, 1 September 2011
Call of Exalted: Character Creation and Development
Although I like the organic way of creating a character by making them immediately from the standard traits in ordinary character creation where they already have a background and are some time after being Exalted, a while ago I experimented with another method of character creation which suits Call of Exalted and develops the character in a different way.
I started off by writing the character as a heroic mortal, one with quite low trait levels- using the Attribute points for heroic mortals in the Exalted rulebook (or scroll of heroes) and only eighteen ability points attributing merits and flaws as well. Making a character in this way really brings out what the character was like before their Exaltation (and requires attention to the period of their life.) Then I bumped them up to full Exalted level with the proper number of points in Abilities, Attributes and Backgrounds. Working out the character's Charms was much easier than totally spontaneous character creation since I already had an idea of what they were doing, what Charms they would need for it and what their Ability levels were.
It's a significantly more gritty approach to character creation but it brings out aspects of a character to a degree they wouldn't be otherwise. For example this character had Legendary Intelligence which I wouldn't have given them if I created an Exalt straight away. I also came up with a new permutation of Esoteric Knowledge. This method plays out the character's Exaltation as part of the creation process and makes a character immediately after they ave been Exalted rather than some time after and have had time to have adventures and start to shape their powers more. It also makes the game more Occult, for instance with the character I was creating the Sidereals became much more unearthly and mysterious beings (fitting for a horror game.)
I started off by writing the character as a heroic mortal, one with quite low trait levels- using the Attribute points for heroic mortals in the Exalted rulebook (or scroll of heroes) and only eighteen ability points attributing merits and flaws as well. Making a character in this way really brings out what the character was like before their Exaltation (and requires attention to the period of their life.) Then I bumped them up to full Exalted level with the proper number of points in Abilities, Attributes and Backgrounds. Working out the character's Charms was much easier than totally spontaneous character creation since I already had an idea of what they were doing, what Charms they would need for it and what their Ability levels were.
It's a significantly more gritty approach to character creation but it brings out aspects of a character to a degree they wouldn't be otherwise. For example this character had Legendary Intelligence which I wouldn't have given them if I created an Exalt straight away. I also came up with a new permutation of Esoteric Knowledge. This method plays out the character's Exaltation as part of the creation process and makes a character immediately after they ave been Exalted rather than some time after and have had time to have adventures and start to shape their powers more. It also makes the game more Occult, for instance with the character I was creating the Sidereals became much more unearthly and mysterious beings (fitting for a horror game.)
Tuesday, 30 August 2011
Film Review: Ip Man
Not even worthy of a place on my website. Get stuffed.
It's not even a good martial arts film. I've seen martial arts cinema at it's finest and this has nothing to do with it.
It's not even a good martial arts film. I've seen martial arts cinema at it's finest and this has nothing to do with it.
Music Review: Piece of Mind, Iron Maiden
This album does have a few songs on it that listeners might find off-putting. Die With Your Boots On grates at your nerves a bit and I'm not even going to go into how dire track seven (may it's name never be spoken) is; it's unfortunate they included that one on the album since their are eight other songs. However it starts out well with Where Eagles dare, you immediately get the feeling you're listening to a good album (the song has some very early eighties sound effects but I don't mind) followed a couple of tracks later by Flight of Icarus. But it's the centre piece that really makes the album. Normally battle metal isn't renown for it's maturity, lyric content is often basic and sometimes cringe inspiring if someone else was listening to it (see Invaders from Number of the Beast or Where Eagles Dare.) However the song that was the penultimate track on Best of the Beast proves that people can do it right and make a truly incredible song. Put the volume up though because it seems to have been recorded more quietly than the other which is a shame because it would be absolutely amazing otherwise.
This is one of the band's more fantasy orientated albums and is very useful to listen to if you're writing something along that line.
This is one of the band's more fantasy orientated albums and is very useful to listen to if you're writing something along that line.
Music Review: Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, Iron Maiden
The first time I heard this I felt a bit jilted feeling that Iron Maiden had fallen in love with synths and electronic music. Although it does have a strong existentialist tone that will do you're head in if you listen to it too much, it's one of Iron Maiden's most listenable albums. The music definately has a more polished sheen to it than you might be used to from them and the last song carries a bitter edge but in an appreciable way (unlike Fear of the Dark.)
Apart from a short moment at the end of Seventh Son of a Seventh Son it's devoid of any cheezy lyrics that occasionally plague the band. The music might not be as good as you've been led to expect but this album is definitely solid if not quite as good as some of their more daring releases.
Apart from a short moment at the end of Seventh Son of a Seventh Son it's devoid of any cheezy lyrics that occasionally plague the band. The music might not be as good as you've been led to expect but this album is definitely solid if not quite as good as some of their more daring releases.
Music Review Fear of the Dark, Iron Maiden
You might think that Iron Maiden's early work was an uninterrupted string of first rate heavy metal. I can't say what I think of most of their work from the nineties but be careful: this is by and large a bad album. There's only one song on it that I listen to that measures up to Iron Maiden's standards. I heard the first song before but it starts a theme of social commentary that reaches an all time low in Childhood's End. They've made a few songs with dodgy lyrics before but I was always ready to forgive them for it because of the quality of the rest of the album. That quality is lacking here. You're better off just buying the single.
Film Review Stay Alive
When I first heard this was a teen slasher movie naturally I wasn't enthusiastic, but this is markedly more intelligent than other films of it's demographic base. There isn't any drooling over the fact that women have tits like in All The Boys Love Mandy Lane and other such purile crap. This is definately a cut above most other horror films of it's type.
Many films have been made based on video games. This is something of a twist on that idea. It's a curse movie with a leaning towards action but still has mystery and detective work although this is more supplemental to the film's pro-active story. The characters are all at least reasonably intelligent and the film is devoid of any cheezy stalking that makes you distance ourself from it like in some bigger budget but less intelligently made horror films. Also they are characterful and diverse so you'll probably find one of the members of the story to empathise with which is actually quite a rare thing in a horror film and genuinely adds something to it in a way that reminded me of Cloverfield. The characters aren't overdone like Blair Witch 2 which leaves them room for having real personalities rather than being stereotypical.
Rating 7/10
Many films have been made based on video games. This is something of a twist on that idea. It's a curse movie with a leaning towards action but still has mystery and detective work although this is more supplemental to the film's pro-active story. The characters are all at least reasonably intelligent and the film is devoid of any cheezy stalking that makes you distance ourself from it like in some bigger budget but less intelligently made horror films. Also they are characterful and diverse so you'll probably find one of the members of the story to empathise with which is actually quite a rare thing in a horror film and genuinely adds something to it in a way that reminded me of Cloverfield. The characters aren't overdone like Blair Witch 2 which leaves them room for having real personalities rather than being stereotypical.
Rating 7/10
Sunday, 28 August 2011
Dawn of the Dead, George A. Romero
Everyone get hung up over the content of this film and it's become a rock solid horror cult classic. Except I disagree.
I've seen much better films than this made for less money (it apparently cost $650,000.) Despite the fact that it had a large budget by the standards of underground films (if I can use that term) it looks atrociously cheap. Being made in an earlier decade doesn't save it either Tetsuo was made in the late eighties and for what must have been a fraction of this budget.
I admit I hate the seventies, but even considering that, it's execution, not just it's appearance is disappointment for a film that's been cited so much. Romero himself made a better film in Night of the Living Dead. I didn't even watch it long enough to see the bit when they're in the mall but doubt I would have been impressed.
I've seen much better films than this made for less money (it apparently cost $650,000.) Despite the fact that it had a large budget by the standards of underground films (if I can use that term) it looks atrociously cheap. Being made in an earlier decade doesn't save it either Tetsuo was made in the late eighties and for what must have been a fraction of this budget.
I admit I hate the seventies, but even considering that, it's execution, not just it's appearance is disappointment for a film that's been cited so much. Romero himself made a better film in Night of the Living Dead. I didn't even watch it long enough to see the bit when they're in the mall but doubt I would have been impressed.
Child's Play
On a first misguided viewing of one of these films it created an instant prejudice against comedy horror.
Child's Play
Don't be put off by the beginning of this film. It sounds utterly cliched and badly acted but that soon passes. The film may in many ways be of only average quality but the persona of Chucky is enough to make it enjoyable. They clearly weren't making this film to be takes too seriously, in terms of how they manage the various aspects of it I think it's a creative success albeit a relatively modest one. It sets the stage for the next film so if you thought this was OK I'd recommend it.
Child's Play 2
My true initiation into the World of Chucky. I watched it one night in an indifferent state of mind which turned out to be ideal. The brings out elements of the first film and exaggerates them, like you'd expect from a good standard sequel. The main character makes friends with a teenage blonde but thankfully they didn't make the mistake of success going to their heads and casting a brainless bimbo. The gratuitous violence of the earlier film and Chucky's evil charisma which are what made the first film notable are more strongly present here. If you don't mind a film being very low key and not taking itself particularly seriously then I'd definitely recommend it. The violence is more amusing than potentially upsetting- you'll understand what I mean when you watch it.
Child's Play 3
Hopefully the least well-known of the original trilogy, the first part of the story should have really ended with Child's Play 2. (I've lost the damned cursor again because of this stupid Blog so I may get a bit annoyed.)
They say that the third album is the hardest. It certainly is the case here. They move the story on eight whole years necessitating a dramatic revamp and redesigning of the film. They seemed to be working with a bigger budget this time but it seems to have been a disadvantage because they tried to make more of a hard-edged genuine rather than a low budget comedy that sports amusing, inventive violence with carefree glee. There are a rare few of those genuinely pleasing 'Chucky moments' that made the first films memorable. Instead they misrepresent his character in a similar way to Ryuk in L Change the World.
Child's Play
Don't be put off by the beginning of this film. It sounds utterly cliched and badly acted but that soon passes. The film may in many ways be of only average quality but the persona of Chucky is enough to make it enjoyable. They clearly weren't making this film to be takes too seriously, in terms of how they manage the various aspects of it I think it's a creative success albeit a relatively modest one. It sets the stage for the next film so if you thought this was OK I'd recommend it.
Child's Play 2
My true initiation into the World of Chucky. I watched it one night in an indifferent state of mind which turned out to be ideal. The brings out elements of the first film and exaggerates them, like you'd expect from a good standard sequel. The main character makes friends with a teenage blonde but thankfully they didn't make the mistake of success going to their heads and casting a brainless bimbo. The gratuitous violence of the earlier film and Chucky's evil charisma which are what made the first film notable are more strongly present here. If you don't mind a film being very low key and not taking itself particularly seriously then I'd definitely recommend it. The violence is more amusing than potentially upsetting- you'll understand what I mean when you watch it.
Child's Play 3
Hopefully the least well-known of the original trilogy, the first part of the story should have really ended with Child's Play 2. (I've lost the damned cursor again because of this stupid Blog so I may get a bit annoyed.)
They say that the third album is the hardest. It certainly is the case here. They move the story on eight whole years necessitating a dramatic revamp and redesigning of the film. They seemed to be working with a bigger budget this time but it seems to have been a disadvantage because they tried to make more of a hard-edged genuine rather than a low budget comedy that sports amusing, inventive violence with carefree glee. There are a rare few of those genuinely pleasing 'Chucky moments' that made the first films memorable. Instead they misrepresent his character in a similar way to Ryuk in L Change the World.
Saturday, 27 August 2011
The Editorial
"If we are ever to have law and order in the West, the first thing we gotta do is take out all the lawyers and shoot 'em down like dogs."
Major Rufus Cobb
Jesse James
In my experience the first people we should shoot are those gol-dang computer programmers. You'd think that writing a template for a simple website would be easy, that anyone working for a major organisation like Google could do it. Well that is far from the case. Not only are computers damned confounded, infernal machines but so are their creators. They can't even manage the simple task of changing the type face without it turning into a struggle against the ineptitude of the half-wit on the desk that some damned confounded idiot has tried to make think for itself when it's got even less common sense than the idiot who built it. There's already something that uses common sense and thinks for itself, it's called a human being. If computers simply did exactly what they were told like all machines do instead of trying to outwit us when they are patently incompetent then they wouldn't be nearly as half so troublesome.
