[Exalted Past] Rule Changes

Additions

• Benefits of a Circle
• Character Generation: Unwanted Dots
• Getting Rid of Specialties
• Hardness and Touch Attacks
• Naval Combat Ability Ceiling

Changes

• Armor Soak and Hardness Changes
• Charm Activation and Patterning
• Dangers of Virtues Higher than 3
• Defensive Charm Updates
• Exp and Training Time
• Charm: Hauberk-Lightening Gesture
• Intimacy vs. Motivation
• Stunts: Essence Regain

Clarification

• Charm: Hauberk-Lightening Gesture
• Charm: Whirlwind Armor-Donning Prana
• Dice Pools, Dice Adders, and Automatic Successes
• Stunts: and Perfection

Reprints and Summaries

• Fate of Solar and Dragon-Blooded Unions

Benefits of a Circle

All the senses granted by the bonds of a circle are vague impressions. They are not clear and defined data; instead they are more intuitive feelings than measurable facts.

• When Circle mate are involved in coordinated attacks in battle they gain +1 automatic success to the Coordination roll for the maneuver. This is not applicable in Mass Combat.
• When Circle mates are involved in teamwork (and only Teamwork) the team work dice pool is increased by 1 die from synergy. This bonus is fixed and does not increase when more Circlemates gets involved. This bonus die is considered bonus die from Charms.
• Circle mate can reflexively sense the rough direction and rough distance (very far, far, somewhat far, fairly distant, close, very close, immediate vicinity, etc.) of their circle mates. These feelings are not constantly and they must concentrate, though reflexively, to sense them.
• Circle mate automatically sense when a circle mate is under extreme mental or physical duress. They also know which circle mate is happening to and the nature of the disturbance (physical or mental). Things such as dying, torture, great emotional upheaval, but not limit breaking, all fall under this category.

Keep in mind the Sworn Brotherhood of the Dragon-Blooded gain these bonuses plus the normal bonuses gained as part of their Sorcerous Bond.

Charm Activation and Patterning

I am changing the way Charm Costs work.

When you activate a Charm the first time you pay the full amount. To activate the same charm against or as a part of a Flurry has significant discount after the initial activation.

Any subsequent activation of the exact same Charm, with all optional costs and bonuses being the same, only cost 1 mote for each additional activation, or the full activation cost – whichever is cheaper.

Should the subsequent activation be in anyway different it is considered the new initial activation and cost resets.

This effect I call Patterning. It makes flurries more common and feasible. Instead of paying 5x5 = 25 motes, you actually pay only 5+1+1+1+1 = 9.

Example: Balan activates his Death Blossom Combo which includes Excellency and Magic Flurry. So he chooses to spent 10 motes for 5 attacks as the Magic Flurry Charm. On his 1^st attack he chose to spent 5 motes for 5 added dice, he missed. On his 2^nd attack he chose to repeat the attack so he pays only 1 mote for +5 dice on his 2^nd attack. He missed so he decide for his 3^rd he needs higher dice pool, so he adds 7 dice, since he change the bonus of the charm he has to pay the full price of 7 motes for the 3^rd attack, he hit. The opponent is near death. So for his 4^th attack he thought he would hit normally since the opponent is at -4, so he chooses to add no bonus dice, costing 0, and he missed. For his last attack he thought he minds well finish it. So he adds 5 more dice. However since he changed his bonus on the 4^th attack yet again (from +7 to +0) he lost the pattern, so he would have to pay 5 motes full price again.

This made his Death Blossom Combo a total of 28 instead of the normal 32, for a grand total saving of 4 motes. If he choose wisely and added 7 motes in the beginning, it would have only cost him 21 motes.

This rule favors total commitment for better or for worse. To accommodate this, the Essence regain for Stunts has also been lowered to half. See the “Stunts: Essence Gain” rule change.

Keep in mind this rule only accounts for actions or defense within a Flurry.

So attacked by 4 different person will cost the character 4 full cost for dodge charms. Then pattern cost of 1 mote each dodge activation if the attackers are using flurry. Should the player choose to not dodge any attack of that specific flurry sequence he losses the patterning and must start over.

Stunts: Essence Gain

With the changes to Charm cost activation within the same Tick the Essence gain from Stunts are halved.

So 1 die stunt only gives 1 mote, 2 die stunt grants 2motes, and 3 die stunts adds 3 motes.

The rules regarding Willpower, Experience points, and Virtue Channeling remain unchanged.

Exp and Training time

The game rule states you cannot start training before you pay the full amount of the Exp Costs, I say that is bad rule.

As long as you train towards something, it counts. It would simply prove fruitless if you do not eventually pay the exp for it.

However, these types of training investment can only be held for 6 month. So people can’t say, well I trained 400 hours in Melee 2495 Years ago, but now I have the exp to spent on it.

All other rules regarding training time and experience points expenditure remain unchanged.

Intimacy vs. Motivation

As it stands right now the game superimposes extreme values on Motivation. All commands that go against motivation are Unacceptable Orders.

This means a person will sacrifice their intimacies unconditionally in the face of their motivation.  E.g. the power hungry abyssal will always destroy the love of his life when faced with the alternative of abandoning his quest for power however temporary and brief.

The rule as it stands right now does not take into account severity. The slightest bend to Motivation is worth infinitely more than the most atrocious betrayal of Intimacies.

So I am changing it.

If the character is under social influence and Intimacies conflict with Motivations, he can choose to follow either as appropriate to the severity of the choices.  He is not automatically required to refuse any action that goes against his motivation.

Keep in mind this will severely weaken your character’s resolve in the face of social attacks, but I think it’s a bit more realistic than what the game has right now.

Armor Soak and Hardness Changes

The way the Current System works, as I understand it, is:

· A Child = 1 Str – 1 effective for being Child (so 0 for dmg purposes)

· With a Dull Knife +1L, minimum damage value of 1 (that is default, huge weapons like a Grimcleaver has min dmg of 4)

· The Child attacks a Knight wearing Super Heavy Plate: 12L/12B Soak

· The Knight actually is just a rich brat who bought his rank, thus has DV value of 1 [(2 Dex + 1 Dodge) /2 round down)]

Let say the Child rolled 2 Successes so he hit with 0 Threshold: 2 – 1 min success for successful attack and – 1 for the Knight’s DV.

From this point, regardless of the Soak Value of the Armor, the child will at least do 1 dice worth of damage

Exalted Core Rules Page 252: “Armor lets minimum damage through.  Players of attackers who hit you, no matter how heavy your armor, still roll their minimum damage – normally one die, two dice or their Essence in dice [In other section this is explained as capped at the weapon potential]”

So the child with Strength of 1 and a dull knife would essentially ignore 12 levels of soak to do his normal 1 dice of damage, because the knight wasn’t able to parry the attack.  A defensive act that has nothing to do with what armor he is wearing.

The Knight would suffer the exact same damage if he were wearing ANY other (non-magical) armor, from a leather jacket to super-heavy plate – since the weakest armor has a soak of 3 and only magical armor have Hardness rating.

I find that highly unrealistic.  There for I am changing it.

First thing that changes is Hardness

Hardness values are now this.  Any attack where the Damage Potential (as defined by Strength + Weapon Damage) is lower than the Hardness is ignored.  The amount of attack successes does not factor into the equation.  So no matter how successfully you overcame an opponent’s parry/dodge, as long as his Armor’s Soak value is in effect, you cannot hurt him unless your Raw Damage Potential is capable of puncturing through the Hardness of the Armor. 

So now Hardness’s function is no longer to stop minimum damage from occurring. It is now the ability to make the person wearing the armor invulnerable to low damage potential attacks. This effectively makes things like Warstriders, with their hardness of 8 to 15, nigh-invincible except against those with weapons designed for penetrating armor and/or superheavy and/or used by Strong Characters, which makes more sense.

Hardness is considered Armor Soak, so it is halved by Piercing Effects.

Note: appropriately spectacular Stuns can actually ignore Hardness value, like in “Ninja Scroll” where Jubei using his unexpected surprise to shoot the Stone Demon Guy in the Eye.  In normal combat situations he wouldn’t have hit.

The minimum damage is now this

As long as the attack overcomes Soak, i.e. the Post-Soak Damage is higher than 0, you get the highest of the following as Minimum dice rolled

Essence Stat: which is still capped at the Damage Potential (Dmg + Str).  Since Essence stat cannot give you damage that you are incapable of inflicting.

Minimum Damage of the Weapon: which is 1 unless weapon has the “Overwhelming” attribute and In the latter case use the appropriate value.

Character Creation: Unwanted Dots

If during creature there were unwanted dots that is not covered by Merit and Flaws already (such as Background Dots) then the dots can be transferred over at the rate of 1 for 1 experience points after the character is finished.

These experience points are then immediately allocated without training time. The training time is assumed to have been completed during the portions of the character’s life before the game started.

Dangers of Virtues Higher than 3

Exalted 2^nd Edition Core Rule Book – P. 102

A high Virtue score signifies passionate commitment to certain emotions and behaviors. A character with high rating in a Virtue can find himself unable to resist following his heart, even when doing so is unwise.

