Alchemical Solutions [Worm/Exalted] Thread 24: Xenial Xenos Xerox Xanthous Xiphos

[Gromweld]

Chapter 10.7
Part 1​

Get With The Pogrom (Choose ONE, ONE Stunt Allowed)
[X] Assembly Stays In Philadelphia, Lets PRT Handle Fallen Cleanup

Cloudy With A Chance of Endbringers (Choose ONE, NO STUNT)
[X] Wait For Taylor, Risk Leviathan Coming To Philadelphia

Don't Stare Into The Limelight (Choose ONE, ONE Stunt Allowed)
[X] Saki Lets PRT Take Most Credit For Fallen Defeat, Gains Minimal Fame

XP Expenditures:
[X] WoRI - 4 XP - Medicine ●○○○○
[X] EOA - 2 XP - Performance ●●○○○ (Specialty: Teaching ●●○)
[X] FPoP - 4 XP - War ●●●○○
[X] WMS - 14 XP - Resources ●●●●●


***


You hate getting up early. School is already abysmal with its 7:45 am starting time, though you're able to cut out the transportation bit so you can at least sleep in longer than everyone else. But... Ward Exercises before school? That's just cruel and unusual punishment.

Especially when it's just to get your butt kicked all around Lord Grasp's dojo in the name of "remedial training."

"Huuurrrnnnffffss" you groan, face-first, into the firm-yet-forgiving mat floor. Maybe, if you wait a bit longer, the puddles of liquid starmetal you're leaking all around you will coalesce into something that you can drown in.

"Yup," Clockblocker pants heavily beside you, sprawled out on his back and staring upwards into the high-above rafters where Who and Bladedancer sound like they're still fighting. "Ex... exactly... what she said."

"I can't… wait… for the new guys," Kid Win breathes out between gulps of water from one of the many hand-sized bamboo casks Lord Grasp has been providing your group. The sound of his drinking brings to mind your own thirst, so you wearily lift your right hand and blindly make a grabbing motion-

There's a ruffling of a nearby curtain as it flicks a sealed water cask to roll into your hand.

You'd thank Lord Grasp, but it's also been his animated training dummies that have been helping Bladedancer, Chevalier, Prayer, and Sergeant Geofferies run, push, and pummel your group into the ground for the last hour. And it was his idea to host the training session here - inside his pagoda-form as he sits in the PRT HQ's training yard - instead of in the PRT testing and training room. Sure, he said it was to help make sure you'd all be safe from attacks when you're all recovering from training, but while you're in here he knows exactly how tired you really are and so you can't get away with faking anything.

"Hhnnnnrrrnnnnnn."

"Wooo! That… was, like…" you hear Geode tiredly exclaim as her footsteps come to a stop near your prone form. "That was so much funner than normal training! I probably won't even have to work out this afternoon!"

Xylophone makes a sad, disappointed groan from where she's been resting, curled up in a ball near you, having been the first Ward of your group to collapse from exhaustion and accumulated minor injuries. Most of which was caused by her constant staring at Geode and getting caught by the animated training dummies' "awareness training" attacks.

Having Lord Grasp trip or hit Penny every time she stared at Kinzey's ass never got her to stop, even after more than a dozen blows. She's proving more difficult to train than you originally planned for.

"Oooh! I wonder if Brian will be free?!"

The noise Geode's absent-minded follow-up question elicits from Xylophone is much quieter this time, and more a growl than a groan.

...Hmm. More... extreme measures may be required.

Lord Grasp, raise Penny's threat level on the Shipping Board.

Oh dear, comes the mental, aristocratic hum in response as he undoubtedly alters the setup the two of you have fashioned and locked away in one of his spare war-planning rooms. That brings her up to a seven, now. You believe she'll attempt something within the next week?

Mentally, you grimace. So far you haven't been able to enact the Anti-Penny Tactics you'd planned for because of how busy you've been since Taylor left, so Brian and Kinzey's daily dates this past week have only caused the mousey yandere to fall deeper into her already-bad headspace.

I think she's waiting until after the Endbringer attack to see if Brian survives or not. She probably won't attack him, but I get the feeling she's gotten to the point where she'd wouldn't try to save him either, if it came to it.

You don't feel the Pagoda and its animated fixtures pause or flinch at that, but Lord Grasp doesn't respond right away to your mental musing.

If that were to occur, Warden... it could very well make a murderer out of Ms. Memory in turn. And if she discovered you knew of this danger and did nothing… well, I have seen Solar Circles shatter for lesser slights.

You frown into the cool, soft floor mat. Aisha has better self-control than that, but… yes, that would look very bad in hindsight. You were going to just warn Taylor about Penny's growing grudge and let her make sure it didn't become an issue during the upcoming fight since battlefield stuff is her job…

Your hand, close enough to reach out and grab Penny's leg, twitches.

No. Even if Spiking her to remove her obsession would be so easy… no. And using your Stare on her to rip away her emotional connection to Kinzey would probably get you in trouble - no way is she gonna consent to that "enhanced psychological treatment," either. Besides, it's not like they'd actually solve the root of the problem.

Your first plan - made with Sakura, back before... everything - was to wean her off Kinzey by throwing some of the girls at your school that are fans of Penny's music at her. Boost her confidence, give her eye candy, distract her long enough to break the fixation. Maybe you luck out and it gets her a real girlfriend! Wins all around.

Then you found out about the alien flesh-crystals poking peoples' heads, and now it's pretty clear there's some link between Kinzey and Penny's shards that isn't gonna just fade away no matter how many 'curious' fans you throw at her. And despite how easy it'd make your life, Mama Mathers seems to have been a unique case; you'd never noticed a way to directly interact with a parahuman's shard before her, and further experiments these past three days checking the new Wards (and their parents) for tampering hasn't shown any other similar shard 'ghosts' you can abuse.

Hmm. Maybe you're thinking about this the wrong way? What if… you treat shards as… giving people a subconscious 'use my powers' fetish that you also need to take into account? Making them… closet datasexuals?

You have taken one step closer to understanding spirits, dear Warden! Maker be praised!

You purse your lips, smushing them into the dojo floor's mat.

… I have so many questions.

And I am a font of lurid, decadent answers!

...later.

Well, that at least works with one of your more recent back-up plans. You should have enough time to pull it off right now, but it's going to require some extra sneaky-sneaky.

Lord Grasp, can you cover for me?

You feel the Pagoda lightly tremble in eagerness as you hear the half-dozen training dummies launch themselves into action again around you. The remaining Wards that were still up and finishing their warm-downs shout in dismay - well, everyone except Mjolnir, of course.

Never shall I turn down the opportunity for further attention, my dear! Scheme away without fear of discovery!

Sigh. The things you do in service of the Maker.

Activating your RIA, you cover yourself and Penny with a visual and auditory layer to hide what you're about to do underneath the illusion of your continued exhaustion.

Unseen to all but Xylophone, you make an awkward, clumsy attempt to stand that just so happens to fail because of your tiredness - one of your supporting hands lacking the strength to support your rise off the mat, causing you to tumble onto the weary, bruised, and unexpecting Striker beside you. The sudden tangle of limbs quickly leaves her splayed out, face-up on the mat while you straddle her, your faces barely inches apart.