Major Rufus Cobb
Jesse James
In my experience the first people we should shoot are those gol-dang computer programmers. You'd think that writing a template for a simple website would be easy, that anyone working for a major organisation like Google could do it. Well that is far from the case. Not only are computers damned confounded, infernal machines but so are their creators. They can't even manage the simple task of changing the type face without it turning into a struggle against the ineptitude of the half-wit on the desk that some damned confounded idiot has tried to make think for itself when it's got even less common sense than the idiot who built it. There's already something that uses common sense and thinks for itself, it's called a human being. If computers simply did exactly what they were told like all machines do instead of trying to outwit us when they are patently incompetent then they wouldn't be nearly as half so troublesome.
Film Review Ashes of Time Redux, Wong Kar Wai
This is a remastered version of a much older film, which was actually longer but apparently of lower technical quality. The film and sound quality of this film aren't what you'd expect from a film such as Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon however this exceeds any other wuxia film I have ever seen.
The reason for this is Wong Kar Wai is a genuine artist. Although he has a thick layer of style in 2046 here he lays on artistic expression as a director particularly strongly. He uses colour to create a visual richness in the landscape that made it particularly inspiring for my adaptation of Exalted. The soundtrack combines modern instruments with traditional Chinese melodies as well as featuring cello solos by Yo-Yo Ma. The result of his free use of his powers as a director might be overwhelming to those new to Asian or art cinema. I found it a turn off the first time I tried to watch it. Years later I recognise it as the masterful film that it is.
Despite being a wuxia movie the plot is primarily a romance with the kind of depth that you'd expect from his other films, although here he has less time to dwell on it as there are serious action scenes, one of which is rather difficult to follow on first viewing. Although he does bring the same degree of intelligence and involvement to these as he does to the romantic story.
I wouldn't recommend this for people who are solely accustomed to mainstream western cinema unless you're really looking to break out your own boundaries. It probably suits the slightly more mature end of the audience although the action and emotional intensity make it vibrant even by his own standards.
The reason for this is Wong Kar Wai is a genuine artist. Although he has a thick layer of style in 2046 here he lays on artistic expression as a director particularly strongly. He uses colour to create a visual richness in the landscape that made it particularly inspiring for my adaptation of Exalted. The soundtrack combines modern instruments with traditional Chinese melodies as well as featuring cello solos by Yo-Yo Ma. The result of his free use of his powers as a director might be overwhelming to those new to Asian or art cinema. I found it a turn off the first time I tried to watch it. Years later I recognise it as the masterful film that it is.
Despite being a wuxia movie the plot is primarily a romance with the kind of depth that you'd expect from his other films, although here he has less time to dwell on it as there are serious action scenes, one of which is rather difficult to follow on first viewing. Although he does bring the same degree of intelligence and involvement to these as he does to the romantic story.
I wouldn't recommend this for people who are solely accustomed to mainstream western cinema unless you're really looking to break out your own boundaries. It probably suits the slightly more mature end of the audience although the action and emotional intensity make it vibrant even by his own standards.
Friday, 26 August 2011
Trait Minimums for Sorcery
I was a bit (or maybe very) over the top when I suggested the Sorcery trait minimums should be increased to Occult and Essence 5 for Terrestrial Circle Sorcery, 7 for Celestial Circle and 9 for Solar Circle. Mainly it was just my megalomania and reacting to the low prerequisites that the games writes made. Having Occult and Essence 5 to be initiated into sorcery does make it an impressive achievement and maybe suitable to Call of Exalted where everything is far more occult. But in a normal game it makes it too exclusive and means you can't start the game as a sorcerer which would frustrate many players (including me.) However I think that the existent prerequisites are too low vis-a-vis other Celestial powers- all of the post-Form Charms for Border of Kaleidoscopic Logic Style are Essence 8. Considering Sorcery is supposed to be the apex of Exalted achievement, having Solar Circle Sorcery requiring no more than Essence 5 just isn't good enough, especially considering Solars gain Essence more easily.
So to make sorcery appropriately powerful I think these new minimums should be used:
Terrestrial Circle Sorcery: Occult and Essence 3
Celestial Circle Sorcery: Occult and Essence 5
Solar Circle Sorcery: Occult and Essence 7
So to make sorcery appropriately powerful I think these new minimums should be used:
Terrestrial Circle Sorcery: Occult and Essence 3
Celestial Circle Sorcery: Occult and Essence 5
Solar Circle Sorcery: Occult and Essence 7
Thursday, 18 August 2011
Film Review, Let The Right One In
I was surprised to learn this film was set in the eighties. The book it's based on was written then and they decided to set it at the same time rather than updating it. The way they portray the era is evident when you know it but extremely subtle and could easily be viewed as a contemporary film.
The film starts off edging towards the understated and disturbing. It's a relatively quiet film, focusing on the life of the main character and the nature of another character's vampirism.
This is not a lost in the woods type horror film like I thought it would be, all about survival drama like so many other horror films. Instead it's set in an urban environment as is much more about supernatural influence on eeveryday life that high drama and action. I'm not a particularly great fan of vampire films, not that I'm prejudiced against the genre but simply because of what it's produced. I haven't seen a vampire story like this one before and it's a better film for it. I've never seen one that focused on children before.
There's nothing uptight or exclusive about it's focus on young characters, adult are not included as mere footnotes. The fact that it's a continental film definitely adds something to it and gives it a sense of distinctiveness.
Although it doesn't focus on primarily being exciting I would never call it boring, eventful scenes are simply not dressed up like they would be in an American film. Instead fact of the characters' existence and their relationships to eachother in all forms take precedence.
In all it's a good alternative to 'Hollywood' supernatural films.
The film starts off edging towards the understated and disturbing. It's a relatively quiet film, focusing on the life of the main character and the nature of another character's vampirism.
This is not a lost in the woods type horror film like I thought it would be, all about survival drama like so many other horror films. Instead it's set in an urban environment as is much more about supernatural influence on eeveryday life that high drama and action. I'm not a particularly great fan of vampire films, not that I'm prejudiced against the genre but simply because of what it's produced. I haven't seen a vampire story like this one before and it's a better film for it. I've never seen one that focused on children before.
There's nothing uptight or exclusive about it's focus on young characters, adult are not included as mere footnotes. The fact that it's a continental film definitely adds something to it and gives it a sense of distinctiveness.
Although it doesn't focus on primarily being exciting I would never call it boring, eventful scenes are simply not dressed up like they would be in an American film. Instead fact of the characters' existence and their relationships to eachother in all forms take precedence.
In all it's a good alternative to 'Hollywood' supernatural films.
Zatoichi, Regional Influences, Lookshy, the East
As a comparative note between Zatoichi and Ladyhawke, Zatoichi also uses modern synthesized music but it doesn't sound tagged on, even next to the traditional music in the rest of the soundtrack.
Zatoichi is a major eye opener for the design of building in Lookshy. There's a myriad of design styles visible in the background. The last time I watched it I spent more time looking at the background than the characters on a few occasions. There's a wealth on information for someone interested in it. As well as the fact that it suits perfectly Creation's eastern architecture, most obviously that of Lookshy. It's not such a question of what materials they use, it's how they use them that's important in determining regional styles.
Zatoichi is a major eye opener for the design of building in Lookshy. There's a myriad of design styles visible in the background. The last time I watched it I spent more time looking at the background than the characters on a few occasions. There's a wealth on information for someone interested in it. As well as the fact that it suits perfectly Creation's eastern architecture, most obviously that of Lookshy. It's not such a question of what materials they use, it's how they use them that's important in determining regional styles.
Wednesday, 17 August 2011
Scroll of Exalts, Second Edition Review, Compass of Terrestrial Directions The North
You might argue that Exalted characters were better put into each of the Manuals of Exalted Power. There are a good number of characters of each type and it's interesting to see them all written up next to eachother (as well as giving readers a sample of all of them.) Including a character section would have added another chapter to each book so.
Mainly I want to talk about the Alchemicals. The first couple of characters are very interesting and give a vibrant new angle to the game. The real reason I want to talk about the Alchemicals though is that it's illustrative of some characteristic flaws in the writing of Exalted. In Dreadful Adjudicator of Law it describes a mystery behind the character's identity (that people would probably guess at) the takes away an opportunity for the Storyteller to turn it into a mysterious conspiracy as so often happens in the game. The opposite mistake in Thousand-Faceted Nelumbo is giving an out of game explanation that a certain detail has deliberately been left unresolved to let Storytellers use it for their own purposes.
Exalted has an annoying habit of being over-detailed in some areas that should be left to the imagination of participants, such as the exact depths of the floodwaters from the various rivers around Nexus, while being afraid of committing to their own work in a way that undermines faith in their writing, such as the alternative identities of the Bull of the North in the Compass of Terrestrial Directions. In New Breeds of Bull it says he could also be a Lunar, a deathknight, or a Fair Folk noble after categorically stating in the main rulebook and in all other material he is a Solar. Although the North did have one of the few (possibly the only) civilisations I could get my teeth into on pages 95-98 in the Zalvanesh Divers.
Going back to the Scroll of Exalts I think it would have added another dimension to the Manual of Exalted Power series if the characters had bee included in their books. Among the characters listed are all the ones on the front covers of various books. And of course you wouldn't know what their Charms did unless you had the relevant source book.
Mainly I want to talk about the Alchemicals. The first couple of characters are very interesting and give a vibrant new angle to the game. The real reason I want to talk about the Alchemicals though is that it's illustrative of some characteristic flaws in the writing of Exalted. In Dreadful Adjudicator of Law it describes a mystery behind the character's identity (that people would probably guess at) the takes away an opportunity for the Storyteller to turn it into a mysterious conspiracy as so often happens in the game. The opposite mistake in Thousand-Faceted Nelumbo is giving an out of game explanation that a certain detail has deliberately been left unresolved to let Storytellers use it for their own purposes.
Exalted has an annoying habit of being over-detailed in some areas that should be left to the imagination of participants, such as the exact depths of the floodwaters from the various rivers around Nexus, while being afraid of committing to their own work in a way that undermines faith in their writing, such as the alternative identities of the Bull of the North in the Compass of Terrestrial Directions. In New Breeds of Bull it says he could also be a Lunar, a deathknight, or a Fair Folk noble after categorically stating in the main rulebook and in all other material he is a Solar. Although the North did have one of the few (possibly the only) civilisations I could get my teeth into on pages 95-98 in the Zalvanesh Divers.
Going back to the Scroll of Exalts I think it would have added another dimension to the Manual of Exalted Power series if the characters had bee included in their books. Among the characters listed are all the ones on the front covers of various books. And of course you wouldn't know what their Charms did unless you had the relevant source book.
Regional Influences, Second Edition Review
The fundamental nature of Elemental Essence in Version 3 is different to the Second Edition. This is because of the more oblique nature of their design from the influences listed below. Elemental aspects are not so direct. In Second Ed it's a simply matter of 'the Pole of Earth is about Earth so at the centre of Creation is a mountain, Earth aspected martial arts are literally about Earth' and to an extent so are Dragon-Blooded powers.
In Version 3 Elemental influence expresses itself more subtly. Artistic and architectural styles are influenced by their location but not to the extent that 'it's near the pole of earth so use rock.' Instead the way cultures around the Elemental Poles are influenced by their environment is a deeper, less direct and more profound one.
For the Pole of Earth, in fact the whole of the Blessed Isle, the main influence was Wong Kar Wai's outstanding wuxia work Ashes of Time. Watch that film and you'll really understand how an area can be profoundly Earth aspected while not being so in a crude way like 'it has to have stone, mountains etc.' The reason for this is not a disdain for such evocative, primal ideas but that they simply do not fit with the game. As I have said before if Exalted use conventional fantasy notions like archetypal, you could even say stereotypical, dragons then that would work. But it's precisely because Exalted avoids such conventions that it's attractive and applying an idea like that would not suit it. Instead you have to do things differently. Thus instead of thinking of the Elemental Poles as 'inertly' Elemental, they are related to the life of Creation, principally animal life, via their association with Gaia and the Elemental Dragons. Even the presence of the forests of the East, the most wild environment of all, is just a setting for the life that exists there rather than being a force in itself. The nature of the Elemental Dragons and the Exalted they created is linked intrinsically to animals rather than the inert matter of one of the directions of Creation. So rather than using boring (and conceptually difficult to handle) jade from the sea, the jade found in the West is living matter.