A character with a Virtue of 3 or higher must roll her Virtue rating in a situation where she wishes to act against the Virtue’s dictates. Any successes on the roll compels her to either adhere to her Virtue or spend a point of temporary Willpower to override her emotions and act freely for the scene. A Solar Exalt who suppresses his primary Virtue (associated with her Virtue Flaw) automatically add a point to his Limit. Suppressing other Virtues does not add to the Exalt’s Limit.

Example: Elias’s primary Virtue is Compassion, with a rating of 3. He’s trying to infiltrate the Realm when he sees an old woman being shoved and manhandled by two city guards. The Storyteller asks Phyllis, Elias’s player, for his reaction, and she states Elias will simply look away and keep walking. The Storyteller informs her that this denies Elias’s Compassion and that she must make a Compassion roll for him not to intervene. Phyllis rolls a 1, a 3 and a 10—two successes. The Storyteller says Elias must do something unless Phyllis spends a point of temporary Willpower. Phyllis grits her teeth, marks off a point of temporary Willpower and increases Elias’ Limit by one.

Rule Changes

I am changing the rule so that the character can roll a contested roll with the balancing virtue. If the Balancing virtue has higher number of successes than the Virtue in question then the character must act as the balancing virtue dictates.

If they both have the same number of successes the character may take the balancing route.

This override does not gain limit point since it is not a forceful override of one’s nature. It is also optional the character can simply chose to indulge his strong passions and act out recklessly instead of taking his inner voice into consideration.

Regardless of which Virtue won, the character can spent 1 Willpower point to override it. Doing so gains limit accordingly to standard rules – even if the Balancing Virtue won and is not the Primary Virtue.

 

For reference here are some of the Examples given by the Core Rule Book

Compassion

Compassion Aids in: Protecting or aiding the sick, innocent or oppressed. Fighting for justice. Bringing aid to the needy. Fighting for or engaging in romantic love.

Characters Must Fail a Compassion Check to: Slay a defeated foe. Ignore the pleas of the oppressed or impoverished. Ignore the powerful abusing the helpless. Publicly humiliate a friend or lover.

Conviction

Conviction Aids in: Withstanding hardship and torture. Making decisions where all options are horrific. Committing atrocities to accomplish a goal. Regaining Willpower.

Characters Must Fail a Conviction Check to: Abandon a committed cause. Give up in the face of hardship or disease. Abandon companions in their time of need.

Temperance

Temperance Aids in: Resisting temptation. Holding your temper when taunted or struck. Holding your tongue when intoxicated. Overcoming the effects of illusions, drugs, poisons and mind control.

Characters Must Fail a Temperance Roll to: Act dishonestly or show bias in a matter of importance. Overindulge in food or intoxicants. Act on thoughtless impulse. Break a sworn oath.

Valor

Valor Aids in: Heroism in battle. Withstanding magically created terror. Performing feats of daring and taking risks.

Characters Must Fail a Valor Roll to: Turn down a duel of honor or a call to single combat. Flee a battle. Receive an insult without seeking retribution. Turn down a dare or challenge.

Biggs Darklighter Mnemon and Wedge Antilles Tepet

It seems Biggs and Wedge has been used already.  Found them under the Wyld Hunt entry.

Biggs Darklighter Mnemon – Death at the hands of the Deceiver Anathema Nuri on Day 13 of Descending Wood, in Year 6 of the Fiery Ascend (Day 25,406) – 59/12/23, as witnessed by Prominent Willow, a Dryad in Serenity Valley.

Wedge Antilles Tepet - Death at the hands of the Forsaken Anathema Balan on Day 12 of Descending Wood, in Year 6 of the Fiery Ascend (Day 25,406) – 59/12/23, as witnessed by Prominent Willow, a Dryad in Serenity Valley.

Neo-Rathessians

Here are the pictures of the Neo-Rathessians costumes.  Ignore the people wearing the cloth and focus on the fashion.

Rathessian Acolyte

Rathessian Priest

Rathessian High-Priest

Rathessian Adeptus Astartes

 

The Rathessian Theater Badge (Artifact •)
 

The Rathess Theater badge is given to all Astartes who have made the required pilgrimage to the Holy City. It is a badge of orichalcum and crystal suspended via a thick gold chain. The crystal face of the badge is a Dragon-Kings Crystal Book containing the holy scripture of the Unconquered Sun.

Aside from signifying the great honor and achievement for the bearer each badge is paws crafted by the Mice of the Sun and Blessed by Arch-Priestess Hastha-sth personally. It perfect construction and holy origin allows it to function as perpetual walk-away and forms an extremely potent ward against all creatures of darkness. The ward is equivalent to a 3 die ward, including all its bonuses and penalties.

Dicer 1.9.3.2

Added 1.9.3.2 to http://workspace.office.live.com/

In case you guys want the Rapid Share Link: Link

It is under “RPG - Exalted Past” Project Folder, and “Tools” Sub-folder.

This version added the Statistic tracking ability.  Now all die rolls rolled from WW Character Page will be kept track off.

It keeps track of total rolls, number of successes achieved, and how often each number is rolled (1-10).

Character files have also been updated to save the data.  In effect each character’s “Rate of Success” is kept track of separately.  So be-sure to save the character after each session to ensure the data is accurate.

To look at the stats just use the new “About” Dialogue.  The button is added to the Tool Strip on top.  It is the Windows Information Icon (Blue Circle with an “!” in the center).

The ComboBox let you select which stats you want to see.

The Clear Button Clear the Currently Selected Data, Resetting it to 0. 

Incase you guys missed it, I added the “Math:” keyword in 1.9.3.0.  The “Temp Holder” tab has the text box that is effectively an calculator.  All you have to do is type in a math expression.

More information can be found on the 1.9.3.0 Post

The 1.9.3.2 Rar file contains the Exalted Template that uses the new Math: keyword if you guys want to see an example of how it is used.  Just look in “Personal” and “Peripheral Essence Pool”.

Dicer 1.9.3.0

Added the new version to both Office Workspace and Rapidshare.

Added the new “Math: “ Keyword for Specialties which allows parsing of math expressions.

You will need the 2 dll that is included in the rar.

The way the “Math:” keyword work is

In the Temp Holder Page, when you load a character, will be a list of Value Entries on the character sheet.

Clicking on the list will add it to the text box on top in the form of

@~|VariableName@~|

It adds to where the cursor is.

You can use it to form the math expression then you can copy the whole line, including the “Math: “ Part, and paste it in a specialty slot in the skill entries.

It is still a bit clunky and prone to errors, but it should make you guys life a little easier.

Dicer 1.9.2.2

Uploaded the new Dicer to the Tools Folder of the Office Space and also uploaded it to RapidShare

http://rapidshare.com/files/260382474/Dicer__Visual_Basic__1.9.2.2.rar.html
MD5: 9D753A29FA3F76A5F9D88369F4AD8A20

 

The only thing I added (from 1.9.2.1) is a Calculator Function at the “Temp Holder” Tab of the program.

Haven’t decided on if I want to revamp the whole character sheet to use Evaluated Math Expressions instead of the clunky Func Format I am currently using yet.  We’ll see.

If I decide to do it that way the character sheets will most likely be redone. 

It will let you directly enter math formulas with Variables (probably enclosed in special characters, like “variable name” or @variable name@).  This would solve the annoying limitation on DV calculation and Essence calculation of the current program.

Personal Essence: @Essence Stat@ * 5 + @Virtue: Compassion@ + @Virtue: Conviction@ + @Willpower@ * 2

Which is far more versatile, but it will take up a lot of time.  So I probably won’t bother.

Emem Adjoa

Prounced: E-mem Ad-joa

Emem Adjoa is Queen Azula’s Second in Command and the current leader of the Brides of Ahlat. She took over Azula’s old position when she was wed to Balan.

Emem Adjoa is a Wood Aspect Dragon-Blooded in her late 20s. As an native of Harborhead Emem Adjoa can trace her lineage to over 20 generations of Warriors.

Emem Adjoa’s is born from an love affair between her mother and an young realm officer and was Exalted when she turned 14. Her father tried to claim her but she was already marked for the Bull God. The Horned Priest of the Bull God claimed her immediately after her Second Breath and anointed her into the harsh and ruthless life as a Chosen Bride of Ahlat.

While she stricken from all normal bonds of kin Emem Adjoa found kinship of spirit amongst her sisters. Even when some would consider it a tragedy to be separated from her family at such an young age she thought it the greatest honor she could ever receive.

Aftermath of Chiaroscuro

Before the Battle of the Veldt of Fire and Grief Chiaroscuro had a population of around 1,000,000 residents and around another 100,000 to 200,000 visitors/trade caravans in any given season.

The Battle of the Veldt of Fire and Grief

The Battle that took place on the Veldt of Fire and Grief eradicated roughly 50,000 of Chiaroscuro's finest.  Including a sizable chunk of their nobility.  The battle took place  about a month after player’s departure from Harborhead and was handled by Bride of Ahlat.

Armed with their new weapons the 5000 Brides and about 2000 Varangian Irregulars managed to completely eradicate an Calvary army 10x their number.  They somehow achieved completely strategic surprise and armed with the newly imported Perfected Boots the Brides slaughtered the straddlers.

By the time the Sun reach the Zenith it was over.  It took only about 3 hours to slaughter 50,000 men and horses.  Only ~4000 Delzahn riders survived and retreated to Chiaroscuro where they meet Dance and the Royal Company waiting.  Those who surrendered were taken as slaves those who did not were allowed the option of turning over their weapons and mounts and be exiled, or be executed.  Many chose the later.