Drops of liquid starmetal 'sweat' give your deep grey skin a glossy sheen, and the rainbow haze of your anima backlights your halo of obsidian hair that spills down and around your face. Though you don't need to breathe in your Alchemical form, you match your breathing with Penny's own frantic gasps of air as you meet her shocked gaze with your own lidded, intent stare.

Also, you're back in Maximum Hotness mode via your shapeshifting charm, so even if Penny wasn't pent-up enough to crystalize diamond and as thirsty as the Sahara, you would still be laser-etching this moment into her imagination for the rest of her days.

"Penny."

Ah. She's stopped breathing. Better add to the effect by using RIA to drown out the sounds of the rest of the world for her - all save for the rhythm of your heartbeats. You don't have much time before she passes out, best to get right to the point.

"Kinzey is straight."

It takes a few blinks, but her unfocused, lust-addled expression instantly sharpens in focus once she manages to process your words. Lips tight in determination, she opens her mouth to hiss something-

"N-no! She's just-"

-only to be cut off by two of your fingers atop her lips as you lean even closer, nearly touching her nose with your own.

"Brian is not your enemy," you whisper, then lean forward to murmur your declaration in her ear. "He is your chance."

Unsaid, you radiate a deeper question with your Emotive charm: What is the dream of all teenaged boys?

When you pull back, grinning, you watch her expression shift in time as she connects the dots: doubt, confusion, disgust… then realization.

"You've got some time to convince him," you wink. "Kinzey's 18th is coming up, isn't it?"

Enough time for her to change her deodorant, too. Blech. That 'organic' stuff Kinzey shills really doesn't work with Penny's body chemistry. You'll mention it later - for now, you just wait until Penny nods in understanding and… a bit more eagerness than you were expecting. Hmm.

No. None of that.

"We're all friends here, Penny," you smile serenely, holding her fixated gaze as you answer the question she would have soon asked. "… and friends don't hurt friends."

You discretely pull enough essence through Aura-Dampening Component for Rogue Cell Isolation Protocols, but don't push to fully activate it. Instead, you merely let the charm unfold behind your eyes and cause your gaze to become an endless, twisting labyrinth of terrifying mirrors - the unending nightmare held beyond your stare just barely at the edge of her perception.

Sliding your hand down from her lips, you pat her rapidly-paling cheek.

"But you're a good friend, aren't you?"

Penny swallows shakily, then manages a single nod.

Smiling broadly, you pull back on your intimidating magic eyeballs and straighten up as you move to stand.

"Don't be afraid to ask if you need any help, Penny," you murmur pleasantly, tuning down your Hotness with HSA and melding the RIA illusion so it looks like you're just standing up from where you were originally. "I always make time for friends."

Penny twitches for a moment as she continues her deer-in-headlights stare, but eventually manages a weak smile in return as her normal brain functions return.

"R-….right."

You nod in innocent satisfaction.

"Good! I'm glad-!"

Your words are cut off as there's a burst of blinding, kaleidoscopic light from above that fills the entire dojo-

"FLASHBANG SLAM!"

- and then, in a thunderclap of pain, Bladedancer's battered and broken form crashes down from the rafters, directly into you.


***

 

[uju32]

Starmetals be scheming...

Your words are cut off as there's a burst of blinding, kaleidoscopic light from above that fills the entire dojo-
"FLASHBANG SLAM!"
- and then, in a thunderclap of pain, Bladedancer's battered and broken form crashes down from the rafters, directly into you.

Click to shrink...

Dammit Aisha.

 

[landcollector]

Starmetals be scheming...

Dammit Aisha.

Click to shrink...

Look on the bright-ish side of things, at least "Flashbang Slam" isn't 100% awkward/cringe that some anime attack names are.

 

[Daemir]

I'll admit, that might just be a way to delay the yandere's explosion. Not prevent it, but delay it.

 

[veekie]

Are we sure she's not a Chosen of Venus?

 

[uju32]

Look on the bright-ish side of things, at least "Flashbang Slam" isn't 100% awkward/cringe that some anime attack names are.

Click to shrink...

Thats definitely Death From Nowhere Method she just used there.
A much more classy name than Flashbang Slam, which sounds like shes auditioning for the WWE.


This is why Aisha cant have nice things.
Or spar with anyone who isnt like a high-level Brute or Breaker; she's just fucking hilariously lethal in hand to hand, even without her blade active. And doesnt really grok her own strength.

And I bet Bladedancer didnt really internalize some of the warnings that the Jadeborn :RIP: sent along, and encouraged her to cut loose a little.

Hell, given as Aisha is the only present CMA practitioner, I dont think even Prayer really has internalized what it means that Aisha is a Celestial martial art practitioner. And she's our combat wombat.
Well, at least she's around to do some healing. Because ouch.

"Wooo! That… was, like…" you hear Geode tiredly exclaim as her footsteps come to a stop near your prone form. "That was so much funner than normal training! I probably won't even have to work out this afternoon!"

Click to shrink...

I have to admit.
Geode has grown on me. Like a fungus. If not for the fact that the only open slots for conversion are taken by very strong candidates, I would be considering her strongly just on personality alone.

 

[uju32]

One more thought before bedtime...
Ciara's around here in Lord Grasp's palatial housing somewhere, isnt she? And none of the people currently training here have been introduced.
Well, maybe Chevy knows. Definitely knows, I mean; Miss M would have told him, if noone else.

But they'd all recognize her on sight. Lol.
Hope she's still asleep, then.

 

[FunkyEntropy]

Well, uh, that update certainly went places.

 

[jwolfe_beta]

Starmetal is helping! And shipping.

 

[Slamu]

I love how it all clicked into place when she put the shard down as having a data kink. "I can use this."

 

[uju32]

HELMET!

Click to shrink...

Specifically relevant to Taylor's Mark II armor as pictured on the front page of the thread.
*scurries back into hiding*

 

[Gromweld]

No boob-armor on Wards! Glenn Chambers denies your request (but keeps a copy for re-evaluation upon graduation to the Protectorate).

Though given the dimensions of that 'suit' there'd barely be any space for squishy human parts, so it must be an Alchemical! The styling looks potentially Moonsilver-caste-ish, given the musculature definition.

 

[Ekzentric Lohner]

No boob-armor on Wards! Glenn Chambers denies your request (but keeps a copy for re-evaluation upon graduation to the Protectorate).

Though given the dimensions of that 'suit' there'd barely be any space for squishy human parts, so it must be an Alchemical! The styling looks potentially Moonsilver-caste-ish, given the musculature definition.

Click to shrink...

I imagine it's mainly the helmet that's being pointed out as a possible match.

 

[uju32]

No boob-armor on Wards! Glenn Chambers denies your request (but keeps a copy for re-evaluation upon graduation to the Protectorate).

Though given the dimensions of that 'suit' there'd barely be any space for squishy human parts, so it must be an Alchemical! The styling looks potentially Moonsilver-caste-ish, given the musculature definition.

Click to shrink...

I imagine it's mainly the helmet that's being pointed out as a possible match.

Click to shrink...

This.

Taylor's personal preferences for styling a suit, judging from the Mark 2 as opposed to the mostly Iris-styled Mark 1, are more likely to look like Earth Bet tinkertech and Earth Bet/Earth Aleph fiction. So visual references would look like of one of the female Iron Man suits (Riri/Ironheart, Pepper Potts/Rescue, Rhodey Stark/Iron Man 3030, Natasha Stark-Rogers/Earth 3490).