Unfortunately the nature of jade and Elemental is both poorly described in original sources and difficult to up with sound ideas for, although I have one or two which might work out.
The next film which influenced me, in quite an accurate fashion, which helped with the setting for the East was Zatoichi. it expresses my ideas for the Wood setting, especially in the Scavenger Lands. It's not a simply matter of the presence of an element, whether it's fire or earth, in a film like Ashes of time it's very evocative of that element while not being directly so (deserts are a big feature on the film) and they both adhere to, or in the case of Ashes of Time created my ideas for the setting of a particular quadrant. The Blessed Isle is based on historical China, while Lookshy is based on Japan. One flaw with the Second Edition was a complete failure to create and kind of cultural identity for any of the countries it described. This is mainly evident from language and the use of names, language structures for names are scattered at random throughout Creation failing to give any culture a real sense of identity. Lookshy is something of an exception, since they thankfully created some kind of cultural homogeneity.
A closer study of the art and architecture in both films, as well as knowledge of the cultures they come from, will help demonstrate the effect they have on influences regions of Creation. For a long time I tried to create my own little country somewhere in the north east. I tried to work within the existing setting and nomenclature of what I think is High Realm (not the most imaginative name.) On that note it's similarity to the stereotypical fantasy in the film Rolemodels makes me extremely uncomfortable. Of course what I create was rubbish-largely because their description of the Terrestrial directions is rubbish. It wasn't till I saw Ashes of Time that I realised I shouldn't be trying to trying to fit my ideas in with that the game already says. I should be redesigning the Blessed Isle.
Paying attention to background aspects of films such as these two and Hero played a major role in reshaping the identity of Creation. And I can't write any more because this stupid dolly sized keyboard is annoying me so much if I have to use it anymore I'll kick this stupid computer out the fucking window.
In Version 3 Elemental influence expresses itself more subtly. Artistic and architectural styles are influenced by their location but not to the extent that 'it's near the pole of earth so use rock.' Instead the way cultures around the Elemental Poles are influenced by their environment is a deeper, less direct and more profound one.
For the Pole of Earth, in fact the whole of the Blessed Isle, the main influence was Wong Kar Wai's outstanding wuxia work Ashes of Time. Watch that film and you'll really understand how an area can be profoundly Earth aspected while not being so in a crude way like 'it has to have stone, mountains etc.' The reason for this is not a disdain for such evocative, primal ideas but that they simply do not fit with the game. As I have said before if Exalted use conventional fantasy notions like archetypal, you could even say stereotypical, dragons then that would work. But it's precisely because Exalted avoids such conventions that it's attractive and applying an idea like that would not suit it. Instead you have to do things differently. Thus instead of thinking of the Elemental Poles as 'inertly' Elemental, they are related to the life of Creation, principally animal life, via their association with Gaia and the Elemental Dragons. Even the presence of the forests of the East, the most wild environment of all, is just a setting for the life that exists there rather than being a force in itself. The nature of the Elemental Dragons and the Exalted they created is linked intrinsically to animals rather than the inert matter of one of the directions of Creation. So rather than using boring (and conceptually difficult to handle) jade from the sea, the jade found in the West is living matter.
Unfortunately the nature of jade and Elemental is both poorly described in original sources and difficult to up with sound ideas for, although I have one or two which might work out.
The next film which influenced me, in quite an accurate fashion, which helped with the setting for the East was Zatoichi. it expresses my ideas for the Wood setting, especially in the Scavenger Lands. It's not a simply matter of the presence of an element, whether it's fire or earth, in a film like Ashes of time it's very evocative of that element while not being directly so (deserts are a big feature on the film) and they both adhere to, or in the case of Ashes of Time created my ideas for the setting of a particular quadrant. The Blessed Isle is based on historical China, while Lookshy is based on Japan. One flaw with the Second Edition was a complete failure to create and kind of cultural identity for any of the countries it described. This is mainly evident from language and the use of names, language structures for names are scattered at random throughout Creation failing to give any culture a real sense of identity. Lookshy is something of an exception, since they thankfully created some kind of cultural homogeneity.
A closer study of the art and architecture in both films, as well as knowledge of the cultures they come from, will help demonstrate the effect they have on influences regions of Creation. For a long time I tried to create my own little country somewhere in the north east. I tried to work within the existing setting and nomenclature of what I think is High Realm (not the most imaginative name.) On that note it's similarity to the stereotypical fantasy in the film Rolemodels makes me extremely uncomfortable. Of course what I create was rubbish-largely because their description of the Terrestrial directions is rubbish. It wasn't till I saw Ashes of Time that I realised I shouldn't be trying to trying to fit my ideas in with that the game already says. I should be redesigning the Blessed Isle.
Paying attention to background aspects of films such as these two and Hero played a major role in reshaping the identity of Creation. And I can't write any more because this stupid dolly sized keyboard is annoying me so much if I have to use it anymore I'll kick this stupid computer out the fucking window.
Film Review: Ladyhawke
I have never seen such a waste of talent as this film. It's difficult to think what convinced stars of Bladerunner and Scarface to work on this. That can't be held totally to blame, Michelle Pfieffer must have known at the end how bad her performance was. Without inside info it's impossible to say if the director pushed her on or if she was genuinely oblivious.
Strangely the main stars of the film were upstaged by the comedic subplot starring Mathew Broderick and Ian McKern. Although they're only sidekicks, there to keep the main characters on the rails rather than have a direct role in the narrative, Mathew's character is a genuinely amusing thief who's constantly promising to give up his underhand ways while unwilling to do so in the need for self preservation.
The most painful aspect of this film and one which makes itself felt immediately is the awfully contemporary soundtrack which jarrs horribly with the medieval setting of the film. Somehow it managed to score four stars in a professional review.
The ending of the film seems like it belongs in a romance made several decades earlier, in an era best not resurrected. The amusing contradiction in the existence of Phillipe the thief and the operatic scene stealing way Mathew Broderick plays him is the only thing that stops this film from being on the Blacklist.
Strangely the main stars of the film were upstaged by the comedic subplot starring Mathew Broderick and Ian McKern. Although they're only sidekicks, there to keep the main characters on the rails rather than have a direct role in the narrative, Mathew's character is a genuinely amusing thief who's constantly promising to give up his underhand ways while unwilling to do so in the need for self preservation.
The most painful aspect of this film and one which makes itself felt immediately is the awfully contemporary soundtrack which jarrs horribly with the medieval setting of the film. Somehow it managed to score four stars in a professional review.
The ending of the film seems like it belongs in a romance made several decades earlier, in an era best not resurrected. The amusing contradiction in the existence of Phillipe the thief and the operatic scene stealing way Mathew Broderick plays him is the only thing that stops this film from being on the Blacklist.
Monday, 8 August 2011
Lunars, Phases of the Moon, Full Moon
The Fair Folk are a passion given form. Much the same could be said about the Lunars.
People fear the full moon because it's when the Wyld is at it's strongest and yet it's the time when Creation defence against it is at it's strongest. To the Lunars it's a call to arms. All of the unite for battle against the Fair Folk under the full moon under the direction of the Full Moon Caste. At the same time when the moon does not appear people miss it's radiance and miss the thrill of risk that it brings. The Full Moons are those who thrive on risk. They don't display courage in the face of danger like the Solars do but actively seek it out.
The Gold Faction still maintain that if the Usurpation and the Wyld Hunt hadn't taken place then the Fair Folk invasion would never have happened.
To Lunars the Wyld is at the same time the source of their strength and their enemy.
Dangerously, the Fair Folk also see the Moon and feel their power growing with it's waxing phase and are called into Creation when it shines.
Associations Full Moon Caste: Valour Half Moon Caste: Temperence
Waxing Moon Caste: Compassion Waning Moon Caste: Conviction
The Waxing Moons were experts at making people feel as they feel. Waning Moons were known for being solitary, for relying on no one but themselves.
People fear the full moon because it's when the Wyld is at it's strongest and yet it's the time when Creation defence against it is at it's strongest. To the Lunars it's a call to arms. All of the unite for battle against the Fair Folk under the full moon under the direction of the Full Moon Caste. At the same time when the moon does not appear people miss it's radiance and miss the thrill of risk that it brings. The Full Moons are those who thrive on risk. They don't display courage in the face of danger like the Solars do but actively seek it out.
The Gold Faction still maintain that if the Usurpation and the Wyld Hunt hadn't taken place then the Fair Folk invasion would never have happened.
To Lunars the Wyld is at the same time the source of their strength and their enemy.
Dangerously, the Fair Folk also see the Moon and feel their power growing with it's waxing phase and are called into Creation when it shines.
Associations Full Moon Caste: Valour Half Moon Caste: Temperence
Waxing Moon Caste: Compassion Waning Moon Caste: Conviction
The Waxing Moons were experts at making people feel as they feel. Waning Moons were known for being solitary, for relying on no one but themselves.
The five Dragon Styles
Through learning the five Dragon Styles they didn't learn to wield Celestial Power which was beyond them but could channel the power of the earth itself. Through this they regained the lost power of the Elemental Dragons. Hence the names. The Form Charms- becoming the Dragon is a way to gain it's powers. All the Charms are explicitly Terrestrial Charms rather than Terrestrial martial arts (which is merely a category of their potency.) They can only be learned by Terrestrials and others who can learn Terrestrial Charms. Elementals are excluded because they are mere fragments of the Dragons' power and grow on their own. Terrestrials still carry the blood of the Dragons and are the only ones who can resurrect their power as the Immaculate Dragons once did. The Philosophy of the Immaculate Order believes that the Dragon-Blooded can carry out the Creation ruling Mandate on their own by restoring the power of the Elemental Dragons. A power that was thought long lost and mythical for much of he First Age. But the Immaculate Dragons rediscovered it and started to study it's secrets. The Immaculate Dragons were themselves beings of incredible power that is beyond more worldly Terrestrials. Each one of them had devoted themselves to restoring the power of the Elemental Dragons long before the five Dragon Styles were created. Because of the absolute dedication to their purpose they were able to live long enough, living under changing fake identities to conceal their power, to raise their Essence to a height that could match the Solars. All Immaculate Monks aspire to their adherence to virtue and steadfast purpose. They don't seek power for the sake of being mighty as other Terrestrials do. However no one has mastered the five Dragon Styles since the Immaculate Dragons. Each one is written on a scroll kept at each of the five Immaculate Temples. Only their dedication to overthrowing the Solars kept them alive long enough to raise their Essence that high that they could achieve the supreme power of the Terrestrials, something that was thought impossible in the First Age and came as a great surprise to the jaded Solars. Immaculate Abbots stress the importance of Virtue as a way of attaining mastery of oneself. A practise that other Terrestrials would have a hard time mimicking. Everyone becomes an Immaculate Monk for a reason. Sometimes it's simply to find a purpose.
Obviously not my best work but it's still lays some ground work for future writing and storytelling like a pupil who might finally learn one of the Dragon Styles again.
Obviously not my best work but it's still lays some ground work for future writing and storytelling like a pupil who might finally learn one of the Dragon Styles again.
Monday, 1 August 2011
Terrestrial Exalted Aspect Abilities, Craft
This website is so shoddy you can't even put a simple table on it. For some reason they decided not to use the whole width of the page for a text box (why not?) You can't even write a simple table with one line per entry.
Unlike the writers of the rulebooks I wrote the character and Abilities of the Dragon-Blooded along animalistic rather than purely elemental lines. I think the standard personification of the Dragon-Blooded is rather boring so gave them an animal based aspect to add character to them. I would have liked to show the information below in a neat table but because of the way Blog is constructed that wasn't possible (one of many failings of computers.)
