I wish I have put some points into Linguistic instead of dumping them all in Craft since I can now only draw Exalted art but none of my characters has a write-up
General Exalted Thread
I wish I have put some points into Linguistic instead of dumping them all in Craft since I can now only draw Exalted art but none of my characters has a write-up
For what its worth, I always felt that having an extensive writeup of a character was more a hindrance than a help. If you start with five or six core traits and personality quirks, you have much more room to grow and develop them.I wish I have put some points into Linguistic instead of dumping them all in Craft since I can now only draw Exalted art but none of my characters has a write-up
- Location
- Singapore
Vychovavatel, the Information Surgeons
Progeny of the Minister of the Ivory Tassel
Even in Hell, there is education. Malfean citizens of all stripes can choose to study nearly any subject (with the notable exception of sorcery) at one of the various universities throughout the Demon City. Some, such as Suntarankal, teach only one subject (Martial Arts, in his case). Others teach a broad spectrum of related fields (Lore, Occult, Medicine, etc.). However, it is the universities of the Vychovavatel that draw the greatest number of would-be scholars.
One such university, known as the Cutting Ground, is typical of a vychovavatel school. The exterior is squat and unobtrusive, made of basalt and brass like most buildings in Malfeas. However, once inside, the chambers look more like a physician's surgical suite than a classroom. Prospective students are led, one by one, into the surgery, where the vychovavatel implant knowledge for a fee. Various demons know various subjects, and so dedicating oneself to the use of the sword is "taught" by a different vychovavatel than the knowledge of history and mathematics.
Once inside the chamber with the chosen instructor, the would-be scholar is strapped to a surgical table and prepared for his or her "lesson." From the vychovavatel's chitinous exterior is extruded a foot-long barb, dripping with knowledge – literally. The barb is driven into the student's skull (or relevant equivalent), and the vychovavatel shudders with pleasure as it discharges absorbed knowledge directly into the student's brain. The experience is extremely unpleasant, with side-effects that include disorientation, hallucinations, dissociative episodes, vomiting, and, occasionally, comas. Still, the knowledge transfer is so rapid and so complete that many are the demons that line up for the opportunity – it is rare to find a vychovavatel without a queue for their services.
Vychovavatel themselves are nothing like humans. A central node, covered in thick chitin, extrudes four to six slime-covered tentacles, which propel the node along in a galumphing locomotion. An additional "arm" ends with a single, bulbous eye. When they speak, the noise oozes from somewhere near their center of mass, but even if dissected, they do not possess lips, mouths, or vocal cords. Their information barb is retractable, and emerges from roughly the central join of the layers of chitin. The barb is as capable of withdrawing information as depositing it, and for this reason, vychovavatel are sometimes employed as spies and torturers.
Summoning: (Obscurity 3/4) Sorcerers usually summon vychovavatel to serve as instructors for mundane knowledge, for even without their information barb, they can be useful tutors. More desperate (or insane) sorcerers will subject themselves to the barb, while cruel or pragmatic summoners will subject their enemies to the barb, that the vychovavatel will learn their secrets.
Motivation: To devour and regurgitate knowledge of any sort.
Attributes: Strength 3, Dexterity 3, Stamina 3; Charisma 3, Manipulation 3, Appearance 0; Perception 4, Intelligence 6, Wits 4
Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 4, Temperance 2, Valor 2
Abilities: Awareness 3, Bureaucracy 3, Dodge 4, Integrity 4, Investigation 5 (Knowledge Barb +3), Linguistics (Native: Old Realm; Others: any three) 3, Lore 5, Martial Arts 1 (Knowledge Barb +2), Occult 5, Resistance 2, Stealth 3
Backgrounds: Allies 1, Contacts 3, Influence 1
Charms:
Devour Knowledge (10m, 1W): When the vychovavatel activates this Charm, its knowledge barb extrudes from its central node and attempts to enter its target (this requires a Martial Arts attack unless the subject is willing or incapacitated). A successful implantation deals exactly two levels of Lethal damage. Once implanted, this Charm goes to work, draining dots of Abilities or Specialties from the target at the rate of one per action as a Crippling effect. Exalted heal these lost dots at the rate of one per day, while mortals never heal them. The vychovavatel gains these dots permanently as a Training effect, and so an individual vychovavatel may have Abilities and Specialties very different from those listed above.