Unless someone she likes/trusts pushes her otherwise, like Dragon did with the famous/infamous silk dress back in BB.

Its not impossible she might go for a skinsuit like this on her own, but IMO there would have to be significant technological advantages to doing so.
Maybe if she cracks Machine Army dimensional technology/Endbringer material science, or gets her hands on some dragon armor/celestial battle armor/Jadeborn/raksha armor templates.

Of course, if Saki decides to intervene in the suit aesthetics, all bets are off.

 

[jwolfe_beta]

Of course, if Saki decides to intervene in the suit aesthetics, all bets are off.

Click to shrink...

And if Lord Grasp gets the opportunity to chip in well......

 

[RoninSword]

celestial battle armor

Click to shrink...

Doesn't she have this in the MotDG? Or is that different because it needs Iris to operate?

 

[uju32]

Doesn't she have this in the MotDG? Or is that different because it needs Iris to operate?

Click to shrink...

That's an Artifact NA suit of bullshit bullshittium made of unobtainium. Her Sunday best, and not something she can wear everyday.
And like you pointed out, the Mantle requires a Third Circle-equivalent to function, and Iris usually has a lot on his plate.
Normal celestial battle armor is only Artifact 5; dragon armor is Artifact 4, and arguably better to boot.

Taylor will have to make something less advanced(and less scary) for events short of a full Endbringer attack or ishvara incursion, when she finally gets around to making a Mark 3 or Mark 4 suit. Probably gonna need a bunch of exotic materials/technologies to boot: Machine Army dimensional technology, Endbringer construction material, and probably a sorcerer/protocol weaver assistant.

 

[uju32]

Because I can, and because we should attempt to stockpile more XP:

SAKURA KUROSAWA PROPOSED CHARACTER SHEET

---

Click to shrink...

---

---

NAME: Curator of Mirrored Possibilities
ALIASES: Sakura Kurosawa, Uzu, The Autochtonia Twin
EXALTATION: Alchemical
CASTE: Starmetal
ICONIC ANIMA: Brilliant, electrified, black-and-white filigree on a darkened sky, coalescing into a revolving spirograph that forms a lone yang symbol.
MOTIVATION: Hopebringer.
ESSENCE: ●●●●○ (4)

- CASTE:
Dexterity ●●●○○ (3)
Manipulation ●●●●● ●● (5+2=7)
Intelligence ●●●●○ ○ (3+1=4)
- FAVORED:
Stamina ●●●●● ○○ (3+2=5)
Charisma ●●●●● ●● (5+2=7)
Perception ●●○○○ (2)
- OTHER:
Strength ●●●●● ●● (5+2=7)
Appearance ●●●●● ●● (5+2=7)
Wits ●●●●●○○ (3+2=5)

ABILITIES
Archery/Firearms ●○○○○ (Specialty: Heavy Metal ●●○)
Athletics ●●●○○ (Specialty: Backwards and In High Heels ●●○)
Awareness ●●●●● (Specialty: Peoplewatching ●●○, In Deaths Ground ●●●)
Bureaucracy
Craft (Earth,Wood) ●○○○○ (Specialty: Landscaping ●●○, Fashion ●●○)
Dodge ●○○○○ (Specialty: Unarmored ●●●)
Integrity ●●●○○ (Specialty: Torture ●○○)
Investigation ●●●○○ (Specialty: Body Language ●●●)
Larceny ●○○○○ (Specialty: Copying ●○○)
Linguistics (Old Realm (Native), Japanese, English, Autochthonian, Rocktongue) ●●●○○ (Specialty: Tawdry Romances ●○○) [Dialect: Cryptophasia]
Lore ●●●○○ (Specialty: Parahumans ●●○, Tawdry Romances ●●●, Spatial Memory ●●●, Autochthonian History ●●○)
Martial Arts ●●●●● (Specialty:Unarmored ●●○)
Medicine ●●○○○
Melee
Occult ●●●○○
Performance ●●●●○ (Specialty: Disney Montage ●●●, Dance ●●○, Keeping Up Appearances ●●●)
Presence ●●●●○ (Specialty: Subtle Hints ●○○, Yenta ●●○, Body Language ●●●)
Resistance ●●●○○ (Specialty: Enduring Torture ●○○)
Ride
Sail
Socialize ●●●●○ (Specialty: Quiet Observations ●●○)
Stealth ○○○○○ (Specialty: Completely Harmless ●○○)
Survival
Thrown
War ●●○○○ (Specialty: Love Is A Battlefield ●●●)

==============
DEDICATED
**
Shard of Transcendental Imprisonment [3m][CANNOT BE REMOVED]
- Sub-Module: Eternal Interment Fail-Safes [ACTIVE]
- Sub-Module: Repurposed Armament Directives [ACTIVE]
- Sub-Module: Multi-Aperture Deployment [ACTIVE]
Perfected Lotus Matrix [2m] [CANNOT BE REMOVED]
- Sub-Module: Lotus Filament Conduction

EXPATRIATE ENVOY ARRIVAL SUBROUTINES ARRAY: 3m
4th Appearance Augmentation (x2) [1m]
4th Charisma Augmentation (x2) [1m]
4th Manipulation Augmentation (x2) [1m]
4th Intelligence Augmentation [1m]

GENERAL
********
SOPHONT PRESERVATION PROTOCOL ARRAY: 3m
4th Wits Augmentation (x2) [1m]
4th Strength Augmentation (x2)[1m]
4th Stamina Augmentation (x2) [1m]
Alloyed Reinforcement of Flesh [0m]
- Sub-Module: Tireless Pneumatic Musculature
Industrial Survival Frame [1m]
- Sub-Module: Crystal
- Sub-Module: Lightning
- Sub-Module: Metal
- Sub-Module: Oil
- Sub-Module: Smoke
- Sub-Module: Steam
- Sub-Module: Sixfold Transcendence Synergy
- Sub-Module: Environmental Dominance
- Sub-Module: Attack Assimilation Mode

SUPRANATIONAL PARADIGM MODIFICATION SUITE ARRAY: 3m
Unconditional Imperative Programming [1m]
- Sub-Module: Incarnate Law Speaker
- Sub-Module: Champion's Compelling Assertion
Perfected Union Patterning [1m]
Pattern Facilitation Module [1m]
Agenda Recalibration Protocols [1m]

TRANSMORPHIC SOPHONT ALGORITHMS ARRAY: 3m
Husk-Sculpting Apparatus [2m]
- Sub-Module: Self-Sculpt
- Sub-Module: Identity Distortion Mirage
- Sub-Module: Vocal Modulator Field
- Sub-Module: Essence-Warping Anatomy
- Sub-Module: Biochemical Synthesizers
- Sub-Module: Metamorphic Physiology
Integrated Artifact Transmogrifier [1m]
- Sub-Module: Loom Server Migration
- Sub-Module: Essence-Muting Baffles
- Sub-Module: Deep Cover Mode
Thousandfold Courtesan Calculations[1m]
- Sub-Module: Synthetic Bliss Engrams