As per the rights and laws of Harborhead, the properties and families of the 50,000 who died in combat were claimed by the Brides of Ahlat.  The 2000 Varangian Irregulars were mainly wiped out and those who survived were handsomely rewarded with lands from those who deserted Chiaroscuro.

The Veldt of Fire and Grief is now Creation’s newest Shadowland, only 30 miles across but growly slowly.

The Conquest of Chiaroscuro

Respecting the bravery and honor of men who would chose death rather than submission Dace allowed the City 2 days (before the arrival of Azula) to surrender.  Those who remain and fight will be given very little leniency.

Hardened by the complete support of the Realm Legion the Tri-khan reorganized his army to defend Chiaroscuro to the death.  He however loves his people and commanded those who are not involved in the war effort to vacate the city. 

What followed is 3 days of madness as those who can get out to get out.  The rich fled from Chiaroscuro onboard sea routes like rats.  The poor escaped from the Sewers and at night.  Of these Dance gave them no trouble.  By Sunrise of the 4th day, only 450,000 people remained.  The 40,000 Delzahn Riders are supported by 50,000 Garrison troops and another 60,000 citizen volunteers stood before one of the Finest Solar General of the 3rd Age and his 40,000 troops. 

In the center of the Chiaroscuro Formation is the Dragon-Blood lead Garrison of the Realm – 5,000 strong, who is probably equal in military power to all the rest of Chiaroscuro combined.

Following the old customs Dance called for a battle of champions and beaten each in turn.  Unfortunately the Chiaroscuroian troops were not shaken by his display of skill and only a small number deserted.

The battle was joint.

Dance’s personal guard with Panther acting as Hero drove straight through the Chiaroscuro formation and engaged the Realm Legion while the First Commandery under the Command of the Rathessian Astartes Ochieng Chiumbo and the 4th Commandery under the personal command of Nsonowa Farai, Harborhead General of the West, engaged the flank.

Dance crushed the Realm Legions and killed all the Dragon-Blooded commanders in single combat.

Ochieng Chiumbo broke through the flanks until he met with a Lunar and was soundly defeated.  He was rescued by Dance and Panther and the Lunar cut a swath of blood and gore as he/she/it escaped into the City.  Needing to stay with the Troops Dance and Panther did not gave chase.

Nsonowa Farai captured the Tri-khan and gave him the warrior’s way out.  He claimed the Properties and families of the Tri-khan and presented the Sword of Chiaroscuro and the Tri-khan palace as gift to the Leopard Seat.

Present Day Chiaroscuro

Chiaroscuro is a Ghost city now. 

• The entire dock district has been turned into an massive slave pen.  Over 240,000 slaves were claimed by the Brides of Ahlat, and the conquer of Chiaroscuro gained another 100,000 slaves.
• Daily rides of the Harborhead Garison takes in 1,000s of slaves from neighboring communities bring in enormous wealth and resources to Harborhead.
• ~147,000 Delzahn and their supporter died in the entire campaign. ~47,000 died in the Veldt, another 60,000 died in the defense of Chiaroscuro, the rest due to disease and wounds after.  Morticians were paid handsomely to ensure they do not raise as hostile ghosts.
• ~30,000 died in the slave pens awaiting transport to their final sales point.  The guild is making massive purchases and the price is accordingly low due to oversupply.  Currently Harborheadians are trading Slaves directly for foodstuffs in anticipation of the famine soon to come.
• ~400,000 or so Chiaroscuro citizens escaped into the rest of Creation.  Majority of them are women and children of the brave who stood against the might of an Solar.  They formed individual caravans headed to Lap and Paragon.  The track is perilous as bandits and desperate folks prey upon them, and their exodus is know as The Hegira.
• ~100,000 Chiaroscaroian Drifters now roam the wilderness around Chiaroscuro slowly being weeded out by the Harborhead patrols.  These are the poor who have no means of escape and too loyal to submit to the bloody conquerors of their beloved city.  Panther was making good progress towards integrating them into Chiaroscuro till the newly created Harborhead nobility arrived.
• ~20,000 Harborheadian along with their families and staff (so total around 200,000) have arrived in the city.  To these new elites the blue pearl of the South is their to rape and pillage – both figuratively and descriptively.
• Only about ~80,000 original Chiaroscaroian Citizens remain in the city.  These are oppressed harshly by Harborheadians for being both cowards and betrayers.  Unfortunately the law prohibits them from being taken as slaves, but it doesn’t protect their life against the anger of an Harborhead Soldier.  However, measures are being taken by the Guild to preserve those who are of use and they are being convinced to work for the guild for the enormous protection such associations would bring.
• ~100,000 newcomers are camped outside the City as Nobles divide up the districts and land holdings between themselves – as per the “divine law of Ahlat.”  These peasants are the poor who came from Varangian City-States and the surrounding nations hopes for a new beginning.  They live in make shift shelters plagued with lawlessness and disease hoping for they day that they will be allowed to enter the city and claim a dwelling amongst the fable city of blue glass.

Clarification: Hauberk-Lightening Gesture

Hauberk-Lightening Gesture Charm is also not an instantaneous action.  In the Charm description it has a speed value of 3.  Meaning the Action to cast the Charm takes 3 ticks to perform.

It is also obvious and being a duration charm has a commitment cost equal to the casting cost.

So Balan normally have 1 mote committed for this Charm.  If he un-commit the Essence, for whatever reason, the armor drops next to him from Elsewhere.  This is different than Ending the Charm.

When he Ends the Charm he can then start to put the armor on from Elsewhere and the armor will appear directly on to him as he uses Armor Donning Actions.

Since the Charm is already ended he is free to use another charm – such as Whirlwind Armor-Donning Prana to put it on.

If he interrupts the Armor Donning Process it act as if the essence is un-committed directly and the left over armor pieces drops next to him.

My Modification

I modified the Charm because I didn’t like the way it works.  Now the difference is when the Charm is Ended, the Armor instantly reappears fully donned.  Meaning there is no lost in time.  The action over is still 3 seconds, and the armor appears at the end of 3 seconds, not before.  This is incase there are attacks in progress, this also prevents ending the Charm to be used as a semi-soak charm use.

This however brings into one more conflict.  I moved the armor donning time from the End of the Charm to beginning of the Charm.  So that you will have to take the same amount of time to take off the armor so you can put it in elsewhere with the spell.  The armor must be freshly worn so you can’t just default cast the charm on a suit of armor sitting around.  The armor has to be freshly taken off. 

This doesn’t change what happened last week, but I just want to make sure we are all on the same page.

Player’s Decision

It is up to you guys if you want to use the In Book Charm, or My modification.  Either is fine with me.

Clarification: Whirlwind Armor-Donning Prana

Each invocation of Whirlwind Armor-Donning Prana turns an miscellaneous action into 1 minute worth of putting armor on. This is not 1 tick = 1 minute.

So in the case of Last Week’s Session, Balan performed 4 miscellaneous actions, thus it is a total or 20 ticks/seconds not 4 seconds.

Added Some New Pictures

Sunken Luthe – One of the 6 Lost Wonders of Creation

Deandra

Adamant Sadness’ Anima

Mist of Bloody Passage – Adamant Sadness’ Bonestrider

Loathsome Osseous Shell – Necromantic Gunzusho Armor

Dicer 1.9.1.11

Uploaded Dicer 1.9.1.11 to the Workspace.

• Fixed the automatic caculation of Magnitude based on Troop Number and Health Level.  It now caculates correctly when you change any of the variables.
• Automatic import health level and dexterity to the Speed calculation in the Exalted Tools section from currently loaded character.

The Problem with Abyssals

Here is the section about Abyssal Limits from the Abyssal Book.

Abyssal Virtues

The Four Virtues are woven into Creation as tightly as the Five Elements, and the Neverborn could not sever their Chosen from that subtle quaternion. Abyssal Exalted can channel Willpower through their Virtues just like any other Exalted can, and they can find their Virtues challenged or conflicting. Still, the Black Exaltation gives deathknights a somewhat different interpretation of these fundamental concepts.

• Compassion: Like other Exalted, deathknights use Compassion to understand the thoughts and emotions of other people—something the Black Exaltation can make difficult, especially when dealing with the living. Loyal deathknights need Compassion to get along with the people they manipulate, even if it’s only to manage a pleasant smile while they ask for directions. Renegade Abyssals need Compassion to remind themselves that people matter and that they left the Deathlords’ service for a reason. Loyalist or renegade, some Abyssals consider themselves highly compassionate people. They end suffering through the gift of death.
• Conviction: The Abyssal Exalted need to believe in their cause, or some cause, anyway. Renegade or loyalist, it’s how they live with being a monster. The Deathlords ask their minions to do terrible things; Conviction helps a deathknight carry out these commands. And yet the Deathlords do not want too much Conviction in their deathknights, lest their servants value Oblivion more than obedience. Renegade Abyssals might find some other mission or ideal with which to justify their existence, serving it with all the fervor that they can.
• Temperance: Prudent self-control matters a lot for Abyssals. Like other Exalted, deathknights need to resist both temper and temptation. When your Deathlord sends you to find out what the scavenger saw in the tomb he explored, killing everyone in town in a fit of pique can make your mission harder than it needs to be. Renegades need to keep their cool too, when people they hoped to protect react with fear and anger… or to remind themselves that sometimes, the best way to care for mortals is to leave them, no matter how much you want to stay.
• Valor: Most Abyssals find this the easiest Virtue to follow. Whether loyalist or renegade, the bitter ironies of their existence fade away in battle. Deathlords, however, would prefer that their minions not be so brave as to consider defiance…

Going Rogue

A player initially chooses whether his Abyssal serves a Deathlord or not, but this situation can change during play. Throughout the course of a series, a Deathlord might be destroyed, or a character might betray his master. An unscrupulous player might even ask to play a loyal Abyssal in order to gain the superior Abyssal Command, Liege, Spies and Underworld Manse Backgrounds, then have his character promptly betray his Deathlord as soon as the game begins. Once a deathknight goes rogue, though, he loses those four Backgrounds. After all, he no longer has access to his master’s armies, manses, minions or benevolence (such as it was).