Water Aspect
Animal: The Fish
Key words: Movement, Group-Action
Abilities: Sail, Archery, Linguistics, Lore, War
Earth Aspect
Animal: The Crane
Keywords: Majesty, Unity
Abilities: Bureaucracy, Performance, Ride, Craft, Martial Arts
Ice Aspect
Animal: The Crafty Fox
Keywords: Cunning, Resourcefulness
Abilities: Investigation, Occult, Medicine, Survival, Dodge
Fire Aspect
Animal: The Snake
Keywords: Self Reliance, Focus
Abilities: Integrity, Presence, Melee, Awareness, Resistance
Wood Aspect
Animal: The Monkey
Keywords:
Abilities: Socialise, Athletics, Larceny, Thrown, Stealth
No I didn't forget keywords for the Monkey I just haven't come up with them yet. Apologies for not putting the Abilities in convenient alphabetical order but that the order I came up with them in.
As I may have said in an earlier post the essence of the Terrestrials is based on the animals that live in each quadrant of Creation associated with their Element. Their Charms are based on animal traits and each Terrestrial has a totem animal which becomes visible when their anima banner manifests as it does for Lunars, although the Terrestrials obviously can't shapeshift. I also thought the Immaculate Dragons identities should be reviewed. One sign that was seen as a special portent by their followers was that they each had the totem creature traditionally associated with their Aspect. In regard to their animal aspected powers and identities- they are beings of Creation- the Lunars' are aspected towards the Wyld and should have Charms based on that. I look forward to coming up with some.
A note on Craft. I haven't decided how best to categorise Crafts in terms of their Elemental aspects. One idea was to base each Craft on each quadrant of Creation and the activities people would do there. Although there would be some overlap in skills, players would argue that someone skilled in working with wood would be able to make a boat, storytellers may want to give concessions in experience to players who already have similar skills. My interpretation of skills isn't as simple as in the rulebook. Plants are naturally in abundance in the East, it's the feature of the Elemental Pole, as a result using plants in general, making things out of wood and using plants for various purposes such as mixing, drugs, medicines etc would be an aspect of Wood Craft. Using any resource primarily found in one area of Creation would fall under the areas Craft. Using underwater plants, making boats etc would be Water Craft. Making things out of ice or using materials from animals since no others exist in the North would be Ice Craft. In the south the proximity of the Pole of Fire means craftsman are able to flow lava into vast molds and create huge blocks of stone that cannot be made anywhere else in Creation. Dealing with heated matter and controlling the way in which it cools to create usable object is Fire Craft. Cooking and other similar processes might qualify as well but I'm a bit inclined to categorise them as Wood instead.
The relevance all this has for the Dragon Blooded is that Earth Aspected Terrestrials have Craft in general as a Favoured Ability (not sure about Celestial Crafts like Magitech yet.) However each Aspect has the Craft associated with their direction as a Favoured Ability.
Unlike the writers of the rulebooks I wrote the character and Abilities of the Dragon-Blooded along animalistic rather than purely elemental lines. I think the standard personification of the Dragon-Blooded is rather boring so gave them an animal based aspect to add character to them. I would have liked to show the information below in a neat table but because of the way Blog is constructed that wasn't possible (one of many failings of computers.)
Water Aspect
Animal: The Fish
Key words: Movement, Group-Action
Abilities: Sail, Archery, Linguistics, Lore, War
Earth Aspect
Animal: The Crane
Keywords: Majesty, Unity
Abilities: Bureaucracy, Performance, Ride, Craft, Martial Arts
Ice Aspect
Animal: The Crafty Fox
Keywords: Cunning, Resourcefulness
Abilities: Investigation, Occult, Medicine, Survival, Dodge
Fire Aspect
Animal: The Snake
Keywords: Self Reliance, Focus
Abilities: Integrity, Presence, Melee, Awareness, Resistance
Wood Aspect
Animal: The Monkey
Keywords:
Abilities: Socialise, Athletics, Larceny, Thrown, Stealth
No I didn't forget keywords for the Monkey I just haven't come up with them yet. Apologies for not putting the Abilities in convenient alphabetical order but that the order I came up with them in.
As I may have said in an earlier post the essence of the Terrestrials is based on the animals that live in each quadrant of Creation associated with their Element. Their Charms are based on animal traits and each Terrestrial has a totem animal which becomes visible when their anima banner manifests as it does for Lunars, although the Terrestrials obviously can't shapeshift. I also thought the Immaculate Dragons identities should be reviewed. One sign that was seen as a special portent by their followers was that they each had the totem creature traditionally associated with their Aspect. In regard to their animal aspected powers and identities- they are beings of Creation- the Lunars' are aspected towards the Wyld and should have Charms based on that. I look forward to coming up with some.
A note on Craft. I haven't decided how best to categorise Crafts in terms of their Elemental aspects. One idea was to base each Craft on each quadrant of Creation and the activities people would do there. Although there would be some overlap in skills, players would argue that someone skilled in working with wood would be able to make a boat, storytellers may want to give concessions in experience to players who already have similar skills. My interpretation of skills isn't as simple as in the rulebook. Plants are naturally in abundance in the East, it's the feature of the Elemental Pole, as a result using plants in general, making things out of wood and using plants for various purposes such as mixing, drugs, medicines etc would be an aspect of Wood Craft. Using any resource primarily found in one area of Creation would fall under the areas Craft. Using underwater plants, making boats etc would be Water Craft. Making things out of ice or using materials from animals since no others exist in the North would be Ice Craft. In the south the proximity of the Pole of Fire means craftsman are able to flow lava into vast molds and create huge blocks of stone that cannot be made anywhere else in Creation. Dealing with heated matter and controlling the way in which it cools to create usable object is Fire Craft. Cooking and other similar processes might qualify as well but I'm a bit inclined to categorise them as Wood instead.
The relevance all this has for the Dragon Blooded is that Earth Aspected Terrestrials have Craft in general as a Favoured Ability (not sure about Celestial Crafts like Magitech yet.) However each Aspect has the Craft associated with their direction as a Favoured Ability.
Curse of Anguished Blood Forgotten, Shadowlands Circle Spell
Cost: 12 m
Target: One ghost
Normally it takes days of binding to create a mindless hungry ghost, or one can be found by tracking it through the Underworld or Creation. This horrific spell can turn any shade into a hungry ghost instantly.
Make a Charisma or Manipulation + Presence roll against the target's MDV + Compassion. Halve their MDV if they died a violent death and the character carries the target's skull or is in the immediate presence of their exposed body. If the total number of successes is greater than the target's Essence they immediately become a hungry ghost.
Target: One ghost
Normally it takes days of binding to create a mindless hungry ghost, or one can be found by tracking it through the Underworld or Creation. This horrific spell can turn any shade into a hungry ghost instantly.
Make a Charisma or Manipulation + Presence roll against the target's MDV + Compassion. Halve their MDV if they died a violent death and the character carries the target's skull or is in the immediate presence of their exposed body. If the total number of successes is greater than the target's Essence they immediately become a hungry ghost.
Tuesday, 19 July 2011
Common vs Noble Warstriders
Common Warstriders didn't even exist until recently. During the First Age all Warstriders were made from High Magitech. During the harsh centuries since the Great Contagion when so many Factory Cathedrals and workshops have been lost and jade is in short supply, people, usually in the Threshold, have to resort to more primitive expediencies to construct these monsters. Only the underlying Essence powered systems are constructed from jade- with the rest of the machine covered in steel. Such makeshift workmanship would be viewed as utterly vulgar in the Realm but in the Threshold fielding a Warstrider of any description is enough to make an impression. Hence the Realm's introduction of the derogatory name 'Common Warstrider' for those built in the barbarian lands as opposed to the 'Noble Warstriders' piloted by Dynasts.
Point of Reference: compare the original suit in Iron Man to Tony Stark's factory build model.
Point of Reference: compare the original suit in Iron Man to Tony Stark's factory build model.
Blessed Isle vs Threshold
Dragon-Blooded have marks of their Aspect on their body. In the East these often take on the forms of animals orpatterns of plants such as coiling thorns. These marking become animated and apparently alive when the Terrestrial starts to manifest their anima. The Dragon-Blooded of the Blessed Isle often look upon the Terrestrials of the Threshold as primitive because of this strong animal connection, even though they may come from an advance culture. The Threshold is a much wilder place than the Blessed Isle and it's inhabitants like it that way. Which is the reason for their reputation as 'barbarians' by those who live on the Blessed Isle. On the Blessed Isle life exists in harmony and everyone knows their place. Which is great if you're at the top but often leaves people wanting more. The Threshold is a land of opportunity. You might lose everything, but there is a lot to gain.
Monday, 18 July 2011
Essence Pulse Cannon
Concussive Essence Cannon don't just hit a point and explode but blast a line of elemental force across the ground. Everything in the affected area suffers damage and knockback.
Essence Pulse Cannon
One of the most conceptually simple weapons of the First Age. Their straightforward design made them extremely popular, and they are even now still produced in some workshops in the second age.
Essence Pulse Cannon (Concussive Essence Cannon) project elemental Essence through their entire range. What form the energy takes depends on what they are made off.
Earth Jade cannon carve a furrow through the ground. Rather than hitting targets on the ground it's power is directed against the ground itself. These weapons have uses other than military applications. In the First Age they were often used in mining.
Ice Jade cannon- Thunder Hammers- fire with a deafening, reverberating crack as an ice elemental blasts from the barrel with the force of a hurricane. These weapons cause tremendous devastation, scattering everyone and everything in their path. Thunder Hammers were extensively used in First Age warfare on land and sea. Objects strong enough not to suffer knockdown or catastrophic (i.e. destroying) damage stop the blast but take the full brunt of it. Ice elementals don't like being stopped in their tracks.
Blue Jade cannon were used exclusively in aquatic warfare. They send a surge of elemental force through the water as a devastating tidal wave or a crushing undersea current. These weapons were used in subaquatic warfare (craft armed with them are among the rarest relics of the First Age) and for bombarding coastlines as well as attacking other ships.
Fire Jade cannon were the most fearsome of all to see in battle. They fires a raging inferno through enemy ranks. As well as being used for tactical reasons they were also used as terror weapons and in all out assaults on cities where the attackers didn't even bother to loot them but burn everything to the ground. They're particularly deadly in naval warfare in the second age.
Heavenly Fire Lance- Despite Immaculate disapproval, these weapons are still highly prized for their effectiveness against Creatures of Darkness. Each one, made from pure orichalcum, is decorated with Heavenly iconography and prayers to the Unconquered Sun. In addition to normal damage, Creatures of Darkness affected by this weapon burn in cleansing flame; zombies and nemissaries' bodies burn to ashes, ghosts are released from their fetters and pass immediately into Lethe, Nephwracks are exposed to holy light no shadow can hide from.
Soulsteel cannon- Oblivion's Dark Light- the most terrifying of all Essence Cannon, this diabolical creation has the power to drag people straight into Oblivion.
Essence Pulse Cannon
One of the most conceptually simple weapons of the First Age. Their straightforward design made them extremely popular, and they are even now still produced in some workshops in the second age.
Essence Pulse Cannon (Concussive Essence Cannon) project elemental Essence through their entire range. What form the energy takes depends on what they are made off.
Earth Jade cannon carve a furrow through the ground. Rather than hitting targets on the ground it's power is directed against the ground itself. These weapons have uses other than military applications. In the First Age they were often used in mining.
Ice Jade cannon- Thunder Hammers- fire with a deafening, reverberating crack as an ice elemental blasts from the barrel with the force of a hurricane. These weapons cause tremendous devastation, scattering everyone and everything in their path. Thunder Hammers were extensively used in First Age warfare on land and sea. Objects strong enough not to suffer knockdown or catastrophic (i.e. destroying) damage stop the blast but take the full brunt of it. Ice elementals don't like being stopped in their tracks.
Blue Jade cannon were used exclusively in aquatic warfare. They send a surge of elemental force through the water as a devastating tidal wave or a crushing undersea current. These weapons were used in subaquatic warfare (craft armed with them are among the rarest relics of the First Age) and for bombarding coastlines as well as attacking other ships.