TRANS-SOPHONT COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS ARRAY: 3m
Emotive Aesthetics of the Body Electric [1m]
- Sub-Module: Dormancy Emotive Upgrade
Interpolative Syntax Emulator [1m]
- Sub-Module: Infallible Fluency Vocoder
Programmed Catechism Rebuttal [1m]
- Sub-Module: Guardian Interjection Node
Industrial Champion Icon [1m][Exemplar 1]
- Sub-Module: Counter-Dissonance Stabilizer
- Sub-Module: Heresy Declaration Beacon

STANDALONE AUTONETIC COMPLEX: 2m (NOT AN ARRAY)
Hydraulic Musculature Reinforcement[1m]
Motivational Vocoder[1m]
- Sub-Module: Noetic Signal Booster


MOTE-FREE PERSISTENT BIONIC INSTALLATIONS: 0m (NOT AN ARRAY)
Enshrined Divinity Apparatus [0m]
Radiant Iconography Array [0m]
- Sub-Module: Chromatic Lies
- Sub-Module: Intrinsic Evocation System
Unobtrusive Repartee Baffles [0m]
Hierarchical Dogma Lock [0m]
- Sub-Module: Multimodal Duty Integrator (x4)
- Sub-Module: Herald Infuser
Aura-Dampening Component [0m]
Synaptic Acceleration Node [0m]
- Sub-Module: Inarguable Confidence Booster

CHARM PANOPLY
Rogue Cell Isolation Protocols [0m][Exemplar 1]
- Sub-Module: Instructive Fear Resonator

Patriotism-Provoking Display [1m]
- Sub-Module: Many Is One Node
- Sub-Module: One Is Many Node

Personality Override Spike [2m]
- Sub-Module: Identity Recalibration Signal
- Sub-Module: Mind-Ripping Probe
- Sub-Module: Memory Implantation Surge
- Sub-Module: Subsidiary Personality Implant

Multifunctional Hypodermic Apparatus [2m]
- Sub-Module: Anagathic
- Sub-Module: Antiseptic
- Sub-Module: Coagulant
- Sub-Module: Essence Infusion
- Sub-Module: Great Maker's Mercy
- Sub-Module: Metabolic Accelerator
- Sub-Module: Technoetic Infusion
- Sub-Module: Crystal Fly's Eye Potion
- Sub-Module: Exquisite Chef's Palette Potion
- Sub-Module: Munificent Antivenin
- Sub-Module: Philtre of Desire
- Sub-Module: Dutiful Militat Formula
- Sub-Module: Metal-Lightning Potion
- Sub-Module: Regulator-Issue Tranquilizer
- Sub-Module: Great Maker's Bane
=====================================================
MUTATION
Essence Abundance(Blight)x4: +40m[cap is one Essence pool expander charm or mutation per Essence level]
=====================================================
MARTIAL ARTS CHARMS/KINETIC OPTIONS SUITE:
Dreaming Pearl Courtesan: All charms
Violet Bier of Sorrows: Secrets of Future Strife
Throne Shadow Style: Lotus Eye Tactics, Lion Mouse Stratagem, Sifu's Useful Fingers, Unobstructed Blow, Throne Shadow Form, Horrific Wreath
=====================================================
BACKGROUNDS:
Ally (Isli the Brass Leviathan, E7 Lesser Elemental Dragon and former Western Arbiter of Storms of Creation's First Age)●●●○○
Ally (Siyas Ukka Ashjarem-Pless, E5 Enlightened Worker, Jadeborn Cyborg)●●○○○
Ally (Glori Bran Palas-Urvar, E5 Enlightened Warrior, Jadeborn Cyborg)●●○○○
Ally (Midnight Blue, E5 Artisan Jadeborn Cyborg Sorcerer. Fashionista)●●○○○
Artifact:●●●●● ●

• Artifact ●○○○○ (Essence-Scrying Visor.3m for a scene, or 3m committed. +2 Awareness. Pierces total darkness, fog,smoke,precipitation,thick underbrush and and any other non-solid barriers to vision. Sees immaterial beings, Essence-powered objects, and characters/objects under Charm influence.)
• Artifact ●○○○○ (Fivefold Harmonic Adapter. No attunement)** Damaged, nonfunctional.
• Artifact ●○○○○ (Collar of Dawns Cleansing Light. 1m attunement. Keeps wearer clean. Negates all penalties to Social rolls due to character being dirty or unkempt. +2 dice to Sta + Res rolls made against disease or poison.)
• Artifact ●●○○○ (Dragon Tear Tiara. 2m attunement. +1 Perception. OR +3 Occult to tasks that require occult sensitivity like astrology, detecting spirits and geomancy. Rolls for sorcery specifically excluded. Fluff as hair ornament)
• Artifact ●●○○○ (Heaven Thunder Leaves, matched pair.1 dot per leaf, 2m attunement each, 4m for pair.Starmetal MM bonus.Broad fan(s) reinforced with a magical material and painted with various scenes. Each set tells a classic legend or fable. Mundane warfan statserfect equipment + starmetal MM melee bonus = Speed 4, Accuracy +3, Damage +4L, Defense +4, Rate 3, Tags: M. Attracts attention of local Terrestrial gods on Dexterity/Charisma + Performance dance roll of at least 3 successes. Every success above 3 adds +1 to first subsequent social roll towards those gods, dice maximum +6. Fluff as being able to show Earth Bet stories)
• Artifact ●●○○○ (Transformative Armor.6L/4B, 2/2 Hardness.2m attunement. Set as fashionable dress(es))
• Artifact ●●○○○ (Warding Eye. Starmetal Thunderbolt Shield. Def+5. 5m attunement. Starmetal MM bonus: Allows the user to apply their shield-derived DV against one unexpected attack per scene)**
• Artifact ●●●○○ (Gauntlets of Distant Touch(WoTLA pg 76). 4m attunement, 3m activation. Range Essence*3 yards. Starmetal MM melee bonus: Acc +1, Dmg +3. All attacks are compatible with all Martial Arts. In close combat, add magical material bonus to unarmed punches, and parry both melee and ranged attacks. When activated, can perform hand tasks at range, deliver ranged MA hand strikes and clinches, parry attacks aimed at anyone within range, and impose -1 PDV to enemy PDV because of invisibility of force. Fluff as elaborate ladies' gloves which adjust appearance to complement the current outfit setting.)
• Artifact ●●●○○ (Smithers. Clockwork Efficacy Servitor. WoTLA pg 107). No attunement. Household/protocol/utility servitor robot. Potential to grow in value, or switch roles to Ally.
• Artifact ●●●○○ (Edge of No Other Purpose. Grand Daiklave. 8m attunement. Speed 5, Accuracy +1, Damage +11L/4, Defense +0, Rate 1, Tags: 2, O, R. Hearthstone sockets 3. Jade MM bonus: -1 Speed, +1 Damage.Starmetal MM bonus:+1 Accuracy, +3 Damage)** Damaged, nonfunctional.
• *Supplemented by copies from SoTI.
• **Not customarily attuned. Acquired by plot events, and not repaired for sentiment.