On one hand, a generous Storyteller might allow the player to replace these Backgrounds with new ones. Perhaps the rogue Abyssal managed to keep one of the soulsteel gifts he gained from his Liege (changing his Liege dots to Artifact dots), or perhaps a portion of the Deathlord’s army remained loyal to the deathknight (replacing Abyssal Command with Followers). This approach is particularly appropriate if the Storyteller engineered the betrayal for the continuation of her chronicle.

On the other hand, a strict Storyteller might simply declare the Backgrounds lost. Most renegade Abyssals start their new lives with seriously diminished resources. This approach is more appropriate if the player initiated the betrayal himself (especially if the betrayal hampers the series in some way and diminishes the fun of the other players).

Should an Abyssal choose to return to a Deathlord’s service, he does not automatically regain Abyssal Command, Liege, Spies or Underworld Manse. He must earn back these Backgrounds through play, just as he would gain any new Backgrounds.

Dark Fate

With their last spiteful gasps, the Neverborn cursed their murderers to an endless spiral of madness and betrayal. As the chosen weapons of the slain Primordials, the Abyssal Exalted no longer bear this curse. The slaves of Oblivion merely trade one burden for another, though, without even temporary insanity to excuse the atrocities their very presence inflicts upon the world. In the long term, Abyssals cannot make Creation a better place, for the unholy power of their Exaltation reaches out to poison and destroy the people they defend.

Instead of the Limit trait of the Great Curse, Abyssal characters possess a trait called Resonance. This trait tracks the displeasure of their malign masters and the accumulating force of death and destruction in their animas. Although Resonance resembles Limit in some ways, it functions quite differently in others. The most important difference is that Abyssal characters can reduce their Resonance at will… though not without cost.

Gaining Resonance

The Abyssal Exalted gain Resonance in three ways:

• Assertion of Exalted Will: A deathknight gains a point of Resonance if she spends Willpower to resist unnatural mental influence, just as other Exalted gain Limit. In asserting their sovereign will against mind-controlling influences, deathknights implicitly assert the ultimate triumph of Oblivion, and draw a bit more of the Void into themselves. Abyssal Exalted do not normally gain more than one Resonance per scene in this manner, even if the character resists unnatural mental influence more than once.
• Flawed Virtue: The Black Exaltation damages a deathknight’s soul so severely that she has difficulty using one of her Virtues. Each time her player rolls a dice pool involving that Virtue (which includes channeling Willpower through the Virtue), the character gains one point of Resonance. The forsaken Virtue need not be the character’s primary Virtue and rarely is.
• Transgressions Against the Void: The Neverborn created the Abyssal Exalted as champions of Oblivion, and they punish deathknights who act against their nihilistic crusade. (An Abyssal can gain Resonance for his sins — or maybe the taint of the Void in the Abyssal does this automatically — even in Malfeas, the deepest Wyld or any other place that might seem beyond the sight of the Neverborn.) Any deed that actively promotes or defends life counts as a transgression. In practice, Abyssals who refuse to play the part of dutiful world-killing weapons will probably gain some Resonance each scene, while those who embrace their purpose accumulate points only occasionally.

The first time in a scene that an Abyssal transgresses against his fate as a servant of Oblivion, he gains points of Resonance equal to the successes of an Essence roll. The more powerful a deathknight becomes, the more closely the Neverborn scrutinize his actions and punish offenses. This progression extends to its ultimate form in the Deathlords, who deal very carefully with their masters for fear of appropriately high-Essence punishments—such as the First and Forsaken Lion’s eternal imprisonment within his armor.

Sins of Life

Abyssal Exalted can sin against the Neverborn and the Void through inappropriate contact with the living world.

• They must not promote or defend life. Actively protecting a living being from harm is always a sin. (Fortunately the Neverborn do not consider deathknights living beings, so they can defend one another.) So is creating new life, whether by mundane conception or magical genesis. Birthing such offspring is an additional sin.
• Deathknights must never use or answer to their pre-Exaltation name, except to reject all claim to it.
• Reverence to any divine power other than the Neverborn or Oblivion is strictly banned, though some Moonshadows make an art of composing threatening prayer strips to bully local deities.
• Building or maintaining positive Intimacies with the living attracts the Neverborn’s wrath, especially when an Abyssal benevolently interacts with individuals she knew before her Exaltation. Indeed, simply living a normal, mortal life transgresses against the Abyss, unless the deathknight is doing so as a ruse or at the direct behest of a greater servant of the Neverborn.

Storytellers can use these examples to identify other liferelated sins. Keep in mind that Abyssals can atone for certain sins, explaining how their questionable actions actually serve the greater interest of Oblivion as a stunt. Doing so gives them a small margin of grace as long as their loyalty does not falter.

Sins of Death

The only thing the Neverborn punish more severely than supporting life is opposing Oblivion.

• Abyssals can torment and annihilate “normal” ghosts with impunity. Yet they may fight against nephwracks, spectres and ther servants of Oblivion only as commanded by the Neverborn or their greater servants (including Deathlords, powerful hekatonkhires and the worst chthonic horrors of the Labyrinth).
• Merely disobeying a greater servant of the Neverborn arouses their ire, to say nothing of disobeying a direct command from the deepest horrors of the Void. Unfortunately, it is hard to predict how the Neverborn will react when their servants turn on each other. The slain Primordials do not always object when their servants fight. Maybe they see the contest as winnowing out weaker minions. Maybe they just don’t notice. The Neverborn do recognize, however, that such infighting detracts from the greater war against light and life. Skirmishes between rival groups of deathknights sometimes break up the moment one or both sides manifest a Resonance warning shot. Some Deathlords even stage such skirmishes as a way of testing their masters’ stance on issues.

Atonement

Abyssals can rid themselves of Resonance without a calamitous outburst—unlike other Exalts, who cannot mitigate their own Limit. Deathknights do this by reaffirming their loyalty to the Neverborn.

Atonement involves ritual prayers begun at sundown and ending at midnight, spoken in disturbing glossolalia. Magic cannot translate these words, though would-be translators can sense the malevolence beneath the inflections. When multiple deathknights gather in penance, their voices seamlessly join in eerie, spontaneous polyphony, though they do not understand their words any more together than alone. The deathknights also flagellate themselves and engage in other self-tortures.

At the conclusion of the ritual, the Abyssal’s player attempts a prayer roll to the Neverborn (Exalted, p. 132). The difficulty decreases by one for each level of lethal damage the Abyssal inflicted on himself. The Neverborn also accept human sacrifices or the senseless destruction of irreplaceable treasures whose loss diminishes Creation. If the prayer succeeds, the deathknight feels the Whispers of the Neverborn clawing through her soul. If the penance is sincere, the deathknight loses one point of Resonance per level of self-inflicted lethal damage. In case it even needs to be said, the Neverborn cannot be fooled, and attempting to trick them is a Resonance-worthy sin.

Venting Resonance

The simplest way for an Abyssal to reduce Resonance, however, is to suffer the punishment of the Neverborn. A deathknight can do so at any time with a reflexive Essence roll. Each success spends one Resonance point on black miracles such as Blight, Branding, Conduit or Stigmata. (Obviously, a player cannot spend more points than the character has accumulated.) Failing the roll, however, means the character suffers a Resonance effect with severity equal to the character’s Essence but gains another point of Resonance rather than losing any.

Although the character has no say in how or when a Resonance eruption occurs, his player spends these points and chooses their manifestation. The Storyteller can veto choices that don’t impose any actual drawbacks for the character or situation. Resonance effects are generally unpleasant enough, however, to make the selection an exercise in picking one’s poison. In addition, whenever a transgression raises a deathknight’s Resonance to 10+, the Storyteller spends 10 points on an eruption without needing a roll, choosing the most cruelly appropriate punishment(s) for the Exalt’s recent sins.

Whether under player or Storyteller control, a Resonance eruption cannot spend more points on Blight or Branding than the Abyssal’s Essence rating. A Resonance burst cannot allocate more Resonance on Conduit than the higher of the character’s Essence or Whispers. Stigmata is not limited in this way, so Abyssals who fail to provide loved ones or other buffers in the path of the Neverborn’s wrath run the risk of suffering terrible wounds if they displease their gods. A Resonance eruption can divide points among multiple effects, though, as long as each effect provides a disadvantage.