Fire Jade cannon were the most fearsome of all to see in battle. They fires a raging inferno through enemy ranks. As well as being used for tactical reasons they were also used as terror weapons and in all out assaults on cities where the attackers didn't even bother to loot them but burn everything to the ground. They're particularly deadly in naval warfare in the second age.
Heavenly Fire Lance- Despite Immaculate disapproval, these weapons are still highly prized for their effectiveness against Creatures of Darkness. Each one, made from pure orichalcum, is decorated with Heavenly iconography and prayers to the Unconquered Sun. In addition to normal damage, Creatures of Darkness affected by this weapon burn in cleansing flame; zombies and nemissaries' bodies burn to ashes, ghosts are released from their fetters and pass immediately into Lethe, Nephwracks are exposed to holy light no shadow can hide from.
Soulsteel cannon- Oblivion's Dark Light- the most terrifying of all Essence Cannon, this diabolical creation has the power to drag people straight into Oblivion.
Sunday, 17 July 2011
Black Sun Princess Style
Weapons and Armour: This style focuses on inflicting pain and form weapons are based on the same intention. Generally the style is practised unarmed but a character may use whips (as per Exalted but with Damage +0L) or wear elegant leather strips fitted with metal blades. Weapons have a damage of no greater than +1. The Princess keeps her fingernails sharpened like razors to inflict lethal damage. This style emphasises performance rather than blatant combat and elegant cruelty over brutality. Wearing armour blocks the use of this style.
Unnatural Agony Infliction
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: None
Dark Essence courses through the Princess' weapon or through her very hands. She can however camouflage the Obvious effect of this Charm through appropriately coloured accoutrements, she often paints her fingernails black to hide the use of this Charm. On a successful attack the wound inflicts a -1 penalty for every level of damage inflicted as well as the normal penalties for losing health levels.
Lascivious Excoriating Caress
Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch
Duration: One Scene
Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Agony Infliction
With this Charm the Princess can turn the most pleasurable acts into indescribable agony. A gentle sweep of her hand can strip the skin from a paramour's face or she can flay flesh from bone with her fingertips.
Any direct physical contact causes lethal injury. All attacks made with this Charm cause lethal damage as her victim's flesh is pulled apart. Even striking her becomes an exercise in self-inflicted pain. On each attack a character touches her they suffer one die of lethal damage.
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Agony Infliction
Such is the disturbing beauty of the Black Sun Princess her allure leaves a foe utterly helpless before her onslaught. This Charm merges performing a social attack with a physical one. Subtract her Relative Appearance from her opponent's DV.
Mistress' Bitter Pain Revenge
Cost: Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Agony Infliction
The Black Sun Princess is a master of pain. Everytime an opponent inflicts a blow that would cause a wound penalty she can use the sympathetic backlash caused by their physical contact to inflict the same wound penalty on her opponent.
Black Sun Princess Form
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Simple
Keywords: Form-Type
Duration: One Scene
Prerequisite Charms: Lascivious Excoriating Caress, Mistress' Bitter Pain Revenge
Unending Orgy of Suffering
The Princess was brought into this world to cause pain, pain that brings her unholy joy. What force can stop her when her unleashed appetite is in full flood?
Every time she inflicts a blow that increases her opponent's wound penalty she regains a number of motes equal to the penalty's new rating.
I don't know where the line gaps are coming from. The coding must be crap.
Unnatural Agony Infliction
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: None
Dark Essence courses through the Princess' weapon or through her very hands. She can however camouflage the Obvious effect of this Charm through appropriately coloured accoutrements, she often paints her fingernails black to hide the use of this Charm. On a successful attack the wound inflicts a -1 penalty for every level of damage inflicted as well as the normal penalties for losing health levels.
Lascivious Excoriating Caress
Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch
Duration: One Scene
Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Agony Infliction
With this Charm the Princess can turn the most pleasurable acts into indescribable agony. A gentle sweep of her hand can strip the skin from a paramour's face or she can flay flesh from bone with her fingertips.
Any direct physical contact causes lethal injury. All attacks made with this Charm cause lethal damage as her victim's flesh is pulled apart. Even striking her becomes an exercise in self-inflicted pain. On each attack a character touches her they suffer one die of lethal damage.
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Agony Infliction
Such is the disturbing beauty of the Black Sun Princess her allure leaves a foe utterly helpless before her onslaught. This Charm merges performing a social attack with a physical one. Subtract her Relative Appearance from her opponent's DV.
Mistress' Bitter Pain Revenge
Cost: Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Agony Infliction
The Black Sun Princess is a master of pain. Everytime an opponent inflicts a blow that would cause a wound penalty she can use the sympathetic backlash caused by their physical contact to inflict the same wound penalty on her opponent.
Black Sun Princess Form
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Simple
Keywords: Form-Type
Duration: One Scene
Prerequisite Charms: Lascivious Excoriating Caress, Mistress' Bitter Pain Revenge
Unending Orgy of Suffering
The Princess was brought into this world to cause pain, pain that brings her unholy joy. What force can stop her when her unleashed appetite is in full flood?
Every time she inflicts a blow that increases her opponent's wound penalty she regains a number of motes equal to the penalty's new rating.
I don't know where the line gaps are coming from. The coding must be crap.
Friday, 15 July 2011
Black Sun Princess Style (Abyssal Martial Arts)
Changing into the Form of this martial art the Black Princess drives herself into an orgiastic frenzy of violence. Allowing her deepest impulses free rein she becomes an unstoppable ravaging fiend.
When she activates this form she is affected by the full Virtue Flaws for Hedonistic Indulgence and Bezerk Fury. She cannot attempt to control these conditions as the Form requires complete lack of self control. However she gains a number of Virtue Points equal to her Temperance and Valour. While in this form she may spend Willpower points to channel Virtues without reducing her remaining channels. Note that using channels requires them to be used for a task that is appropriate in a similar way to regaining Virtue channels using Phoenix Renewal Tactic. The Form ends when the scene ends or when she uses all her temporary Willpower, whichever comes first. If she does spend all her Willpower she becomes comatose for a number of hours equal to her highest Virtue.
This Charm should really be a later Charm, probably the last one of the Style. It's too powerful to be a Form Charm. I came up with a better one later.
Black Princess Form
Type: Simple (one action)
Key Words: Form-type, Emotion, Social
Duration: One Scene
The Princess becomes the very embodiment of the Hate she felt the night she was Exalted and revels in her murderous triumph. Those unfortunate enough to witness her atrocious acts of cruelty fall to their knees gagging and vomiting, stand dumbstruck in shocked disbelief or flee trying to escape the shocking acts they've witnessed.
To activate this Charm the character must perform a physical of social attack that embodies heartless cruelty to the point it induces thoughts of suicidal despair. She suffers from the Virtue Flaw partially controlled Deliberate Cruelty as she is given in to malice.
The first time another character witnesses her making an attack while in this state finds her unbridled viciousness is so unbearable they must spend a number of Willpower points equal to their Compassion to withstand the sight of the horrifyingly inhuman abuse she subjects people to. If a player choses they may instead spend a Willpower point to make a Conviction roll. Those who pass flee If they pass they have the choice of fleeing and not returning for the rest of the scene to avoid seeing more debasement or standing inactive until an attack directed against them shakes them out of their stupor. If the player fails or they have no Willpower left they are rendered inactive for the rest of the scene while their mind and body revolts at the atrocity they have just watched.
Those who spend the full amount of Willpower are unable to use their Compassion again for as long as the Charm lasts and they remain in her presence. As a backhand advantage they cannot gain Limit from Compassion while in this state.
The Emotion effect of this Charm affects her not the onlookers. She exerts unnatural mental influence on herself to relive the most hate-filled and joyous moment of her unlife. The effect it has on bystanders is a natural effect of her sadistic cruelty. Despite the effect it has on others this Charm does not stop her from using Compassion in the twisted way she feels it. Far from it. She positively revels in the shocked sickness and impotent outrage others feel in her presence when she uses this Charm.
Notes
One problem is the limit of 2 Willpower points per scene people have to spend to resist natural mental influence. I wanted to avoid the use of direct Unnatural mental influence as it seemed too artless, anyone can force people to feel emotions, a real artist inspires them. People for who Compassion is not a dominant Virtue would be unaffected. Those who are Essence users may spend all of their Compassion in Willpower, if it above 2, to create a Compulsion effect that allows them to remain in control of themselves, accruing Limit for doing so. She also incurs a point of Resonance for activating this Charm for drawing on the darkness that allows her to resurrect such hate.
I'm not sure if it's more fitting for a character to gain Resonance from drawing on the power of the Abyssal Exaltation or trying to defy it. The Abyssals says both.
About Willpower use, the rules say that after they spend two Willpower points the attacker must use a stunt to come at the character from an unexpected direction. Use of Charms are often interchangeable with stunts and attacks performed with this Charm should be similar to stunts in any case, especially the initial one that activates the Charm, that's a condition of activation.
Whether or not this Charm qualifies as unnatural mental influence is not clear. I do not want the Charm or even the style to involve unnatural mental influence. The direct effect of it is since she is becoming a sinister Essence empowered embodiment of Abyssal cruelty. On the other hand it doesn't directly cause an emotion, which is at the root UMI, investing Essence into words and actions to give them an unnaturally potent social effect. It doesn't literally invade other people's minds or invest her words and actions with any supernatural power. Rather supernatural power is the cause of her words and actions and she's using them to achieve levels of hatred people are not usually capable of. That's what so disgusts people. It's sort of a half-way state of unnaturally caused mental influence rather than an unnatural effect. The only direct effect is on her.
Also the name is obviously different but I think it might work.
When she activates this form she is affected by the full Virtue Flaws for Hedonistic Indulgence and Bezerk Fury. She cannot attempt to control these conditions as the Form requires complete lack of self control. However she gains a number of Virtue Points equal to her Temperance and Valour. While in this form she may spend Willpower points to channel Virtues without reducing her remaining channels. Note that using channels requires them to be used for a task that is appropriate in a similar way to regaining Virtue channels using Phoenix Renewal Tactic. The Form ends when the scene ends or when she uses all her temporary Willpower, whichever comes first. If she does spend all her Willpower she becomes comatose for a number of hours equal to her highest Virtue.
This Charm should really be a later Charm, probably the last one of the Style. It's too powerful to be a Form Charm. I came up with a better one later.
Black Princess Form
Type: Simple (one action)
Key Words: Form-type, Emotion, Social
Duration: One Scene
The Princess becomes the very embodiment of the Hate she felt the night she was Exalted and revels in her murderous triumph. Those unfortunate enough to witness her atrocious acts of cruelty fall to their knees gagging and vomiting, stand dumbstruck in shocked disbelief or flee trying to escape the shocking acts they've witnessed.
To activate this Charm the character must perform a physical of social attack that embodies heartless cruelty to the point it induces thoughts of suicidal despair. She suffers from the Virtue Flaw partially controlled Deliberate Cruelty as she is given in to malice.
The first time another character witnesses her making an attack while in this state finds her unbridled viciousness is so unbearable they must spend a number of Willpower points equal to their Compassion to withstand the sight of the horrifyingly inhuman abuse she subjects people to. If a player choses they may instead spend a Willpower point to make a Conviction roll. Those who pass flee If they pass they have the choice of fleeing and not returning for the rest of the scene to avoid seeing more debasement or standing inactive until an attack directed against them shakes them out of their stupor. If the player fails or they have no Willpower left they are rendered inactive for the rest of the scene while their mind and body revolts at the atrocity they have just watched.
Those who spend the full amount of Willpower are unable to use their Compassion again for as long as the Charm lasts and they remain in her presence. As a backhand advantage they cannot gain Limit from Compassion while in this state.
The Emotion effect of this Charm affects her not the onlookers. She exerts unnatural mental influence on herself to relive the most hate-filled and joyous moment of her unlife. The effect it has on bystanders is a natural effect of her sadistic cruelty. Despite the effect it has on others this Charm does not stop her from using Compassion in the twisted way she feels it. Far from it. She positively revels in the shocked sickness and impotent outrage others feel in her presence when she uses this Charm.