Backing (PRT) ●○○○○
Backing (Veterans of the Twilight Wars) ●●●●○
Command(Automatons) ●●○○○
Connections ●●●○○ (Jadeborn Conclave)
Connections ●●●○○ (Autochtonian Spirit Courts)
Connections ●●●○○ (Ten Nations)
Connections ●●●●○ (Ministerial Retinues)
Connections ●●●●● (Alchemical Community)
Connections ●●●●● (Estasia)
Eidolon/Past Lives ●●●○○
Familiar (Crushing Grasp, Spirit of the Mk III Siege Pagoda) ●●●●●
Influence(Autochtonia) ●●●●●
Mentor (Autochthon) ●●●●●
SoTI Arsenal (Autochtonian Artifacts) ●●●○○ (Artifact ratings 3 dots and below)
SoTI Arsenal (Autochtonian Equipment) ●●●●● (Non-artifact Autochtonian equipment)
SoTI Prisoner (Oberashti War, Palladium Worm Incident) N/A
Reputation (Ward) ●○○○○ "Oh, right, didn't Philly have those two Wards that can teleport? The Twister Sisters or something?"
Reputation (Alchemical) ●●●●● (Primordial Intervention)
=========================================================
INTIMACIES:
RED Intimacies have not been fully-established yet, and are not used for bonuses/negatives.
GREY Intimacies yield the normal bonuses/negatives until fully eroded.
Warden of Reflected Infinities (My Sister Is My Life) [Servitude] ●●●
My Mortal Existence (I Believe I Am Sakura) [Illusion] ●●●
Enduring Order Administrator (Savior Of The Broken) [Servitude] ●●●
Enduring Order Administrator (Friends Can Tell The Difference) [Illusion] ●●●
Enduring Order Administrator (Blinded By The Big Picture) [Emotion|Concern] ●●●
Gloria Sato (Parental Support When I Need It) [Emotion|Affection] ●●●
Philadelphia Wards (Friends In An Empty World) [Illusion] ●●●
PRT (Convoluted, Slow, Necessary) [Illusion] ●●●
Smutty Fiction (Our Secret With Mom) [Emotion|Affection] ●●●
Smutty Fiction (It's ART!) [Illusion] ●●●
Chevalier (I Bet Saki I Can Kiss Him Before She Kisses Armsmaster) [Illusion] ●●●
Enslavement (I Will Never Be Someone's Tool) [Emotion|Fury] ●●●
Lord Crushing Grasp (Delightfully Learned, Loquacious, Lewd) [Servitude] ●●●
Miss Militia|Hannah (So Cool She Forgot How To Be Normal) [Illusion] ●●●
Legend (A Hero, But Human) [Illusion] ●●●

Erlik, Apostate Metropolis (Wants Me For My Body)[Emotion|Fear] ●●●
Brasla Reyan Palas-Lutar, E5 Enlightened Jadeborn Warrior (Died So I Might Live) [Emotion|Grief] ●●●
Siyas Ukka Ashjarem-Pless, E5 Enlightened Jadeborn Cyborg, Shadow Finger (Going To Get Her Killed) [Emotion|Guilt] ●●●
Glori Bran Palas-Urvar, E5 Enlightened Jadeborn Cyborg, Shadow Finger (Going To Get Her Killed) [Emotion|Guilt] ●●●
Midnight Blue, E5 Artisan Jadeborn Cyborg, Shadow Finger(Childlike But Not Childish) [Emotion|Bemusement]●●●
Isli the Brass Leviathan,E7 Lesser Elemental Dragon, former Western Arbiter of Storms, Shadow Finger(My Responsibility)[Servitude]●●●
Smithers, Clockwork Efficiency Servitor, Shadow Finger (Nature is healing) [Emotion|Affection] ●●●
Herald of The Black Engine, Apostate Adamant (Making A List And Checking It Twice) [Emotion|Fury] ●●●
Jadeborn Society (What Brasla Would Have Wanted) [Servitude] ●●●
Estasia (No, You Move) [Illusion] ●●●
Estasia (A Place To Stand And A Lever) [Illusion] ●●●
Estasia (For It's Flaws, Still A Lot To Like) [Illusion] ●●●
Autochtonia (Cancelling The Apocalypse) [Illusion] ●●●
Junior Apprentice Surgeon Idina/Senior Surgeon Penthus (Cute Couple/Workplace Romance) [Illusion] ●●●
Tribute to Comrades Lost, Orichalcum Caste Champion of Estasia (Tricky)[Emotion|Reluctant Admiration] ●●●

Weld/EOA (CLANG CLANG CLANG) [Illusion] ●●○
Chevalier/EOA (Dark Chest of Wonders) [Illusion] ●○○
Kid Win/EOA (Awkward Artificers) [Illusion] ●○○
Gallant/EOA (White Knight Takes Black Queen) [Illusion] ●○○
Broadcast/Kid Win (Checking Structural Integrity Of This Ship) [Illusion] ●○○
Gallant/Vista (Love Can Find A Way Through Any Obstacle) [Illusion] ●○○
Transfusion/Vista (The Healing Hypercube) [Illusion] ●○○
Geode/Anyone But Xylophone (Don't Let Penny Know) [Illusion] ●○○
EOA/Dragon (Workshop Waifus) [Illusion] ●●○

===============================================================================================================
VIRTUES:
Valor: ●●○○○
Compassion: ●●●○○
Conviction: ●●●○○
Temperance: ●●○○○

CLARITY:
Temporary: ●●○○○ ○○○○○
Permanent: ●○○○○ ○○○○○

WILLPOWER:
Temporary: ●●●●● ○○○○○
Permanent: ●●●●● ●●●●●

MOTE POOL:
Respiration: Normal (4/hour active, 8/hour resting)
Personal: 0/22 [Charm Installations(22)]
Peripheral: 67/96[+Essence Abundance blight[10m]x4][-29m committed to artifacts]

HEALTH:
Sleep: Tired (-1 Internal Penalty)
Mental Integrity: Freaking Out
Wounds: None
Ailments:
Derangement (PTSD)
Mutation (Twin Souls) [Always know direction and health of other Twin; share Essence, Willpower pools and Charms when physically touching; death of one Twin kills other],
Mutation (Overclocked Frame) [+1 Essence Rating; +2 to Intimidation attempts; -2 to non-Intimidation social interactions; mundane stealth and attempts to disguise Alchemical nature automatically fail]

=================================================================================================
STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND: KUROSAWA SAKURA
The instantiation of Curator of Mirrored Possibilities hit Autochtonian society like a wrecking ball, and the ripples are still reverberating.

Arriving in the manner she did, and with the timing she did, with multiple witnesses including elder Alchemicals to the Godhead of Autochton has marked her across Autochtonian society as an instrument of the Maker's Will, and news of her origins have touched all of the Ten Nations and beyond. It gives her actions, and her opinions a weight unseen in a fresh Exalt since Autochton Exalted the First Eight.

Savants marvel at the speed at which she has acquired proficiency in a range of skills, and the unprecedented capabilities of her shard-charm.
Behind closed doors, there are more quiet mutterings about the ramifications of a situation that makes the Maker personally intervene in the process of Exaltation for the first time in several thousand years, and the implications of the society from which she claims origins.

The weight of expectations lie heavy.

Estasian citizens and Alchemicals at all levels are publicly and demonstrably proud of being Autochton's choice of society for her rebirth, and the logistical implications of her power have had significant impact on Estasian abilities to support remote outposts and expeditions, as well as access to rare deposits in the Reaches. The tone of her relationship with the Estasian public was set with her pivotal role in saving the Sutek Expedition from the Palladium Worm, and while her flat refusal to support offensive military operations do not sit well with the Estasian mindset, her actions in the Oberashti War and its aftermath saved the lives of millions across all Ten Nations.