The Resonance effects listed here are cumulative, so spending three Resonance points on Stigmata makes all Essence peripheral for a scene and inflicts three levels of damage on the character. If the character already suffers from a particular Resonance effect, the same type of effect stacks to increase severity, resetting the duration from that point onward. The Storyteller can extrapolate higher-level Resonance effects for each of these categories to scourge wayward Deathlords or powerful Abyssals.

Resonance Eruptions Made Easy

Step One: Player Controlled: Roll Essence. Count successes. Storyteller Controlled: Skip this step.

Step Two: Player Controlled: Compare successes to current Resonance points. Use lowest number. Storyteller Controlled: The number is automatically 10.

Step Three: Player Controlled: The player allocates the determined number of Resonance points among Blight, Branding, Conduit or Stigmata. Up to (Essence) points of Resonance may be spent on Blight or Branding. Up to (greater of Essence or Whispers) can be spent on Conduit. Stigmata has no limit. The Storyteller may veto any part of this selection that confers no real drawback, requiring reallocation of points until he approves the selection. Storyteller Controlled: The Storyteller allocates spent Resonance among effects as described.

Step Four: Player and Storyteller Controlled: The selected effects occur immediately, including all lesser effects associated with spending fewer Resonance points on each type of eruption.

 

Blight

Any of these effects might occur as the power of Oblivion streams through the Abyssal into Creation:

1 Resonance

One natural animal toward which the Abyssal feels positively dies wherever it is, cut down by its brush with the Oblivion-tainted deathknight. The method of execution varies, but is always painful and rarely mistaken for natural causes. If no such target exists, this particular effect doesn’t apply, although other pertinent Blight effects resolve normally.

For the rest of the day, the Abyssal’s presence also puts out all natural fires of candle size or smaller and wilts natural vegetation. This effect has a radius in yards equal to the character’s Essence. Seeds are sterilized; cut flowers wilt. Plants larger than the Abyssal survive, but their foliage does not. Any recognizable, personal symbols of gods within the radius darken with a patina of soot, tarnish or mildew.

Besides being unsettling and revealing the character as a supernatural being, this effect makes it easier to follow a deathknight through environments containing plant-life. The effect imposes a -2 internal penalty to evade trackers (or -4 through forests, fertile grasslands or similarly dense vegetation).

2 Resonance

The zone of destruction extends to (Essence x 10) yards. In addition, it puts out natural fires up to torch size, freezes standing water, spoils all food in the area and twists divine symbols into scrap. Together, these effects double the penalties to evade trackers through appropriate terrain. Natural animals exposed to the energies may develop a gruesome wasting sickness. (Check for leprosy as per p. 351 of Exalted, with a Virulence equal to the Abyssal’s Essence.) Thankfully, this disease is not contagious.

3 Resonance

One mortal the Abyssal cares about dies. Mortals who share a reciprocal Intimacy with the deathknight are the most-favored target. Next come mortals who do not return the Abyssal’s Intimacy to them, followed by mortals whom the deathknight merely likes a bit, if only because he finds them useful.

The Abyssal’s zone of entropy—still (Essence x 10) yards—puts out natural fires smaller than a bonfire, burns divine symbols to cinders or slag and instantly kills natural animals of mouse size or smaller, carving a swath of dead insects and vermin. The energy also terminates all pregnancies and eggs, though miscarriages might not occur until days later. Mirrors that catch the Abyssal’s reflection crack.

4 Resonance

The Abyssal’s zone of destruction extends to (Essence x 100) yards, quenching all natural fires. The deathknight suffers a -4 internal penalty to evade tracking through barren terrain and automatically fails to evade trackers through areas with any vegetation.

The weather around the Resonance epicenter grows unnaturally turbulent, with dense storm clouds, chill gales and sporadic rain that smells faintly of rot, blood or ash. Mushrooms and mildew grow wherever this rain collects, decreasing the output of farmland by half for the coming year. The clouds extend over a radius in miles equal to the Abyssal’s Essence, dissipating one day later.

5 Resonance

The aforementioned zone of entropy lasts for a number of days equal to the Abyssal’s Essence, traveling with the Abyssal wherever she goes. Furthermore, mortals who come within (Essence x 10) yards of the Abyssal suffer one level of lethal damage per scene, causing them to bleed a thin trickle from the eyes, ears and mouth. These unfortunates also suffer a lingering -1 wound penalty while in the area from the agony of the Abyssal’s malignant presence.

A shadowland with a radius of (Essence x 10) yards opens around the Abyssal at the moment of Resonance eruption, halting any nocturnal travel through Creation until morning. Its radius contracts by 10 yards per day until it closes. While it lasts, it serves as a beachhead for hungry ghosts and spectres to rampage into the stormwracked Creation. Sensors in the Realm Defense Grid as well as instruments in the Bureaus of Seasons and Fate register such incursions of Abyssal Essence into Creation, though Yu-Shan lacks the resources to follow up on every incident.

 

Branding

1 Resonance

The Abyssal’s mien assumes any number of minor spectral qualities for a scene, such as an inhuman rasping voice, glowing red eyes, deathly cold skin, audibly creaking bones or a noticeable scent of decay. The unnerving effect reveals the Exalt as a supernatural being and imposes a -2 internal penalty to all disguise-based Larceny rolls, Stealth rolls and social rolls not based on intimidation.

2 Resonance

Spectral effects last for a full day and can manifest anywhere within (Essence x 100) yards. While unnerving, these effects have no real power to affect the world. Typical effects include animating people’s shadows as monstrous phantasms, creating chill winds that follow in the character’s wake or mirrors showing no living being’s reflection. Relevant internal penalties increase to a value equal to the character’s Essence.

3 Resonance

For one day, the Abyssal’s unnatural presence upsets all natural animals within (Essence x 100) yards. Wild animals flee from the character and attack anyone who prevents them from doing so. Handlers can keep domesticated animals from bolting with a (Charisma + [Ride or Survival]) roll—Ride for mounts, Survival for other animals—at a difficulty equal to the deathknight’s Essence. Friendly animals are not exempt from this panic. The disturbance makes the character much easier to follow, applying spectral-effect internal penalties to evade tracking.

4 Resonance

For one day, mortals find the Exalt’s presence unbearable. In this time, mortals must spend one Willpower per scene of interaction not to instantly develop an Intimacy of hatred and/or fear toward the Abyssal. Only those with existing positive Intimacies toward the character automatically resist this aversion, but each scene of interaction counts as a scene of weakening such Intimacies, regardless of what the deathknight does.

5 Resonance

The preceding Branding effects follow the character for a number of days equal to his Essence.

 

Conduit

1 Resonance

The Abyssal forfeits one Intimacy that the Neverborn find objectionable. He remembers the severed attachment clinically like a half-forgotten dream, unable to understand why he felt attached to anything (or anyone) so irrelevant.

2 Resonance

Rather than simply excising love, the Neverborn poison it, converting an offending positive Intimacy to an equally strong hatred.

3 Resonance

For the rest of the day, the Abyssal must spend one Willpower to take an action that would offend the Neverborn enough to add to his Resonance. This compulsion applies even if the character already received Resonance from sinning earlier in the same scene. If the Exalt runs out of Willpower, he must submit to his Dark Fate and cannot take the offending action.

4 Resonance

Once per scene for the rest of the day, the Neverborn can actively force the character to take any one action they wish unless the character pays one Willpower point to resist the compulsion. In conjunction with the Willpower drain associated with fighting Dark Fate in general, this effect often creates situations in which the Abyssal cannot stop himself from becoming the instrument of his own punishment. It is small comfort that an Abyssal who resists to the last cannot be made to use powerful Charms that require Willpower against his own will.

5 Resonance

The Abyssal is fully possessed by the Neverborn for a scene, displacing and blocking any other forms of competing unnatural mental influence. The character might remain conscious but helpless during this time like a ghost in his own flesh, or he might black out and enter a fugue state, awakening later with no memory or explanation for the gore on his hands.

 

Stigmata

1 Resonance

All motes the Abyssal spends for the rest of the scene are considered peripheral Essence for anima display.

2+ Resonance

The Abyssal suffers levels of unsoakable lethal damage equal to the Resonance spent, experiencing this injury in a blatantly supernatural and horrific manner. This damage will not reduce a character below Incapacitated, though falling unconscious at the brink of death in the middle of a battle usually results in a de facto death sentence.

4 Resonance

Some part of the deathknight’s body withers and becomes as useless as if it were amputated. This Crippling effect lasts until the Abyssal heals all lethal damage.

 

Cheating

The rules for gaining Resonance make it extremely difficult and arduous for an Abyssal to directly challenge his Dark Fate. Careful renegades can minimize the wrath of the Neverborn, however, by opposing them indirectly. Fighting the forces of death is a no-no, but the dead Primordials have no problem with their deathknights slaying demons, Fair Folk, violent criminals and other monsters. Indeed, such deaths often glorify Oblivion more than spilling helpless mortal blood does. Staying in one place and building relationships as the local defender causes Resonance buildup, but renegades who roam from place to place as vigilante antiheroes can fulfill their purpose as lonely death-dealers without building up more than occasional Resonance.