Notes
One problem is the limit of 2 Willpower points per scene people have to spend to resist natural mental influence. I wanted to avoid the use of direct Unnatural mental influence as it seemed too artless, anyone can force people to feel emotions, a real artist inspires them. People for who Compassion is not a dominant Virtue would be unaffected. Those who are Essence users may spend all of their Compassion in Willpower, if it above 2, to create a Compulsion effect that allows them to remain in control of themselves, accruing Limit for doing so. She also incurs a point of Resonance for activating this Charm for drawing on the darkness that allows her to resurrect such hate.
I'm not sure if it's more fitting for a character to gain Resonance from drawing on the power of the Abyssal Exaltation or trying to defy it. The Abyssals says both.
About Willpower use, the rules say that after they spend two Willpower points the attacker must use a stunt to come at the character from an unexpected direction. Use of Charms are often interchangeable with stunts and attacks performed with this Charm should be similar to stunts in any case, especially the initial one that activates the Charm, that's a condition of activation.
Whether or not this Charm qualifies as unnatural mental influence is not clear. I do not want the Charm or even the style to involve unnatural mental influence. The direct effect of it is since she is becoming a sinister Essence empowered embodiment of Abyssal cruelty. On the other hand it doesn't directly cause an emotion, which is at the root UMI, investing Essence into words and actions to give them an unnaturally potent social effect. It doesn't literally invade other people's minds or invest her words and actions with any supernatural power. Rather supernatural power is the cause of her words and actions and she's using them to achieve levels of hatred people are not usually capable of. That's what so disgusts people. It's sort of a half-way state of unnaturally caused mental influence rather than an unnatural effect. The only direct effect is on her.
Also the name is obviously different but I think it might work.
Sunday, 10 July 2011
Wounds Mean Nothing
Having cheated death once, it's a foolish opponent who lets their guard down thinking an Abyssal is finished. All too often once their back is turned on an assumed dead opponent they rise up like macabre puppets ready to stab their presumptuous enemy in the back.
Concussive Essence Cannon
Concussive Essence Cannon aren't just valued because they inflict casualties. They can knockback and disrupt entire formations. They're valuable because they break up attacking forces or defensive lines.
Magitech devices can be powered in one of three ways. They can use a socketed hearthstone which acts as a conduit for the energy of a manse. Secondly they can be on an Essence grid attached to a manse in a similar way to a character recovering Essence by being present at the manse. Thirdly they can use Essence capacitors (different to the device described in Lords of Creation.) These magitech artefacts can be recharged by a device attached to an Essence grid or at the manse itself in a dedicated socket. Unlike 'magical' artefacts magitech is powered by pure Essence so it can be designed to do almost anything. However devices depend on being powered whereas other artefacts have intrinsic properties.
The history of the Immaculate Order is not hooey. It's true, it's just not exactly true. But it's as close to the truth as people knew of at the time, even the Solars. The Terrestrials defeated the Solars but they were not Lawgivers anymore. They weren't what the Unconquered Sun Exalted.
The advent of Immaculate martial arts came as an unpleasant surprise to the Solars.
The advent of Immaculate martial arts came as an unpleasant surprise to the Solars.
The North is a lot like the Underworld. It is dark a lot of the time especially in winter. The moon shines over the north for months. The north was a stronghold of the Lunars just as the south was a stronghold of the Solars and has a disproportionate number of Lunar manses. The Chosen of the Moon were drawn to this shadowy and eldrich land.
In shadowlands the ground is covered in the ashes of the dead. A shadowland is created when the land is completely a realm of death. Shadowlands often occur in graveyards and other places where death has dominated Creation and became the only thing present there the Essence of the Underworld spills through it. Graveyards are often surrounded by iron fences to stop the dead from escaping and are carefully warded.
In shadowlands the ground is covered in the ashes of the dead. A shadowland is created when the land is completely a realm of death. Shadowlands often occur in graveyards and other places where death has dominated Creation and became the only thing present there the Essence of the Underworld spills through it. Graveyards are often surrounded by iron fences to stop the dead from escaping and are carefully warded.
Just as the Solars were made to command Creation, the Lunars were made to live beyond it, both it's physical boundaries, it's social control and some say it's reason.
Just as the moon only shines brightly during the sun's absence the Lunars were made as a juxtaposition of the Solars, those who didn't need the Solars' guidance. Far from having a controlling bond with the Solars Lunars seemed almost designed to oppose them at times. In the Old Realm the Solars found the Lunars invaluable allies and infuriating obstacles. Often the feeling was mutual.
The Solars could forge new stretches of Creation and condemn it's enemies but the Wyld was endless and the Lunars could enter and leave it with impunity.
Just as the moon only shines brightly during the sun's absence the Lunars were made as a juxtaposition of the Solars, those who didn't need the Solars' guidance. Far from having a controlling bond with the Solars Lunars seemed almost designed to oppose them at times. In the Old Realm the Solars found the Lunars invaluable allies and infuriating obstacles. Often the feeling was mutual.
The Solars could forge new stretches of Creation and condemn it's enemies but the Wyld was endless and the Lunars could enter and leave it with impunity.
Each Elemental Pole is the source of the element within Creation. An elemental pole creates the element, pushing reality against the Wyld.
Elemental energy comes from Heaven, through the Heavenly Mountain and then separates and spreads out to the four directions of Creation.
Life should thrive near the elemental poles. Why not have plants and animals that live around them.
Five elemental creatures- totem of the Immaculate Dragons
Earth- crane
Wood- monkey
Water- fish
Fire- reptile
Ice- fox, bear, wolf
Elemental energy comes from Heaven, through the Heavenly Mountain and then separates and spreads out to the four directions of Creation.
Life should thrive near the elemental poles. Why not have plants and animals that live around them.
Five elemental creatures- totem of the Immaculate Dragons
Earth- crane
Wood- monkey
Water- fish
Fire- reptile
Ice- fox, bear, wolf
Ordinary humans cannot change surroundings in the Wyld. The lack the ability to Shape.
The raksha are players. The Wyld is a stage. In the Wyld the raksha's stories are horrifyingly real. Because of a Creation born's formed nature the further in Creation they are the harder they are for the raksha's Shaping effects to affect. Until then they are in Creation proper they are safe (at least from Wyld Shaping.) They can't make their stories if there is no dreamscape to work in. This is the reason people fear Wyld storms. It gives the Fair Folk a certain amount of ability to use their magic. In pure chaos there is nothing but what the Fair Folk make. Creation has slid away completely leaving no foundation for reality to rest on. An injury a Creation born suffers here is real. So far into the Wyld fantasy is reality. Life played out at freeholds usually in the form of court dramas is like a theatre and hungry courtiers feed on the emotions of those who are centre stage.
The raksha are players. The Wyld is a stage. In the Wyld the raksha's stories are horrifyingly real. Because of a Creation born's formed nature the further in Creation they are the harder they are for the raksha's Shaping effects to affect. Until then they are in Creation proper they are safe (at least from Wyld Shaping.) They can't make their stories if there is no dreamscape to work in. This is the reason people fear Wyld storms. It gives the Fair Folk a certain amount of ability to use their magic. In pure chaos there is nothing but what the Fair Folk make. Creation has slid away completely leaving no foundation for reality to rest on. An injury a Creation born suffers here is real. So far into the Wyld fantasy is reality. Life played out at freeholds usually in the form of court dramas is like a theatre and hungry courtiers feed on the emotions of those who are centre stage.
Friday, 8 July 2011
Each to His Own
Get it. The Solars don't do what the Sidereals tell them. They did what the Unconquered Sun told them. The purpose of the Sidereals was to advise the Solars by giving them insights they didn't have access to. A recurring problem with Exalted is the repeated portrayal of classes as dupes. Who wants to play a fucking dupe? Even one who knows they are? It would be a far better game if they got over this idea and portrayed people as having more autonomy. If everything is just a big conspiracy by the Sidereals, Deathlords etc. it's just shit cause no one has any free will.
The Solars are beholden to no one but their Celestial master. Certainly not lesser Exalted like the Sidereals. The whole point of the Gold Faction is to restore Solar rule. Solars outnumber the Gold Faction drastically and once they attain comparable levels of Essence to the Faction's elders will be nigh unstoppable. Indeed the Gold Faction wants them to be. Who else will combat the Deathlords and other dire threats to the world? The Gold Faction are under no illusions. The Solars are chosen for their desire to use power for their own ends and can oppose anyone who tries to stop them as the Primordials found out to their cost. The Solars were made to rule Creation and don't take orders from anyone.
The Solars are beholden to no one but their Celestial master. Certainly not lesser Exalted like the Sidereals. The whole point of the Gold Faction is to restore Solar rule. Solars outnumber the Gold Faction drastically and once they attain comparable levels of Essence to the Faction's elders will be nigh unstoppable. Indeed the Gold Faction wants them to be. Who else will combat the Deathlords and other dire threats to the world? The Gold Faction are under no illusions. The Solars are chosen for their desire to use power for their own ends and can oppose anyone who tries to stop them as the Primordials found out to their cost. The Solars were made to rule Creation and don't take orders from anyone.
It was not that the existence of the Solars, and to a lesser extent the Lunars and the Sidereals, has been eradicated from history. Rather their earlier identity had been lost under a history of decadence and absolute power. No one even recognised the Solars as Solars anymore. The Zenith Caste had long since become tyrants, priests of a god in whose name they no longer spoke and whose power they only abused not carried out. The Twilight Caste, once great enlighteners and brilliant sorcerers, had turned into twisted experimenters pushing the boundaries of knowledge with no care for humanity or their own souls. Even the Solars had forgotten what they were. In ancient histories, old enough to become myths, great heroes called Lawgivers raised mankind to rule the world. In the third age of the Old Realm their epithet became replaced by one far more fitting given to them by their Dragon-Blooded underlings: Anathema. They were no longer recognisable as or knew that they used to be Sun-Kings. Instead they'd become living demons. Great mortals would be chosen by a corrupting force that would twist their souls as they power swelled to inhuman proportions making the as evil as they were almighty. It was in this atmosphere of tyrany and oppression that the five Dragon-Blooded who would become known as the Immaculate Dragons started to foment rebellion against them.
Celestial Power
The Essence of the Solars is the ability to wield power in Creation.
The Essence of the Lunars is the ability to wield power in the Wyld.
The Essence of the Sidereals is to wield power of Fate.
The Essence of the Lunars is the ability to wield power in the Wyld.
The Essence of the Sidereals is to wield power of Fate.
The Loom of Fate is the font of the Sidereals' power. So the Wyld is the source of the Lunars' power. Due to it's infinite potential and the Lunars' ability to use it, their power is potentially limitless, restrained only by their Essence. This is how they manage to battle against mighty Fair Folk in a place beyond Creation and Fate, beyond reality itself. The Solars may be able to push back the borders of the Wyld but it is always there, it is limitless and so are the Fair Folk. Only those whose power is equally limitless, whose power is drawn from it can hope to successfully fight against it. To this end she made her Chosen, to fight against the Wyld in many ways, each one was an aspect of her nature. The weakness of the Lunar host caused by the Wyld Hunt precipitated the creation of the Silver Faction who were determined never to risk Creation being swallowed up by the Wyld ever again. Lunars are still vulnerable to the forces the Sidereals can put against them. Although they can escape Fate by entering the Wyld, it is their natural battle ground, they need human contact as much as anyone and part of their duty is to lead people to fight against the Wyld with them. Hence Arvida's expedition that created the Haslanti League by leading ice walkers to rediscover the lost wonders of Tzatli.
Sidereals
Each Sidereal Exaltation is essentially a strand of Fate. The Exaltation of a Chosen of Battles is an unending story of conflict. An Exaltation of a Chosen of Serenity is an eternal tale of love.
Every night the moon takes on a different form. Some believe this to be random, others believe the face of the moon brings portents of things to come. The moon isn't limited to one phase regularly waxing and waning but appears each night as Luna wishes, sometimes with one phase, sometimes with two. It can appear as a corona of silver, two phases on opposite sides, identical or mismatching and at changing angles. Unlike the path of the sun the path of the moon is not constant either. travelling during the day and during the night along any path Luna choses, in which direction and how high in the sky are up to her.