Less publicly, tensions remain.

Coercive pressures to get her to commit to Estasian foreign policy precepts, while discussed at the highest levels, were abandoned with the arrival of her first Jadeborn bodyguard and her custom panoply, but more subtle pressures have remained. Her flat refusal to allow her power to be utilized as a bargaining chip or military threat against the other Nine Nations, while key to opening international doors and enabling cooperation on a range of issues, grates on high ranking Militate strategoi and Olgotary diplomats alike, as does her stated refusal to provide logistical support to any operations prosecuting warfare against other legitimate Autochtonian govts.

Her consistent, public opposition to the theory and practice of the doctrine of Estasian Manifest Destiny and her less public criticisms of Estasian military policy have brought her into repeated rhetorical conflict with powerful factions of Estasian governing orthodoxy, including Lux himself, who bestirred himself for a memorably fiery disagreement.
And certain factions and officials are increasingly unhappy about the increased Ministerial scrutiny her presence attracts to their fiefdoms.

But the recalcitrance and opposition of entrenched ideological factions and interests are far from Sakura's only concerns.
Multiple Apostates and gremlin lords, emboldened by the events of the Oberashti War, have made largely unsuccessful runs at her, from crude assassination attempts to more subtle attempts via striking at her through the arcane link of her banked charms.

In the last week, she and her entourage were attacked by what turned out to be operatives in service of an assassination-abduction plot by Erlik of Ten Thousand Blasphemies, acting overtly for the first time in millenia. It failed, but in the process left her with a captured and imprisoned E5 Erlikean Avatar-Body, a captive representing a priceless intelligence windfall on millenia of Apostate activity.

And temptingly, an arcane link for backtracking the body back to its parent city.
A priceless opportunity to remove a major threat to the Maker's wellbeing, should she throw her weight behind organizing a multinational force.
Or a cunningly laid trap.

Sakura's panoply was manufactured by the Jadeborn Conclave to custom specifications.

She wears a suit of Artifact 2 Transformative Armor, set as clothes(alternate option is Artifact 4 moonsilver/starmetal Infinite Resplendence Amulet). In a deliberate contrast to the robes and unisex trouser suits that dominate human Autochtonian society, it's programmed with an everchanging permutation of colorful flowing dresses from Earth Bet fashions and fictions, and accessorized with a variety of props, including hair ribbons, sashes, shawls, parasols and fans.

These are invariably paired with a collar of dawns cleansing light around her neck, a stylised dragons tear tiara in her hair, and a set of gauntlets of distant touch, with or without an essence-scrying visor. All of which have been observed to adjust themselves to suit the sartorial tone of her current outfit without apparently impeding their function or being any less recognizable.

Heaven thunder leaves may make an appearance on formal occasions or during visits to spirit areas, along with a clockwork efficacy servitor.

In the immediate aftermath of her first bodyguard's death she carried the starmetal thunderbolt shield and grand daiklave they left behind; a curious choice for a master martial artist, but one that served her well enough.
The shield still makes an occasional appearance, the sword does not.

Her Arsenal rating represents access to shard-emulated copies of every non-unique Artifact rated (Essence-1) or lower and examples of portable Equipment that have passed through the custody of her Shard-charm. At Essence 4, this includes access to Artifact 3 Brass Legionnaire-class military automatons and construction drones, which has materially increased her ability to apply military force or excess labor to a given task, and accounts for her current Command rating.

She is publicly known to be a master of the Dreaming Pearl Courtesan Style of Celestial Martial Arts, and a student of Throne Shadow Style.
Less publicly known is the fact that she is an initiate of the Violet Bier of Sorrows Style, but has chosen not to pursue it further, allegedly because she doesnt like the way that it makes her feel.

---

======================================================================================================================================
RATIONALE AND COMMENTARY
Autobot wouldnt make Saki a Scorpion/Cat Girl with a tail and not give her sister the same functionality.
Symmetry demands it. So Doomspike + Drug Factory Tail + Penance Stare are in her panoply, even though she doesnt use them as much due to a difference in approach.
Panoply also has five charms like her sister.

We have WoG that indicates that in her time in Autochtonia, Sakura has already been involved in at least two S-class incidents.
This points at an accelerated rate of XP gain compared to other members of the Assembly, especially since she gets to hog the XP alone. Combined with the access to pre-existing infrastructure, that justifies her significantly beefier loadout.

Smithers is an old, old Clockwork Efficiency Servitor looted by Sakura during a visit to Wisant in Nurad which survived one of their historical purges of advanced automatons. Protocol/household robot with high Craft and socials from age; forgot original given name due to damage. May still grow up to fully sapient lifeform. Think a much more competent C3PO.

Name options were either Smithers from The Simpsons or Geoffrey from Fresh Prince, and I didnt think an Autochtonian servitor would be programmed with Geoffreyan snark.
*********************************************************************************************************************************************
+1 Wits, +1 Strength and +1 Dexterity at E4.
Wits because Wits 5 is a SoTI submodule prereq, Strength to increase her ability to lift stuff, and Dexterity just because she lives in a warzone, and the death of her previous bodyguard inspired a little more militancy. She really should get Stamina 5+2, but Im leaving that for her E5.

Strength 7, Essence 4, Athletics 3(+2 Unarmored), with Hydraulic Muscular Reinforcement making Strength count twice for the purpose of feats of strength. SoTI FoS Score is [(Essence 4*<Str 7*Hydraulic Muscle Reinforcement 2>) + Athletics 3 + Specialty 2] = 56+3+2 = 61.
FoS 61 = 705 tons carry weight. Enough to move a bunch of Colossi or Warstriders at a time. Or Artifact 4/5 vehicles. Or heavy industrial equipment.

Burn a WP to add half permanent WP to the roll, and FoS becomes 66, which is 1355 tons.

Hydraulic Muscle Reinforcement should damn well allow her wield a grand daiklave one-handed as well. If not, a thunderbolt shield is no encumbrance. If the shield is not allowed, use a fan.Both blade and shield belonged to her first, dead bodyguard.
Besides, frankly, someone with Mentor 5 Autochton in Autochtonia is not going to be short on access to artifacts. Especially if they only need to borrow them.

High App DPC stylist and social expert wearing long flowing outfits in Autochtonia.Looks are in theme. So a Collar of Dawns Cleansing Light is necessary.

Light implosion bows, concussive Essence cannon variants up to Medium and lightning ballista are all Artifact 3 or smaller, which makes them all duplicable by Essence 4 SoTI, but since only Sakura can use it, she(or automatons under her control) need to be involved in the firing.
Which is where her Archery/Firearms rating comes from.

Bigger artillery like medium implosion bows(Art 4), Large(Art 4) and Very Large(Art 5) concussive Essence cannon, and stormhammers(Art 5) cant yet be duplicated by SoTI, but they can be maintained and reloaded(for those that can use alchemical fuels). Which means in the event of gremlin hunting in blight zones, reconnaissance by artillery fire becomes a viable tactic without worrying about logistical concerns or wasting Essence.

Presence(Yenta) and War(Love Is a Battlefield) are both specialties.
She is based out of a nationstate that enjoys its conflict between love and duty stories, and there's noone to restrain her shipping impulses. So....