Players might wonder if their character can harm enemies by deliberately venting Resonance in massive blights. Why, yes, they can. If an Abyssal wants to poison the very Essence of Creation for the sake of victory in battle, that suits the Neverborn just fine. Keep in mind that invoking such powerful Blight effects necessarily involves killing someone the Abyssal likes (or at least values in some way). Any Storyteller worth her dice can easily turn this “power” against the Abyssal: a village destroyed in the course of saving it, irreplaceable allies slain (or captives the character’s Deathlord wanted alive, damn it!), a Wyld Hunt called against this highly visible Anathema, and so on.

Modern Rathess

Here is a Drawing of what modern Rathess looks like.  It is not an exact match, but it gives the same feeling ancient mixed with ultra modern.

[Click Image for Full Size Picture]

Unofficial Exalted Map

I think this is the map for First Edition.  It is unofficial but is fairly detailed.

http://hd42.de/rpg_exalted_maps.html

Thought you guys might be interested.

People of Creation

Here is a list of Racial Stock in Creation that matches to Modern Earth Racial Stocks.  This is purely just for fluff.  That way you guys can envision the various ethnicities.

As far as culture is concerned, I will probably just use their architecture and culture as well just to make it less work for me.

[Unlabeled Map | Labeled Map]

North

• Cherak: German
• Crystal: Bosnian
• Diamond Hearth: Scandinavian
• Gethamane: Polish
• Hasanti League: Hungarian
• Icewalker Tribes: Siberian
• Whitewall: Switzerland

East

• Arczeckhi Horde: Scottish
• Great Forks: Greek
• Greyfall: Tibetan
• Linowan: Native American
• Lookshy: Chinese
• Marukan Tribes: Mongolian
• Nexus: Italian
• Nubia: Mixed, Mainly Celtic now
• Port Calin: Korean
• Rathess: Aztec
• Republic of Halta: Mayan
• Sijian: Indian
• The 10 Tribes of Forlorn: Celtic
• Thorns: Spain

South

• An-Teng: Thai
• Chiaroscuro: Arabian
• Gem: No specific culture, melting pot of cultures – American
• Harborhead: African
• Lap: Afghanistan
• Paragon: Egyptian
• Varangian City-State: Byzantine

West

• Coral Archipelago: Indonesian
• Linthas: Supernatural Racial Stock, Light Skin Aborigines
• Skullstone Archipelago: New Zealand
• Wavecrest Archipelago: Philippines
• Various other Islanders: Hawaiian / Pacific Islander

Blessed Isle

• Dynast: Not of any single Racial Stock, especially when Elemental Aspects overrides most racial profiles.
• Peasantry: Japanese

Rules for Getting Rid of Specialties

Currently there is a Hard Cap of total of 3 +1 specialties for any given Ability.  I think the cap is fine.  Rising the cap will introduce more issues than it solves. 

So I am writing this rule for make Specialties less permanent.

Specialties cost 3 Experience Points for a +1.

Everytime you upgrade a ability you can lower each Specialty in that Ability by 1 and get back 1 experience points.

E.g. Let say you have Melee 2 and +2 in Sword and +1 in Axes.  You then raise your Melee to 3, you can lower Sword to +1 and Axe to +0 and gain 2 experience points back.

In the same situation if you raise Melee by 2 dots to 4, you can lower Sword by –2 to 0, and Axe by –1 to 0 and get 3 Experience Points back.

So yes with enough specialties you can actually get a skill for free.  However, under no circumstance are you allowed to gain positive exp for giving up specialties when raising skills.  The Extra Exp are simply lost.

E.g. Let say you have Presence as Favorite Skill and is at Skill 1.  Let say you have +1 for Against all Odds, Inspire Confidence, Intimidation, and you raise the skill to 2, costing 1 exp.  You can chose to give up all 3 Specialties but you will only receive 1 exp back not 3.  The 2 other Exp are lost.

If you want to give up a Specialty for whatever reason you can as well.  You can chose to lose a +1 from any number of specialties at the end of any session or when getting long term rewards.  However, if corresponding abilities were not increased you gain no exp what so ever.

 

I think the above rule set makes it more flexible if you chose your Specialties wrongly.  It is still heavy handed enough to prevent changing specialties from coming a whimsical endeavor.

The Heart (Unknown Artifact)

Surgery: 30/5 hours/5/4

This implant has a special attunement commitment of 6 motes of Personal Essence. The heart is permanently part of Aata’s anima so this attunement cannot be cancelled by the bearer. The heart made a fundamental alteration to Aata’s nature. For all intent and purpose the Heart is now Aata’s natural organ. All attempts to regenerate Aata’s original heart will fail since this mechanical wonder is now innate to him.

This whirling clockwork masterpiece of glittering vessels and gears is a mechanism of radiant green iron that literally holds Aata’s insides together. While this mechanism lacks a heartbeat, those who listen for it may discern that the heart whirs and ticks like a clock, its pace never changes even in the thrall of desire, wrath or terror.

The heart’s boundless power adds four dots each to its owner’s Strength, Stamina and two dots to Dexterity. While it’s unremitting drive increase Aata’s Integrity by two dots and his Conviction by one. Alas, a mechanical heart has little room for sentiment in its metal chambers. Thus, the owner’s Compassion rating drops by one.

Unfortunately the heart is a focus of malfean energy and corrupts both Aata spiritually and physically. Sickly green liquid now flows through his veins causing a slightly green tint to his skin. Spiritually, Aata is thoroughly desecrated. He is now a Creature of Darkness. He is now affected by the Zenith Anima, Wards against Demons, and is no longer able to learn holy charms. He also loses his Priestly status since Gods will instantly recognize the source of the prayer. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, he still retains the other powers that stem from the nature of his Exalted Essence.

Trials of Necromancy

Here are the 5 Trials of Necromancy

• Trial of Melancholy: In many ways, the Underworld is the nadir of all existence. No natural inhabitant of the place has true life - a ghost’s experiences are dulled immeasurably from what he knew in Creation, and even his tools and pets are no more than shadows of what was buried with him. Likewise, ghosts aren’t truly dead as long as they resist the call of reincarnation or Oblivion. Inhabitants of the Underworld are truly the most unnatural and unwanted of all things. In a study of melancholy, the necromancer must experience true rock bottom. To have nothing left but to continue to live, living almost without purpose, shows the necromancer how little really separates the living dead from those living without cause.
• Trial of Memory: To learn the arts of the dead, the necromancer must learn as the people of the Underworld do. Just as the sunless realms change only slowly, shaping themselves to the memories of those who dwell there, the necromancer must engage in self-instruction. He must learn something by exploring his own memories of experiences past, discovering new meaning in old knowledge. When a necromancer has a guide through his initiation, he sometimes passes this trial by mystically exploring another’s mind and memories rather than his own.
• Trial of Stasis: The Underworld resists change. For most places in the Underworld, one can return year after year after year and see no difference in the landscape or inhabitants. A necromancer must understand this intimately. Those consciously trying to pass the trial often choose a featureless plain in the Underworld, where they sit and remain until enlightenment comes. Others draw this experience from memory of living in the same unchanging village for years in childhood, or the stasis of marching for months on end through a land that never appears to change.
• Trial of Infliction: Death comes to all things in time, as the Primordial War proved. And with the Underworld’s inception, death became something more frightening than guaranteed reincarnation and continuance. Now, one may languish as a ghost for centuries or even fall into the forever depths of Oblivion. People fear death, now. In some manner, the necromancer must inflict total and complete, gibbering, turn-guts-to-water fear of death upon someone else. A student might slowly kill a beloved pet before the eyes of its young master, while another could murder an entire village and leave only one alive with a promise to return for her. Less hideously, an eloquent or passionate speech can leave listeners as mind-bendingly fearful as such awful demonstrations.
• Trial of Decay: It shares a great deal with the fifth sorcerous ordeal, of sacrifice, but the necromancer must sacrifice through degradation. This loss sharpens the necromancer’s mind, opening it finally to the black wonders of necromancy. Sacrifice can be of anything, but the manner must be appropriate. Rather than cutting off a finger, the necromancer ties it off and lets it blacken and die from lack of blood. Instead of severing ties with a lover, the necromancer slowly poisons his relationship with lies or neglect, and its death is all the more painful for it. One might decimate his excellent reputation through repeated demonstrations of fallibility or vice. Regardless, the sacrifice must be done through deterioration for the necromancer to truly understand the slow rot that eats away all Creation.

Added “Reference Material” Folder

Added the Reference Material Folder on the Office Workspace.  It will be where I add any reference document such as PDFs.

Currently only added the Short Labyrinth Section of the Underworld PDF.  Not sure how much of it is applicable but it is probably a good read for you guys, so have some mental imagery ready for when I run my next session.

Which will not be this weekend.

Dicer (Visual Basic) 1.9.1.10

Updated Dicer to 1.9.1.10
http://files.filefront.com/13520200

• Changed the last 2 input boxes for Misc. Modifiers section to be none internal modifiers.  The rest of the boxes remain internal modifiers.  The difference is Internal Modifiers cannot lower a dice pool lower than an Exalted Essence Trait.  Other dice pool modifiers (such as wounds and multiple action) can lower the results beyond.
• The 2 boxes now have different background colors to acknowledge their distinction.

Adapteus Astartes

Also added to the Game Notes document.