Endowment (9m, 1W): Activation of this Charm extrudes the vychovavatel's knowledge barb as above. Once implanted, the demon can bestow dots of Abilities or Specialties on the target as a Training effect. However, doing so causes the vychovavatel to lose one dot of the relevant Ability or Specialty per dot bestowed; the demon can never endow more dots in an Ability or Specialty than it has.
Essence Plethora (x2: The vychovavatel has increased its Essence pool by 20 motes.
Fruit of Living Essence (3m): While touching a being with an Essence pool with its knowledge barb, the vychovavatel can roll (Essence + Temperance) with an external penalty of the target's Essence. Alternatively, the target can consent, removing all penalties. Every success steals three motes of Essence from the target's pool and adds them to the vychovavatel's own.
Materialize (50m)
Measure the Wind (1m): the vychovavatel can use determine the strength and nature of a target's Essence so long as its knowledge barb is implanted in the target.
Memory Mirror (5m): While its knowledge barb is implanted in a target, the vychovavatel can attempt a Read Motivation action, adding (Compassion) automatic successes unless the target's Essence exceeds its own. Success allows it to read a memory, Intimacy, or Motivation of the target.
Ox-Body Technique (x2)
Reserve of Will (x2)
First Excellency: Investigation, Lore
Divine Subordination: Investigation
Join Battle: 7
Attacks:
Knowledge Barb: Speed 4, Accuracy 7, Damage exactly two levels of Lethal damage, regardless of soak, Parry DV 4, Rate 1, Tags N
Soak: 4B/2L (Chitinous Hide, +1B/+1L)
Health Levels:-0/-1/-1/-1/-1/-1/-1/-2/-2/-2/-2/-2/-2/-4/Incap
Dodge DV: 5 Willpower: 7 (9)
Essence: 3 Essence Pool: 85
Other Notes: Whenever the vychovavatel successfully uses either its Devour Knowledge or Endowment Charms on a target, the target must make an (Integrity + Willpower) roll, with an internal penalty equal to the number of dots of Ability or Specialty removed/bestowed. Success means that, once the knowledge barb is removed, the target suffers only a massive headache (-2 wound penalty for one day). Failure means that, in addition, the target gains a derangement as a Crippling effect. The derangement is chosen by the Storyteller, and is usually appropriate to the information transmitted (i.e. losing Melee dots could provoke a phobia of swordplay, while an increase of Lore might instill hallucinations of historical figures). The derangement can be healed naturally as though it were a -4 Health Level wound, though only after the damage inflicted by the vychovavatel's knowledge barb is healed. It can also be removed by any magic that heals mental damage.
By octopoid
Fejrak, the bringer of dreams
In and around Malfeas, there are serfs. There are warlords. And there are serfs that are just not good enough. One such warlord found, to his great consternation, that the serfs were.... not good for much. Too weak. Too unskilled. Too untrained. And so the Fejrak was forged, so that talentless and incompetent servants may be trained into excellence and skill.
To the eye of a denizen of Creation, the Fejrak looks like a crab, a strange one, but a crab. This is obviously a fake. The crab latches onto the face of its client, and stingers on its underside inject an anesthetic within him, putting him into a stupor. Then more spikes burrow into the client, essence-filled slurry pumped into his body while the Fejrak does his business.
As the client's body is put to sleep, the mind is put into overdrive. The Fejrak injects in mind-accelerating chemicals and shapes illusions, so as to turn the dreamscape of the client's mind into a training arena. Melee, bureaucracy, lore, athletics, brawl.... all abilities can be taught here. And not just abilities. Attributes, as well. Of course, since the client's body is currently immobile and on life support, the Fejrak cannot improve physical attributes. The speed is great, with the Fejrak being able to improve an ability from 0 to 5 in less than 3 days, including 3 dots of specialties.
This is not without drawbacks, though. As the client's body is sustained by the Fejrak's essence-slurry, his body is weakens and his muscles atrophy. This causes all physical attributes to gain a 1-dice penalty for 2 weeks after the Fejrak has finished their ministration. And that is not the only danger. The entering of the dreamscape is, itself, addictive. The lack of care from the real world, and instead brought into an ideal world where you feel neither pain nor harm, where all is bliss, where the only change is you improving.... is an exhilarating feeling. Roll stamina + integrity against difficulty 2. Failure, means that the character impulsively puts the Fejrak back on, just to go back into the dream world. And for each time the character fails, he loses one dot in a physical attribute.