An artefact ship can move through water without disturbing it as if it were part of the water itself. As the vessel is inhabited by a water elemental or bonded to the anima of a Terrestrial Exalted this is actually true. A vessel of frost jade can move as easily over the frozen sea as snow over ice. A vessel of fire jade can travel through rivers of burning rock.
Earth jade is extraordinarily hard and requires age of strenuous hammering to craft it into shape. It's far stronger than most tools used to craft it as a result they have to be repaired or replaced frequently. Jade can survive any condition of it's Elemental Pole. It was intended to be the bodies of elementals.
Artefacts made from jade are the houses of elementals. The Dragon-Blooded are representations of the living things of Creation just as they are descended from their forebears. Their artefacts aren't just objects but living weapons.
Earth jade is extraordinarily hard and requires age of strenuous hammering to craft it into shape. It's far stronger than most tools used to craft it as a result they have to be repaired or replaced frequently. Jade can survive any condition of it's Elemental Pole. It was intended to be the bodies of elementals.
Artefacts made from jade are the houses of elementals. The Dragon-Blooded are representations of the living things of Creation just as they are descended from their forebears. Their artefacts aren't just objects but living weapons.
Some demons breathe themselves forwards as surging tides of fog.
Demon Lords are wary of promoting their subordinates or of progeny who grow too powerful. Most find it expedient to impress upon them that Elder Progeny is the highest station they can attain to retain a monopoly on power, and make sure that this rak is hard enough to accomplish. However once in a while through extraordinary guile circumstance and luck a progeny manages to attain some degree of power over his lord and simultaneously prevent himself from being deposed. Tales are told of rulers who have slowly become little more than figureheads because of the rise of a cunning and consummately manipulative underling. As a result demons are very cautious when dealing with powerful underlings. Yes they're very useful but they're also potentially very dangerous. The mighty owe their preeminence largely to those beneath them but the more powerful those beneath them become the more in danger they are of being overthrown. Sometimes an entire collective of progeny fall on their master. When the succeed they often set up a form of group rulership. Often this dissolves sooner or later as it's members turn on eachother. This is often the result of one of their number declaring their superiority, which often happens immediately after the coup usually by the one who slew their former master. Demons have to contend with not only their superiors and lessers but also their peers. Such an act is extremely riky as short sighted conspirators have learned. Demon Princes do not take their subsidiary souls being slain lightly and often fall on the offenders who discover they have angered a being far more powerful than the one they overthrew. Occasionaly the winner of an internecine conflict among a group of conspirators is offered the chance to be transformed into the Demon Prince's soul. Such an enticement is also used to fragment such a group of renegades, being held out as a reward for selling out their peers. Often all the usurpers perish in such a conflict which is what the Demon Prince sometimes wants.
Having a subsidiary soul overthrown in a significant embarrassment to a Demon Prince and could incite attack from all quarters. However if one of the rebels prove to show particular promise they may think they're better off with them instead as they will be a more effective weapon to use against their rivals.
Demon Lords are wary of promoting their subordinates or of progeny who grow too powerful. Most find it expedient to impress upon them that Elder Progeny is the highest station they can attain to retain a monopoly on power, and make sure that this rak is hard enough to accomplish. However once in a while through extraordinary guile circumstance and luck a progeny manages to attain some degree of power over his lord and simultaneously prevent himself from being deposed. Tales are told of rulers who have slowly become little more than figureheads because of the rise of a cunning and consummately manipulative underling. As a result demons are very cautious when dealing with powerful underlings. Yes they're very useful but they're also potentially very dangerous. The mighty owe their preeminence largely to those beneath them but the more powerful those beneath them become the more in danger they are of being overthrown. Sometimes an entire collective of progeny fall on their master. When the succeed they often set up a form of group rulership. Often this dissolves sooner or later as it's members turn on eachother. This is often the result of one of their number declaring their superiority, which often happens immediately after the coup usually by the one who slew their former master. Demons have to contend with not only their superiors and lessers but also their peers. Such an act is extremely riky as short sighted conspirators have learned. Demon Princes do not take their subsidiary souls being slain lightly and often fall on the offenders who discover they have angered a being far more powerful than the one they overthrew. Occasionaly the winner of an internecine conflict among a group of conspirators is offered the chance to be transformed into the Demon Prince's soul. Such an enticement is also used to fragment such a group of renegades, being held out as a reward for selling out their peers. Often all the usurpers perish in such a conflict which is what the Demon Prince sometimes wants.
Having a subsidiary soul overthrown in a significant embarrassment to a Demon Prince and could incite attack from all quarters. However if one of the rebels prove to show particular promise they may think they're better off with them instead as they will be a more effective weapon to use against their rivals.
Luna could see the Unconquered Sun was making Chosen who would one day rule all of Creation. She wanted to make something that would like herself be beyond the Unconquered Sun's control, beyond even the control of Fate. Luna's fundamental relationship is to Gaia not the Unconquered Sun. Why would she make her Chosen differently?
As the Solars were the masters of Creation, Luna made her Exalted to be, like the Wyld they were spawned from, beyond it and beyond their control.
As the Solars were the masters of Creation, Luna made her Exalted to be, like the Wyld they were spawned from, beyond it and beyond their control.
Warstriders
Scout and Common Warstriders were constructed by and for the Terrestrial Exalted so they could fight along side Celestial Exalted armed with Colossal and Royal Warstriders. In great battles Solar Generals in their orichalcum war machines would lead armies of Terrestrials in their Warstriders. Although the models made for the Terrestrials were far smaller they could be produced en masse and allowed hosts of Terrestrials fighting as sworn brotherhoods to go into battle shoulder to shoulder with their Solar masters like a warlord leading his retinue.
Wednesday, 6 July 2011
The Haslanti and the Discovery of the North
The Haslanti probably have a legend about their long journey north truting religiously in their Lunar guide travelling to Tzatli to found the city of Diamond Hearth. This story could become legend in it's own right with the Haslanti prepared to trust the tall tale of the Lunar of a fantastical lost city to journey out on to the ice in the hope of reaching this place before winter, then people dying or turning back and the Lunar and the faithful convincing them to carry on and then they find this amazing city and become the founders of Diamond Hearth. Then the tale goes on with how they settled and explored the city and survived the first winter there. The Lunar selected the brave and adaptable Ice Walker tribes to rediscover this lost technology. Since then they have thrived resurrecting the First Age technology they found.
Although the technology of Tzatli kept the Wyld out, the Haslanti and their Lunar guide still had to fight through the dark tunnels against the Fair Folk to reclaim it and during the winters when the Wyld returns.
This sounds like an Icelandic saga but on a much bigger scale.
Although the technology of Tzatli kept the Wyld out, the Haslanti and their Lunar guide still had to fight through the dark tunnels against the Fair Folk to reclaim it and during the winters when the Wyld returns.
This sounds like an Icelandic saga but on a much bigger scale.
The Immaculate Order is so named because because they could not be corrupted by the debased Solar emperors. The Immaculate Order maintains this spiritual purity of the Dragon-Blooded empire primarily by spreading it's philosophy and through the Wyld Hunt and individually through hard, acetic training.
The Descending Hierarchy
Essence 2 Serf You live and act at your master's command
Essence 3 Greater Serf You have lived long enough to gain some experience. A fraction of the absolute terror you experience has started to be replaced by an inkling of ambition.
Under-breeds. Dross to be used at your master's will
Essence 4 Progeny You have attained full demonhood and are powerful enough your patron is not ashamed to recognise you as one of their offspring. They have actually addressed you by name.
Essence 5 Elder Progeny The highest most First Circle demons can aspire to. Elder Erymanthoi are captains of battle lines. Other Elder First Circle demons occupy similar positions.
Essence 6 Demon Lord You have crossed the watershed. You are either a novice Second Circle demon or a First Circle demon who has had the extraordinary luck to achieve a rank belonging to your betters. Such Progeny are still under the heel of their master but are given lofty positions such as advisor or personal chamberlain. Some have been mystically transformed to assume the powers (and responsibilities) of Second Circle demons by their master. A Demon Lord the replace might have fallen from favour or fallen afoul in dubious circumstances. If you are a true Second Circle demon you have just entered a world of devious and unforgiving politics. At this level you are no longer ordered to assassinate someone. You get someone to do it for you.
Possible sources of inspiration for demon lore: the world of Cthulhu and H.P.Lovecraft; Hellboy.
This didn't turn out in it's nice and neat new post layout due to the incompetence of the people who wrote the program for putting up blogs. They can't even make it handle a simple table as if using computers wasn't annoying enough as it is. I have total contempt for everyone who writes computer programs are they are all incompetent. Didn't it occur to them to make the editing page match the format of the page presented of the website? Obviously not. What the fuck do they pay you for?
Essence 3 Greater Serf You have lived long enough to gain some experience. A fraction of the absolute terror you experience has started to be replaced by an inkling of ambition.
Under-breeds. Dross to be used at your master's will
Essence 4 Progeny You have attained full demonhood and are powerful enough your patron is not ashamed to recognise you as one of their offspring. They have actually addressed you by name.
Essence 5 Elder Progeny The highest most First Circle demons can aspire to. Elder Erymanthoi are captains of battle lines. Other Elder First Circle demons occupy similar positions.
Essence 6 Demon Lord You have crossed the watershed. You are either a novice Second Circle demon or a First Circle demon who has had the extraordinary luck to achieve a rank belonging to your betters. Such Progeny are still under the heel of their master but are given lofty positions such as advisor or personal chamberlain. Some have been mystically transformed to assume the powers (and responsibilities) of Second Circle demons by their master. A Demon Lord the replace might have fallen from favour or fallen afoul in dubious circumstances. If you are a true Second Circle demon you have just entered a world of devious and unforgiving politics. At this level you are no longer ordered to assassinate someone. You get someone to do it for you.
Possible sources of inspiration for demon lore: the world of Cthulhu and H.P.Lovecraft; Hellboy.
This didn't turn out in it's nice and neat new post layout due to the incompetence of the people who wrote the program for putting up blogs. They can't even make it handle a simple table as if using computers wasn't annoying enough as it is. I have total contempt for everyone who writes computer programs are they are all incompetent. Didn't it occur to them to make the editing page match the format of the page presented of the website? Obviously not. What the fuck do they pay you for?
Gods and Essence
The motes of Essence in a god's possession are it's very life force. When a god spends motes it feels weary and when it has a full Essence pool feels lively and energetic. If a god spent all it's Essence it would no longer exist as an Essence pattern and fade away. When a god (or another spirit) does when it spends Essence is spend itself. Gods have peripheral Essence pools which they can spend with obvious effect. They can also spend Essence from their Personal Essence pool but it's not something a god does lightly. They are spending the Essence that makes up the core of their being. By spending Peripheral Essence they're also spending part of themselves but less important outer layers that can be more easily spent and recovered. Worship is so important to gods because people are spending their valuable motes dedicated to the god itself so that Essence becomes part of the god's form. For every day of dedicated worship to the god they recover a number of motes equal to the Magnitude of the group praying to them. This is why Creation often holds day-long festivals. If a group taking part in dedicated worship has an Essence greater than one multiply it's magnitude by their Essence. Enlightened human priests are often separated into different castes according to their spiritual advancement. Such priests spend virtually every day of their lives in devotion and directing the worship of the masses.
Demons often promote just enough of their servants to induce hopes of betterment to keep their underlings loyal.
Demons often promote just enough of their servants to induce hopes of betterment to keep their underlings loyal.
Dragon-Blooded Abilities
Ice- awareness, survival
Fire- Melee, resistance
Water- sail, awareness, linguistics
Earth- bureaucracy, performance, craft, martial arts, war
Wood- athletics, stealth, thrown, socialise
Fire- Melee, resistance
Water- sail, awareness, linguistics
Earth- bureaucracy, performance, craft, martial arts, war
Wood- athletics, stealth, thrown, socialise
Saturday, 2 July 2011
Dragon-Blooded and the Immaculate Order
The Dragon-Blooded know that they cannot be greater than the Solars. Although by the time of their decline they were no longer recognisable as the Lawgivers the Unconquered Sun gave his blessing to. The 'Immaculate Dragons' were the first to discover the possibility that Terrestrial Exalted could practice Celestial martial arts and each created one of the Five Glorious Dragon styles based on their animas. A tradition that Immaculate Monks maintain to this day.