The Adapteus Astartes were started in Rathess as a means to protect the holy city. They are a combination of the Dragon King Defenders and their Human Allies. Designed to be a equal rights religious organization where Humans Mixes with Dragon Kings readily. They are holy warriors of Unconquered Sun, anointed in his temple and sanctified by a Solar (Enlightened via Charm).

• The Dragon Kings are given Obsidian Sheath and Shock Gauntlets
• Humans are given Gunshosa Commando Armor and Magical Weapons from the Herenthid Find.
• They are Eclipse Oath Bound to serve and protect Rathess and formed based on the Number 4.

Leaders of the Chapters

Primarch is a title invented by Kai and is widely adapted by the Solars and Dragon-Kings. In time it became an official title, Though before that time they were officially referred to as Chapter Legatus or Chapter Legate.

Legatus Gualterio	The official leader of the Rathess Chapter and handpicked by Head Mistress Dharacya. Gualterio is amongst the Faithful and is a vehement member of the Our Fair Lady Faction.
Primarch Kai	The self-proclaimed leader of Rathess Chapter and the first to grant himself the title “Primarch”. This claime of authority is not accepted by any of the Rathess chapter members. Due to Kai’s divine heritage as the son of Thunder God Aata and his allies he is accorded deference and respect.
Legate Ochieng Chiumbo	Primarch of the Kirighast Chapter. Also known as the “Alpha Primarch”, being the first official Primarch of the Adapteus Astartes by the word of Balan.

Adapteus Astartes Organization

The official ranks of the Adapteus Astartes being reestablished from the ashes of the First Age by the Dragon Kings. These are ancient titles and in the Dragon King language.

Legatus Legionis (Legate), later officially changed to Primarch: The Legates of each Legion bears this venerable title and it signifies them as the overall chapter commander.

Primus Pilus: The rank held by the commander of each Fortress-monastery. They wield enormous power and are accorded unquestionable loyalty from their subordinates. They answer only to the Legatus/Primarch, the Solars, and above them all the Unconquered Sun. All Primus Pilus are of equal rank and has no authority over the domain of another. They also do not dictate chapter policy, which is the power of their superiors.

Quaestor: The Legatus Legionis’ personal staffs are honorably titled Quaestor. These are elite of the elite of their chapters and it is traditionally a requirement before being raised as Primus Piluses. These officers are the ones who act as Legatus Legionis’ agents and sent to aid troubled Fortress-Monasteries. In times of War Quaestor is the lowest rank allowed to command Astartes Armies.

Praefectus Castorum: Third in over all command of the Chapter, the posts of Praefectus Castorum are usually filled by an unique Quaestor. This Quaestor is independent from the overall command structure and is sole responsible for the task of enforcing discipline and faith. They also serve the function of chapter quartermaster and deals with the everyday details of running the chapter. Anything short of death penalties can be taken care of by Praefectus Castorum independently without any lawful influence from the Primarch.

Pilus Prior: The tactical advisor to the Primus Pilus and is the most senior Centurion in each Fortress-Monastery garrison. They are usually those who may have the wisdom of experience but lacks the integrity, ambition, vision, flexibility, and charisma needed to handle the unquestioning loyalty of those below them. Nonetheless the Pilus Prior is high respected for their valuable insight and wisdom, especially by new commanders. Most retired Pilus Priors become instructors in the Training Grounds. The influence of Pilus Prior is such that in many chapters that a Pilus Prior’s stamp of approval is vital in establishing the authority of a newly installed officer.

Centurion: The rank and file officers of each military unit who oversees 100 Astartes and their support personnel.

Signifer: The Centurion’s quartermaster and the advisor of each unit, both spiritual and mundane. In addition to reporting to their Centurions, each Signifer can also file emergency reports to Praefectus Castorum. This ensures timely response to timely shortage and also as a form of oversight in the case of rampant corruption within the officer corp.

Legionarii: The official individual title for each Adapteus Astartes Warrior-Monk. Perhaps one of the most impressive military organizations of mortals these beings are well trained and well equipped. Each is enlightened by Solar powers and are often trained by Solar Charms.

Milites Gregarii: As beings dedicated to war and combat, the mundane needs of the Legionarii are taken care of by personal serfs and acolytes. These civilian/mortal are granted the title of Milites Gregarii to signify their elevation from mere mortals.

Triones: Cadets who are included in the Chapter for training purposes. On paper they are lower than even the Milites Gregarii because they are less than nothing, while the Milites Gregarii may have had decades of service experience.

Fate of Solar and Dragon-Blooded Unions

Dragon-Blooded depending on the purity of their bloodline can exalt as early as 10 years old, or as late as 20 years old.  It is commonly believed that if you have not exalted by 20 years old you will never Exalt as a Terrestrial.

To see if a Child of an Dragon-Blooded inherited the bloodline to Exalt involves rolling a single D10.

• If both parents are patricians of proper breeding with numerous Dragon-Blooded relatives, the child Exalts on a roll of 1-2.
• If one parent's a Dragon-Blood and the other is a mortal of poor breeding, the child will Exalt on a roll of 1-3.
• If one parent's a Dragon-Blood and the other's a patrician of good stock with Dragon-Blooded relatives, the child Exalts on a roll of 1-4.
• If both parents are Dragon-Bloods, the child Exalts on a roll of 1-6.
• The Breeding Background adds to the number that must be rolled, and it applies from both parents if both have high enough Breeding. Thus, if two Dragon-Bloods, one with Breeding 4 and one with Breeding 5, have a child, the child will Exalt on a roll of 1-9 (the normal 1-6 for the child of two Terrestrials, plus 1 for the Breeding 4 parent, plus another 2 for the Breeding 5 parent).
• Children of Dragon-Bloods conceived within a elemental manse with “Dragon Nest” ability gain a +1 bonus to their chances of Exaltation, as if a parent had higher Breeding. This increases to +2 if the child is brought to term within the manse. The Exaltation’s aspect is hardly in doubt.

Balan and Azula’s child will Exalt as Dragon-Blooded (eventually) on a roll of 1-3 (Dragon-Blooded + No Dragon-Blooded Bloodline)

Should Nejimaru actually begets a child with a normal Dragon-Blooded, the Child will Exalt as Dragon-Blooded on 1-4.

Should the Child fail to Exalt as a Dragon-Blooded then you need to check if child is Half-Caste

Primacy of Inheritance

When different magical beings produce off-spring together, their children invariably favor one parent’s nature over the other.  A God-Blooded always favor the parent with the highest Essence at the time of conception.  If both parents have the same Essence rating, consult the following list to determine primacy.  Each entry supersedes the entries below it.  If the result is still a tie, roll one die.  The child favors the father’s heritage on odd results or mother’s on even.

• Solar/Abyssal
• Lunar/Sidereal
• God/Demon/Terrestrial
• Fair Folk/Elemental
• Ghost

So if the Child is God-Blooded, then it would be a Solar Half-Caste, since Balan has higher Essence.  Should their Essence be tied Balan’s Solar Aspect will still win out over Azula’s Dragon-Blooded Aspect.

Birth

Gestation takes the usual time of the mother: 9 months for mortal, one year for Exalted and appropriate intervals for animals.  Some spirits have been known to bring a child to term in matter of minutes, if so inclined.  Exalted mothers show no visible signs of pregnancy until their fifth months and suffers little impairment until the 13th (-1 or -2 External Modifier to all Dexterity-based activities in the last month).  Regardless of the mother’s species, a God-Blooded pregnancy suffers no complications until delivery.  Such children are almost always born healthy, it is not unknown for animals and mortal mothers to die in labor (Stamina + Resistance, difficulty 1, to survive the birth).  Magical beings never risk death from childbirth.  Other guidelines depends on Heritage.

Half-Castes

An Exalt must normally have a minimum of Essence 4 before her children show more than a hint of their parentage.  Exalted who live as gods and receive worship (Cult at 3+) reduces this Essence requirement by one, as do those who spent a full month living in a powerful (rating 4+) uncapped Demesne prior to conception.  These factors are cumulative.  The actual breeding of a Half-Caste involves normal reproduction and pregnancy.

All Lunar Exalted of any Essence rating may create beastmen as an innate ability by mating with an animal partner in human form or with a human lover as an animal.  In either case, the Lunar must perform the coupling in the Bordermarches or deeper into the Wyld.  Conception must generally follow rules of common sense: For Example, a hawk cannot lay an egg large enough to hatch a hawkman.  Once Lunar Exalted have sufficient Essence to create “normal” Half-Caste Children as described above, they may produce beastmen even in the absence of Wyld energies.  Non-Lunar Exalted may occasional produce beastmen with cross-species couplings when they reach Essence 5, provided their players make an Essence roll at difficulty 3.  This roll is not optional.

For conceptions that qualify to become God-Blooded the parents (both gets to roll) needs to succeed on a difficulty 2 Essence Roll.  Failure means the child is Mortal.

The difficulty of the roll for animal or mortal mothers to survive the labor of an Abyssal Half-Caste or a beastmen is difficulty 2.  This increases to difficulty 3 or more in the case of beastmen litters, though, thankfully, such pregnancies are exceedingly rare.