A/N: Damn it, may be too overpowered
Aldozat, the endowment-exchangers
Demon of the First Circle, Progeny of Markarios
Markarios! The demonic merchant. Who buys and sells all. Not just goods. Not just wonders. Not just treasures. Not just dreams. But also services. More importantly, services of the most important kind. Not only does he exchange money into other denominations for a price, he also exchanges skills into other skills. A melee warrior, who settled down on a throne he won with the sword, may want to forego his sword in exchange for the pen. A thief who married into the home of a nobleman, may exchange her thieving skills to become a socialite. But no need to worry, for Markarios always provides all.
The Aldozat is the answer to that.
The Aldozat resembles a large catfish, the size of a man's forearm, with two immensely long whiskers on the side of its mouth. It floats through air on unseen ether currents, dipping, swimming, and generally eating malfean vegetation. It is intelligent, in a sense, that when a being comes close to it desiring to change itself, it can do so. The whiskers move and flip around, and pierce the sides of the organism. A thin fluid flows from one whisker, through the Aldozat, and then back into the organism. To put it plain, this liquid is skill and competence in ability. The warrior will lose his skill in the sword, and then learn how to effectively manage his nation's resources. The thief will find that her hands are no longer nimble and steady for lockpicking, but her tongue to become silvered.
A/N: Can't think of a good catch. Maybe it hates ordinary vegetation or something? Or a hatred for incompetents, so it decides to simply drain out their health levels?
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- Pronouns
- They/Them
What's this section here for?
- Location
- Singapore
It's from onyx path. We decided to make a bunch of demons that acted as tutors. So.... that was the author.
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Okay, you should bold that or something. Make it more easily seen, because as-is it looks as though you're presenting it as yours. Use the [ h r ] and a [ / h r ] to create a line between the demons like this:
- Location
- Singapore
Oh. Um.... ok.
- Location
- Singapore
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- Pronouns
- They/Them
Remove the spaces between the [, h, r and ].
- Location
- Singapore
- Location
- Singapore
Yeah. Let's change it to a week.
Charm design is a lot better for Dragonblooded. It's certainly less of a rough effort, and there are way less textual ambiguities like there were in the core. They're still without question way weaker than Solars, but they do have an advantage in being a more refined effort for new Developers working on a new Edition. Which is a bit like how it was for 2E or 1E, to be honest: Solars still had the best effects, but they also came off as clunky and simplistic compared to later stuff like 2E Infernals or 1E Sidereals.
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Nerdy Lost Eggs dreaming of strong, but loving, Cathak heiresses sweeping them off their feet and whisking them away to make them their husbands is the greatest thing ever.
- Pronouns
- They/Them
I have not found that one yet!
- Location
- Singapore
- Location
- Singapore
You know what I find most darkly amusing of Demon of the First Circle?
You can make the argument that 'you're doing it for the demon's own good' because Malfeas is a horrible, hostile, horrendous place where they're at the bottom rung and they're treated as tools. Hey, even if they're being summoned to be slaves here, at least its better than Malfeas, right?
Just like another of the reasons slavers tried to pretend slavery was virtuous, along with 'civilize the savage' and 'bringing them to modernity'.
You can make the argument that 'you're doing it for the demon's own good' because Malfeas is a horrible, hostile, horrendous place where they're at the bottom rung and they're treated as tools. Hey, even if they're being summoned to be slaves here, at least its better than Malfeas, right?
Just like another of the reasons slavers tried to pretend slavery was virtuous, along with 'civilize the savage' and 'bringing them to modernity'.
A lot of demons would argue the same thing, some wouldn't.
And some desperately dream of someday having a Cult of their own, that will summon them whenever they want.
I actually see it as a commentary on immigration, more than anything else. Migrant workers escaping literal hellholes to do extremely mundane tasks, because even that is an improvement over home, accompanied by a great deal of dread that comes with the knowledge that they'll be sent back if they mess things up.