The Immaculate Philosophy is the greatest cultural and philosophical achievement of the Dragon-Blooded for it gives them a way to control Essence in the same fashion as Celestial Exalted albeit within the purview of martial arts alone. To learn it the student must internalise and understand the writings on the sacred scrolls of the Immaculate Order, written by the Immaculate Dragons themselves, after climbing to the Order's temple on the slopes of the Heavenly Mountain and while undergoing years of punishing training to help them comprehend their lessons. One of the monks' favourite exercises is making their pupils climb all the way down the slopes to the base of the mountain and collect water to bring all the way back up again.
The original purpose of the Solar Exalted had become long lost and their great war against the Primordials little more than myth by the time the Usurpation came. The age of the Lawgivers had long past. By then the Solars were all-powerful dictators, rulers of dark empires. The Immaculate personification of the Solars as evil spirits was to their best knowledge the truth. They could no longer be recognised as Solars but little more than evil demonic and omnipotent spirits. Generations of absolute power and obedience corrupted them so they thought nothing of making pacts with the most vile of demons. In fact by this time they found they had more in common with the hate-twisted Yozis than their distant patron.
The First Age can be divided into three broad sections. The Solars' victory over the Primordials and their consolidation of power over mankind, dubbed Lawgivers after receiving the Mandate from Heaven. The exploration of their true potential; this is when the Celestial Incarnae withdrew their attention from their Chosen and the Great Curse started to make itself known. The terrible zenith of their power and the nadir of the rule of mankind; the Solars had become twisted by their unspeakable, inhuman desire for glory. The Lunars were largely unable to stop them, tormented by their own inner natures. Some became willing allies of the Sun Children other had fallen in with the very people they were made to defend Creation against- the Fair Folk. Who cares what's happening in Creation when you can have everything you want in the Wyld. The Lunars' individualism had become narcissism, they cared nothing over what happened in Creation but abused their power to Shape the Wyld to satisfy every inhuman lust they could think of, often only venturing out to sate their whims with the bodies and souls of real people. Luna lost sight of her children being hardly able to distinguish them from the Fair Folk. Other more conscientious Lunars became throughly disillusioned with mankind and escaped the pervading corruption by living among kingdoms of animals, but still they had to wrestle with their own tainted desires.
Learning the ways of the Immaculate Order is to remove yourself from the constraints of your Terrestrial nature and try to attain godhood. Monks who have been initiated into the Order leave their old lives behind and take on a new name. Learning to use Celestial Essence is only the first step on the path.
The Immaculate Philosophy is the greatest cultural and philosophical achievement of the Dragon-Blooded for it gives them a way to control Essence in the same fashion as Celestial Exalted albeit within the purview of martial arts alone. To learn it the student must internalise and understand the writings on the sacred scrolls of the Immaculate Order, written by the Immaculate Dragons themselves, after climbing to the Order's temple on the slopes of the Heavenly Mountain and while undergoing years of punishing training to help them comprehend their lessons. One of the monks' favourite exercises is making their pupils climb all the way down the slopes to the base of the mountain and collect water to bring all the way back up again.
The original purpose of the Solar Exalted had become long lost and their great war against the Primordials little more than myth by the time the Usurpation came. The age of the Lawgivers had long past. By then the Solars were all-powerful dictators, rulers of dark empires. The Immaculate personification of the Solars as evil spirits was to their best knowledge the truth. They could no longer be recognised as Solars but little more than evil demonic and omnipotent spirits. Generations of absolute power and obedience corrupted them so they thought nothing of making pacts with the most vile of demons. In fact by this time they found they had more in common with the hate-twisted Yozis than their distant patron.
The First Age can be divided into three broad sections. The Solars' victory over the Primordials and their consolidation of power over mankind, dubbed Lawgivers after receiving the Mandate from Heaven. The exploration of their true potential; this is when the Celestial Incarnae withdrew their attention from their Chosen and the Great Curse started to make itself known. The terrible zenith of their power and the nadir of the rule of mankind; the Solars had become twisted by their unspeakable, inhuman desire for glory. The Lunars were largely unable to stop them, tormented by their own inner natures. Some became willing allies of the Sun Children other had fallen in with the very people they were made to defend Creation against- the Fair Folk. Who cares what's happening in Creation when you can have everything you want in the Wyld. The Lunars' individualism had become narcissism, they cared nothing over what happened in Creation but abused their power to Shape the Wyld to satisfy every inhuman lust they could think of, often only venturing out to sate their whims with the bodies and souls of real people. Luna lost sight of her children being hardly able to distinguish them from the Fair Folk. Other more conscientious Lunars became throughly disillusioned with mankind and escaped the pervading corruption by living among kingdoms of animals, but still they had to wrestle with their own tainted desires.
Learning the ways of the Immaculate Order is to remove yourself from the constraints of your Terrestrial nature and try to attain godhood. Monks who have been initiated into the Order leave their old lives behind and take on a new name. Learning to use Celestial Essence is only the first step on the path.
Friday, 1 July 2011
Denied and Forsaken Widow Style
No one with a Compassion of more than two is capable of learning this style as the are unable to perform the vilest acts of pitiless cruelty that this style requires.
Obedient ________ Torment
What greater mastery of the art of pain is there than inflicting the most excruciating agony on your opponent and having them beg for more.
The master of this art has no mercy. Any act of compassion is just a pretence to make their victim's subsequent torment all the more heartless. The Forsaken Widow often enjoys pretending be compassionate and motherly perhaps revelling in the sheer strangeness of the emotions she's imitating. Some of her followers seem to enjoy being tormented.
An unfortunate target of this Charm wants to be hurt. They'll fawn and scape on the floor for their mistress' attention even though they receive only the lowest form of it.
Graceless Chattel Abasement
Those far gone in Widow's service will perform any act on themselves or others no matter how grotesque at her command to receive their punishment.
The wretched subjects of this Charm can be made to perform acts that contradict their Virtues.
The Widow may chrge one of her subjects affected by Obedient ________ Torment with a task. Make a social attack. If they succeed the subject may not use their affected Virtue to prevent them performing their task.
During that time they cannot exercise that virtue in any way to resist the Widow or use any of it's channels.
Adjuration of the Impure Psyche
The Widow may command one of her subjects to perform a task. If successful (the social attack) the subject's Motivation becomes 'do what the mistress commands' and will perform any acts no matter how abhorrent at her request.
Of course the real torment of this Charm is of the one who'd Virtues they are forced to betray. The Denied and Forsaken Widow enjoys forcing those around her to perform acts they find abhorrent but cannot stop themselves.
Psyche Evicerating Dominatrix
By torturing her unfortunate supplicant in ways she feels particularly significant (or enjoyable) from outright physical abuse to forcing a man watching his loved ones being tortured to a barrage of well-worded insults and malicious teasing in public, she condenses a whole day of denying someone Willpower recovery into a single scene. If someone's will is broken through this Charm she replaces their Motivation with a Servitude effect to obey her. This Servitude effect remains as long as they do not recover their Willpower back to it's full rating.
A mistress' dignity is expressed through her aloofness to those she torments. She embodies something that they desperately desire and are unable to take.
Whenever the Widow offers the target something that appeals to one of their Intimacies, dominant Virtues or their Motivation but she can deny them without the use of direct physical force she savours their torment. Direct physical force doesn't rule out using physical means. She could writhe and dance erotically in fine night attire in front of a captive tied to her bed, especially if his restraints draw blood, or make suggestive comments on desires close to the heart of a courtier that they cannot respond to honestly without drawing approbium from the whole court.
The later Charms are more what I have in mind for this style. The earlier ones seem more similar to Laughing Wounds Style. The purpose of this martial art is not to make people enjoy pain in any sense. It's a very social martial art, even more so than Dreaming Pearl Courtesan Style. It focuses on social interaction rather than only drawing on it as a basis for Charms used in combat. Actual physical violence is something used as part of the style rather than something the style is used for. The character herself is very socially based. I originally thought of her as a Midnight Caste but then the Shadow (Day) Caste might offer her more room to use her powers. I'm not sure about how their anima banner affects obvious Charms though.
Obedient ________ Torment
What greater mastery of the art of pain is there than inflicting the most excruciating agony on your opponent and having them beg for more.
The master of this art has no mercy. Any act of compassion is just a pretence to make their victim's subsequent torment all the more heartless. The Forsaken Widow often enjoys pretending be compassionate and motherly perhaps revelling in the sheer strangeness of the emotions she's imitating. Some of her followers seem to enjoy being tormented.
An unfortunate target of this Charm wants to be hurt. They'll fawn and scape on the floor for their mistress' attention even though they receive only the lowest form of it.
Graceless Chattel Abasement
Those far gone in Widow's service will perform any act on themselves or others no matter how grotesque at her command to receive their punishment.
The wretched subjects of this Charm can be made to perform acts that contradict their Virtues.
The Widow may chrge one of her subjects affected by Obedient ________ Torment with a task. Make a social attack. If they succeed the subject may not use their affected Virtue to prevent them performing their task.
During that time they cannot exercise that virtue in any way to resist the Widow or use any of it's channels.
Adjuration of the Impure Psyche
The Widow may command one of her subjects to perform a task. If successful (the social attack) the subject's Motivation becomes 'do what the mistress commands' and will perform any acts no matter how abhorrent at her request.
Of course the real torment of this Charm is of the one who'd Virtues they are forced to betray. The Denied and Forsaken Widow enjoys forcing those around her to perform acts they find abhorrent but cannot stop themselves.
Psyche Evicerating Dominatrix
By torturing her unfortunate supplicant in ways she feels particularly significant (or enjoyable) from outright physical abuse to forcing a man watching his loved ones being tortured to a barrage of well-worded insults and malicious teasing in public, she condenses a whole day of denying someone Willpower recovery into a single scene. If someone's will is broken through this Charm she replaces their Motivation with a Servitude effect to obey her. This Servitude effect remains as long as they do not recover their Willpower back to it's full rating.
A mistress' dignity is expressed through her aloofness to those she torments. She embodies something that they desperately desire and are unable to take.
Whenever the Widow offers the target something that appeals to one of their Intimacies, dominant Virtues or their Motivation but she can deny them without the use of direct physical force she savours their torment. Direct physical force doesn't rule out using physical means. She could writhe and dance erotically in fine night attire in front of a captive tied to her bed, especially if his restraints draw blood, or make suggestive comments on desires close to the heart of a courtier that they cannot respond to honestly without drawing approbium from the whole court.
The later Charms are more what I have in mind for this style. The earlier ones seem more similar to Laughing Wounds Style. The purpose of this martial art is not to make people enjoy pain in any sense. It's a very social martial art, even more so than Dreaming Pearl Courtesan Style. It focuses on social interaction rather than only drawing on it as a basis for Charms used in combat. Actual physical violence is something used as part of the style rather than something the style is used for. The character herself is very socially based. I originally thought of her as a Midnight Caste but then the Shadow (Day) Caste might offer her more room to use her powers. I'm not sure about how their anima banner affects obvious Charms though.
In a very fundamental way Lunars are everything the Fair Folk are not. They have the potential for true creativity and innovation. These qualities are essential for them to live in the Wyld and are the basis for which the Lunar Exaltation choses it's host. In a way they are everything the Fair Folk pretend to be. Although in the Wyld what's 'pretend' is real.
An example of the mad Wyld spawned landscapes you find in the far east are the toxic jungles of Nausicaa.
Once again I disagree with the game canon on this. The Fair Folk should be capable of genuine creativity not merely restricted to copying. They live in a world where anything's possible. Why shoul they be confined to copying, especially when they lived in a time when there was nothing to copy.
An example of the mad Wyld spawned landscapes you find in the far east are the toxic jungles of Nausicaa.
Once again I disagree with the game canon on this. The Fair Folk should be capable of genuine creativity not merely restricted to copying. They live in a world where anything's possible. Why shoul they be confined to copying, especially when they lived in a time when there was nothing to copy.
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