VBoS form weapons are sword(all types), staff and knife and artifact versions thereof, which allows her to use a grand daiklave with MA instead of having to buy Melee, and justifies buying VBoS charms instead of dots of Melee. Thats the OOC reason. IC, multiple brushes with death and gremlins resulted in a somewhat more militant outlook than her sister at first, before backtracking into something less brutally lethal.

Two replacement bodyguards instead of one. One each from Warrior and Worker Jadeborn castes.
Artisans remain too scarce to be spared.

A full shard(100) of Enlightened Jadeborn was originally in the works after the Oberashti War both as a not-so-subtle hint to the Estasia and a reinforcing unit that Sakura could draw on for both martial and manufacturing aid. However, a certain someone murdered a whole bunch of high-Essence Jadeborn doing important manufacturing work, and the majority were diverted to help staff the replacement crews.

Whether that was a deliberate move to limit the hard power options of a chaotic agent by a longtime skeptic of organizational change or just a happy coincidence for the Divine Minister of Dogma in the course of his duties is left to your speculation.

-Sakura holds the Palladium Worm and its pilot Idriandiot in detention.

SoTI stripped the subroutine of it's automaton-body as per standard weapon protocols, but Divine Minister Domadamod has so far declined to come retrieve and reformat his erstwhile subordinate, presumably because it would require walking into the Shard of Transcendent Imprisonment. And Sakura has declined to release the pilot back out because of standing Shard protocols regarding Gremlin Disease-infected inmates, which would require the assistance of her sister or Autochton's direct mandate to alter.

-Isli the Brass Leviathan was looted by the Viator during their raid on Creation.
Turns out that when you've been turned into a programmed death machine by a mad Solar, you're eligible for Vision's Total Control charms against destroyer spirits.
Used during the Twilight Incursion to help loot a bunch of sites and fight off hostile objectors.

Chucked into storage when it was brought back to Autochtonia since there was no need for a war machine of that potency.
Broken out in a hurry during the Oberashti War and placed under Alchemical command to combat the gremlin hordes; as a non-Autochtonian, it wasnt bound by any geases against Autochtonian-originated entities.

Fixed by Sakura and SoTI after it received battlefield damage during that campaign;the shard de-equipped the vessel-automaton, and it and Sakura directly deprogrammed and healed the lesser elemental dragon Isli. Sakura, much like her sister, takes a very dim view of slavery. Gained her an Ally 3 lesser elemental dragon of water/air that lived through the First Age and most of the history of Creation.

And the irritation/amusement of various Divine Ministers in turn, depending on their temperament.
They still have regular tea parties every week.

-Influence 5 because after the manner of her Exaltation, and her work in the Oberashti War, they HAVE heard of her.
And Sakura is the naturally more forward of the Twins.

-Command 2 represents control over a reinforced platoon of 125 soldiers, with Command 1 being 25 soldiers and Command 5 representing 5000-10000 soldiers.
It is canon that Autochtonia has no lack of automatons, or the ability to build them, even though they rather use human labor because of the way prayer-mechanics work( Creation figured out how to make automation work with that back in the First Age, but that's an argument for another time).

What rather changes the whole picture is Sakura's access to a personally loyal force that can't be subverted by hostile magic due to the way SoTI replicates and repairs automatons. On the one hand it makes her a lot less worried about her bodyguards, since she can give them meatshields, and gives SoTI additional armaments.
On the other hand, it makes serious people in quiet rooms draw up contingency plans for the future.
===========================================================================================

Article:

BOX: MUSIC
Courtesy TVTropes:
Malfeas is twisted and agonized and full of hatred for both himself and everything else in existence. And yet... sometimes, when demons play music, a man made of brass appears in their midst. This is Malfeas himself. And what does he do in a demon's party? He dances. That's all. And he dances beautifully, and without a care. Most demons believe that, in these brief moments between his fits of rage, Malfeas is at peace.

This could also be a reflection of the nature of this universe; music is what brings everything and everyone together. The Primordials loved music. The Fair Folk love music. Mortals love music. The dead love music. Demons love music. Song and dance are a fundamental part of Creation; the fact that its imprisoned makers haven't twisted this into something horrible says a lot about them.

===============================================================================================

Article:

BOX: BACKING VETERAN OF THE TWILIGHT WARS
This represents the surviving combatants of the Twilight Incursion, Autochtonian and Creation-born.
Some of them did go into Minister-mandated stasis for one reason or the other, but the vast majority, Alchemicals, spirits and behemoths, went into genpop and have worked their way into various positions of influence.

Most of them have maintained a loose information and influence network since then.
All of them saw a universe die at the hands of the Breakers, which was a singularly traumatizing event. Had to turn down requests for help, turn a deaf ear to bitter curses.

They have collated and tracked reports on the health of the Maker with concern, and have worriedly noted the silence on the part of the Ministers to even the most oblique inquiries about future plans. And are some of the most relieved when news of the Earth Bet Assembly made it into the public domain after Sakura's Exaltation.
They remain some of Sakura's quietest but most solid supporters.

=========================================================================================================

Article:

BOX: COMMAND (AUTOMATON)
This represents access to mass combat-relevant numbers of automatons rated Artifact 3 or less due to SoTI replication.
Examples include utility bots like the Folding Servant (Art 2, WoTLA 99) and Clockwork Efficacy Servitor(Art 3 for secondgen, Art 5 for firstgen which can self-replicate) to heavy construction models like the Hand of the Mountain (Art 2, WoTLA 99) to the military-spec Brass Legionnaire(Art 3, WoTLA 103-104).

When the enabling submod activated at Essence 4, it came as quite the surprise to her. To the other assorted watchers as well, from the Divine Ministers down.

=========================================================================================================

Article:

BOX:JADEBORN CYBORG TEMPLATE
The post-exodus Jadeborn Conclave, upon settling down in new settlements, received Ministerial dispensation to access some of the miracles of the Machine God in order to help Mountain Folk society adapt to life in the belly of their god. At E5+, Enlightened Jadeborn with access to a vat and the prerequisite personnel may install (Essence*2) Alchemical charms like an E3 Alchemical.

Exceptions are made for the Weaving Engines and Perfected Lotus Matrix. Some examples of common configurations include:
Aegis-Pattern Augmentation Core:
4th Stamina Augmentation x2: +2 Sta [1m]
4th Dexterity Augmentation x2: +2 Dex[1m]
Subcutaneous Armor Plating x3: 6L/9B [1m]
Pain-Suppression Nodes:-Essence/2 wound penalties[1m]
Alloyed Reinforcement of Flesh: Prevents incapacitation Essence times in a scene[0m]

Arete-Pattern Augmentation Core:
Multiphase Divinity Regulator: Enter spirit sanctums, permakill spirits: [1m]
Thermionic Orthodoxy Array: Reformatting shadowland/blight/Wyld zone. [1m].
Imprinted Data Cluster: Free reprogrammable specialties.[1m]
Light-Etched Interceptor Barrier: Cover DV, perfect parry each scene, mote regen against energy attacks [1m]
Auxiliary Essence Storage Unit: Extra motes [1m].
Man-Machine Weaving Engine: Tier 1 workings [1m]

 

[Ekzentric Lohner]

STANDALONE AUTONETIC COMPLEX: 2m
Hydraulic Musculature Reinforcement[1m]
Motivational Vocoder[1m]
- Sub-Module: Noetic Signal Booster

Click to shrink...