Half-Caste Charm Selection

The descendents of Exalted learn the Charms of their parent heritage but may not master any Charm that provides a perfect defense or persistent scene-length defense.  The Storyteller remain the final arbiter of whether a Charm meets these restrictions.  Although Lunar Half-Caste cannot freely shapechage as an innate power or benefit from drinking the heart’s blood of a beast, they may gain up to 2 alternate forms with Finding the Spirit’s Shape and Deadly Beastman Transformation.  Under no circumstances can Lunar Half-Caste gain any form beyond these, although they may customize their appearance or perform partial acts of shapechanging integral to the effect of other Charms.  Sidereal Half-Caste with sufficient prerequisites and Traits may learn Charms that require the express approval of the Maidens as a theoretical exercise, but they cannot actually enact these powers.

New Charms cost 15 Experiences points each, regardless of whether the character favor the Trait upon which the Charm builds.  Supernatural Martial Arts Charms share this cost, but characters without Martial Arts 5 and Essence 3 cannot learn these fighting styles.

Under no circumstances can God-Blooded form Combos regardless if it is an Martial Arts Combo or Standard Charms Combo.

Half-Caste Charm Selection

All God-Blooded with the Awakened Essence Merit apart from Fae-blooded may also learn to cast spells.  Terrestial Circle Sorcery is avilable to all the remaining heritages save Ghost-Blooded and Abyssal Half-Caste.  Conversely, only these heritages may learn Shadowlands Circle Necromancy.  Greater circles of sorcery and necromancy lie beyond the purview of the God-Blooded.  Becoming a sorcerer or necromancer requires a great investment of time and energy, and so, the Charms necessary to unlock spells cost 10 bonus points (at character creation).  Once unlocked, spells cost the same as charms.  Character must also have Essence 3 and Occult 5 to undergo the Terrestrial Initiation.  No God-Blooded can effectively use spells to summon and bind elementals or demons, as the workings of these spells are designed to operate in conjunction with certain privileges of the Exalted.

The Charm for Terrestrial Circle Sorcery/Shadowlands Necromancy cost 25 experience points and require training time measured in weeks rather than days.

Background: Inheritance

Although still Mortal, the character bears exceptional heritage.  One of her parents was a powerful magical being: a spirit, a Fair One or even a mighty Exalted.  This mystical parentage has left its mark on her body and soul, conferring the blessing – and perhaps bane – of her ancestry.  Characters without the Inheritance Background may not purchase Traits exclusive to the God-blooded, although minor or distant mystical ancestry may explain unusual Merits and Flaws.  Character with at least one dot of Inheritance may freely purchase God-blooded Traits.  In addition, God-Blooded gain extra bonus points and capacity for Flaws depending on their Inheritance rating.  These bonus points may not be spent on Backgrounds.

Incase it needs to be calculated, Inheritance equals to half the sum of the parent’s Essence rating (over minimum to sire God-Blooded), rounded down.

In the case of Nejimaru: Mother was Essence 8, Father is Essence 4.  Conceived in a Dragon Nest and brought to Term there, thus the min requirement for his parents to bare God-Blooded Children is 2 Essence for Mother (having her own Cult) and 3 Essence for Father.  6+1 = 7/2 = 3.5 = 3

• (X) You have little or no mystical heritage.
• (•) Thin blood.  You are the child of a lesser spirit or one of the weaker Fair Folk.  It is possible that you do not even know of your heritage.  You gain 6 additional bonus points and may take 10 points of Flaws.
• (••) Good blood.  Your parent is accorded respect or fear.  You may be descended from a lesser demon, the spirit of a river or an ancient tree, an established Exalt, an old ghost or a Fair Folk noble.  You gain 12 additional bonus points and may take 15 points of Flaws.
• (•••) Notable ancestry.  You claim descent from a mighty Exalt, a Second Circle demon, a significant elemental or locally important god.  You gain 18 additional bonus points and may take 15 points of Flaws.
• (••••) Impeccable scion.  You favor your divine blood as the child of a centuries-old Exalt, a greater god or a champion among Second Circle demons.  Minor gods honor you as a peer.  You gain 24 additional bonus points and may take 20 points of Flaws.
• (•••••) Divine.  You are all but a god in your own right, the honored progeny of a regional or celestial god of surpassing authority, a truly terrible demon or a venerable Celestial Exalt from the First Age.  You may even rise in power beyond the lowest Terrestrial Exalted in your life.  You gain 30 additional bonus points and may take 20 points of Flaws.

Exalted God-Blooded

Like those touched by the Wyld, the half divine seldom receive the added power of Exaltation.  The Celestines wisely inscribe their Exalted Essence to avoid those whose birth and allegiance already bound them to other gods, let alone the descendents of their enemies.  The Five Elemental Dragons took no such measures, leaving the matter of strange births as a result of strange couplings to chance, or perhaps they simply did not care.  And as for the Deathlords, they are even more paranoid than the Celestines in their choice of servants.  And so, by divine providence or simple luck, very few God-Blooded of any heritage draw the Second Breath.  And yet, from time to time it happens.

The conjunction of Exaltation and Inheritance afford great power, but that power comes at a still greater price, as the Essence of Birth and Second Breath forever compete to slow magical development.  Exalted God-Blooded are created according to the usual rules for their Exalted type, purchasing Inheritance as they would any other Background.  This Inheritance allows them to spend bonus points to purchase all Traits associated with their heritage, including Charms.  However, bonus points obtained from Inheritance may not be spent on Essence of magical Traits natural to the Exalt’s type.

Exalted God-Blooded are automatically assumed to have all Merits and Flaws with game effects naturally incorporated or surpassed by Exaltation, such as God-Body, Longevity, Awakened Essence, Magical Attunement, etc. for the purpose of meeting prerequisites, but they may not actually purchase these Traits.  Likewise, if a God-Blooded receives Exaltation during play, she immediately loses all such redundant Merits and Flaws without recompense.

Half-Caste are a special case, as they already begin their lives attuned to the Essence of the Chosen from before birth.  While it is possible for Terrestrial Half-Castes to accept Celestial Sparks, the Celestial Incarnae will not normally approve such an candidate.  In the case of Terrestrial Half-Castes awakening to their Dragon-Blooded Exaltation after puberty their heritage often binds them to their parent’s aspects as well, though not always.

The power of the Second Breath completely overrides the power of a Half-Caste’s Inheritance, stripping away all exclusively God-Blooded Traits.  Known Charms and Spells remain, as does any advancement of Essence, but the character is functionally a “normal” Exalted for all further development.  This may provide an intriguing back-story for an Exalt, but there are no modification to newly created “completed” Half-Caste.  In another words, while they retain the Inheritance Background, it provides no bonus points nor drawbacks.

The First Commandery

The First Commandery was previous the 6th Commandery.  Due to the heroic action of their Commander and the Brave 900 they are elevated to the Rank of First Commandery.

It is rumored that Queen Azula has the mind to make them Royal Guard to the New Leopard Seat as Wedding Present.

Unit Average as follows

Race: Extras

Strength: 3
Dexterity: 3
Stamina: 4

Charisma: 2
Manipulation: 2
Appearance: 2

Perception: 3
Intelligence: 2
Wits: 3

Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 4, Temperance 2, Valor 4

Abilities: Archery 2, Athletics 3, Awareness 3, Bureaucracy 1, Craft (Fire) 1, Dodge 3, Integrity 3, Investigation 2, Larceny 1, Linguistics 1, Lore 1, Martial Arts 3, Medicine 1, Melee 3 (Spear +1), Occult 2, Presence 2, Resistance 3 (Heat +2), Ride 1, Socialize 2, Stealth 3, Survival 2 (Desert +1), Thrown 2, War 3

Joint Battle: 6

Soak: 3L/5B (Chain Shirt, +3L/1B, –0 Mobility, +1 Fatigue)

Dodge DV: 3 (2 with Shield)

Willpower: 6

Essence: 1

Note: Armed with Short Spear, Chain Shirt, Large Hide Shield, Short Bow, Bolas.

The Coronation

These individuals are the witnesses to the coronation and will seat in the Royal Pavilion during the banquet. Unless Balan invites anyone of his own, such as Aata, these will be the only guests in the pavilion.

Knowing the Wyld Hunt would stop at nothing to destroy the Anathemas, Azula made a convincing cover for Balan – by borrowing the life and history of someone of similar appearance but of little fame.

• Kamaria Imani – Royal Mother of the Leopard Seat, Due to ill health cannot attend
• Enu Kofi – High Priest of Ahlat
• Mas'ud Gabir Haroun – High Priest of Yehowah, God of Royal Succession
• Yasua Genshiro – The Realm Ambassador to Harborhead
• Barack Tariq – Chiaroscuro Ambassador to Harborhead
• Patariki Tipene – Gem Ambassador to Harborhead
• Jonathan Eldad – Paragon Ambassador to Harborhead
• Bongani Tafadzwa – Lap Ambassador to Harborhead
• Nkosana Farai – Harborhead General of the North
• Nsonowa Farai – Harborhead General of the West (No relations to Nkosana Farai)
• Kwabani Melisizwe – Harborhead General of the South
• Imamu Otieno – Harborhead General of the East
• Oscar Seoirse – Guild Ambassador to the South
• Umokoyu Adirali – Guild Director and Representative of Nexus
• Ikaika Kimo – Representative of the Wavecrest Merchant’s Combine