Why are these in an array? Putting things in an array doesn't save on motes until you've got at least 4 motes' worth of charms in it. Without that savings, the loss of flexibility doesn't seem worth it.

MOTE-FREE PERSISTENT BIONIC INSTALLATIONS: 0m
Enshrined Divinity Apparatus [0m]
Radiant Iconography Array [0m]
- Sub-Module: Chromatic Lies
- Sub-Module: Intrinsic Evocation System

Click to shrink...

Is this supposed to be an array, or is it a list of loose 0m charms that got an extra empty line added between the RIA submodules and the next charm? If it's the former, the same question as the one about STANDALONE AUTONETIC COMPLEX applies.

 

[uju32]

Why are these in an array? Putting things in an array doesn't save on motes until you've got at least 4 motes' worth of charms in it. Without that savings, the loss of flexibility doesn't seem worth it.

Click to shrink...

I use Standalone Complex to designate charms that are installed but not configured in an array.
Sorry for the confusion.

Is this supposed to be an array, or is it a list of loose 0m charms that got an extra empty line added between the RIA submodules and the next charm? If it's the former, the same question as the one about STANDALONE AUTONETIC COMPLEX applies.

Click to shrink...

Loose 0m charms.
Persistent installation, no array.

EDIT
Tags included to make it explicit which are arrays and which are not.

 

[Gromweld]

Sorry for the delay, I've had to pick up slack at work from people taking vacation. I get time to myself come next Sunday, finally, so should be able to get back in the writing headspace then.

SAKURA KUROSAWA PROPOSED CHARACTER SHEET

Click to shrink...

This is very well done! Obviously, a lot of work went into it, so here's the reward up-front: +2XP!

That being said...

RATIONALE AND COMMENTARY
Autobot wouldnt make Saki a Scorpion/Cat Girl with a tail and not give her sister the same functionality.
Symmetry demands it. So Doomspike + Drug Factory Tail + Penance Stare are in her panoply, even though she doesnt use them as much due to a difference in approach.
Panoply also has five charms like her sister.

Click to shrink...

Saki got the Mean Charms. Sakura got the Nice Charms. They're not symmetrical, they're (socially, charm-wise) designed as polar opposites to play up the yin-yang theme - it's also shown in the white flooring of Sakura's side of SoTI.

Some good ideas on the panoply, though! Probably going to use some of them.

 

[Ekzentric Lohner]

Sorry for the delay, I've had to pick up slack at work from people taking vacation. I get time to myself come next Sunday, finally, so should be able to get back in the writing headspace then.


This is very well done! Obviously, a lot of work went into it, so here's the reward up-front: +2XP!

That being said...

Saki got the Mean Charms. Sakura got the Nice Charms. They're not symmetrical, they're (socially, charm-wise) designed as polar opposites to play up the yin-yang theme - it's also shown in the white flooring of Sakura's side of SoTI.

Some good ideas on the panoply, though! Probably going to use some of them.

Click to shrink...

I remember WoG somewhere about the twins' charms being equally compatible with either twin, so they technically have a common panoply, but they can't exactly transfer the parts of that panoply that each one has access to between worlds due to the Seal of Eight Divinities.

 

[uju32]

*checks*
*fixes error where forgot to add installed Wits charms to Attribute rating*

This is very well done! Obviously, a lot of work went into it, so here's the reward up-front: +2XP!
That being said...

Click to shrink...

Yay.
Now just have to finish that of a couple NPCs.

Saki got the Mean Charms. Sakura got the Nice Charms. They're not symmetrical, they're (socially, charm-wise) designed as polar opposites to play up the yin-yang theme - it's also shown in the white flooring of Sakura's side of SoTI.
Some good ideas on the panoply, though! Probably going to use some of them.

Click to shrink...

Oh sure, I didnt mean to imply they'd have identical charm loadouts; they are meant to be complementary, not identical.
I just didnt think Autobot would make one identical twin a catgirl and the other not one.
So I gave her the Drug Factory Tail.

Not entirely sure what my precise train of thought was when I included Penance Stare + Doomspike tho.

I think the thematic point I was trying to make was that it was an option open to her(being able to absorb spirits would be useful), but that its one she's deliberately turned away from for Reasons in part having to do with not having a supportive Assembly to sound board. Since she has....disagreements with her Estasian hosts and many other Autochtonians on ethical judgements.

I echoed the same point with VBoS, where she does a one-charm dip and turns away to Throne Shadow, instead of going on to Blade of the Battle Maiden and Joy in Adversity for much the same reasons.

Sakura being a Dreaming Pearl Courtesan practitioner does mean that if/when Saki picks up a CMA, its not going to be the same thing.
Probably Crane Style, since its defensively thematic and nonlethal, and the form solves Saki's balance issues in combat while leaving her non-Feat of Strength Athletics rating mostly the same for maximum amusement value.

Silver-Voiced Nightingale is the other option I can think of, but doesnt really seem to fit.

 

[uju32]

This was Nellens Cyan, real name Manosque Cyan.
Scion of an Imperial House, hidden heir of another proscribed House.
Senator of the Imperial Deliberative of the Scarlet Empire.

Fiend Caste Infernal.
You can find her in Scroll of Exalts.
I love the art though, even though I cant find who did it.

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One last point I forgot to make:
All legal vat complexes in Autochtonia are connected via a magical network of sorts; even the Adamant metropoli as I understand it, though I assume that either their network addresses are hidden, or that the metropoli all know but dont mention it to anyone else.

Anyway, an Alchemicals charms can be transferred over arbitary distances via that network over 24 hours; you can move to a different city to do some work and have your alternative panoply follow you within the next day.

This leads me to conclude that most of Sakura's charms are actually made over in Om and just show up in the vat complex at Lux to the surprise and occasional frustration of the city's politicians who intend to use the availability of new charms as a point of leverage.

 

[Gromweld]

Oh sure, I didnt mean to imply they'd have identical charm loadouts; they are meant to be complementary, not identical.
I just didnt think Autobot would make one identical twin a catgirl and the other not one.
So I gave her the Drug Factory Tail.

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Sakura doesn't have the tail, she has the other half of the requisite "scorpion-girl" appendages. Which has/have served her well, since she's seen LOTS more high-powered combat than Saki has.

I think the thematic point I was trying to make was that it was an option open to her(being able to absorb spirits would be useful), but that its one she's deliberately turned away from for Reasons in part having to do with not having a supportive Assembly to sound board. Since she has....disagreements with her Estasian hosts and many other Autochtonians on ethical judgements.

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Only their starting-loadout charms have the potential to be "version 2.0" upgrades to their normal Autochthonian counterparts, so while she may have picked up some of the charms that Saki started with later on they won't possess the same boosts as Saki enjoys (without further tweaking). For example, if she picked up a Spike it wouldn't automatically have the ability to directly drop stuff into SoTI like Saki's does.

This leads me to conclude that most of Sakura's charms are actually made over in Om and just show up in the vat complex at Lux to the surprise and occasional frustration of the city's politicians who intend to use the availability of new charms as a point of leverage.

Click to shrink...

Any new charms that Sakura has acquired has been through normal channels, so they do possess that leverage. Since Sakura first experienced Alchemical-ness through Taylor and Prayer, however, if they try to pressure her she's fine with the attitude of "okay, I'll just make do with what I have."