[Exalted, ?] Most High
- Thread starter Rihaku
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- exalted (white wolf)
Rihaku
The Internet
I wouldn't say dilution. Dilution implies weakening, and nothing is weakened or removed. All of Odyssial's memories are completely coherent with how Ulyssian would act in the same situation, and vice versa, pretty much. They're the same person. That is true even outside of perfect fusion, in that their core characteristics are identical.
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I wonder what this could mean. Could it perhaps be that, exactly as Odyssial planned, Ulyssian would receive his memories at such a rate as to prevent his overwhelming, or "dilution"? As we grow in capacity to handle Odyssial's power, we will receive it.
Usernames
Merc gonna merc ya
*Ulyssian will be significantly stronger than a standard Solar who has just Exalted, maybe the equivalent of one year's worth of training for a normal Solar.
*Odyssial will retain all relevant memories to fully capitalize on such preparations as he made, if he decides to.
*They are the same person, so you can refer to them interchangeably. NPCs will typically go by whichever name is more familiar to them.
It's not so much that I'm worried about whether we can manage the risk and downside of Totality (though I am); it's the fact that there is a separation in that option involved. I wanted an integrated Odyssial; I didn't want a "fighting your past incarnation" type of story.
By that criteria, Identity Crisis also doesn't give me what I want.
The only one where there is a separate consciousness is Totality. And the problem with that -- besides the fact that it's a supermode that wants to take over -- is that even in Totality, the 2nd consciousness is only active during brief moments. It spends most of it's time being "not", so there's nobody to talk to.
It sounds like what you want is something like a Coadjutor background. Having a mental friend, a voice in your mind? Well, none of these 3 options really give you that.
By that criteria, Identity Crisis also doesn't give me what I want.
As I understood it, none of the options really allow for a... "voice in the back of your head" deal. There is no interaction because there are not two different people.
The only one where there is a separate consciousness is Totality. And the problem with that -- besides the fact that it's a supermode that wants to take over -- is that even in Totality, the 2nd consciousness is only active during brief moments. It spends most of it's time being "not", so there's nobody to talk to.
It sounds like what you want is something like a Coadjutor background. Having a mental friend, a voice in your mind? Well, none of these 3 options really give you that.
Guile
Having a really great time right now
So it would essentially be,
Uly: "... Huh. I remember what it was like to be a human before the Age of Glory. ... Times were tough. ... Not really that different, though."
I disagree, the two complement and enhance the whole in a synergy that makes the end result better than they would be separately. Essentially as Planned doesn't result in a watered down anything but rather an enhanced Oddysial/Ulyssian.
So... you're saying that we could, essentially, view this as "Ulyssian just went on the most
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- Location
- The savanna.
It's hard to truthfully claim that it enhances Odyssial when it manifestly does not gives us anywhere near his full glory, which only Totality truly approaches.
So as Ulyssian rises in power then more of the memories come to the fore. So not quite as many extra ability dots as I thought.
I guess one thing Totality would make possible would be getting access to the Imperial Manse even if it just a little bit to access the creation wide address artifacts to raise the standard for the Odyssians to gather once more and announce that the Most High has returned.
Might be possible to do the above with Everything as Planned if we got really lucky and got the right Larceny charms. But a really, really long shot to even attempt it, but we would be better equipped to do it than the Empress did fr the first time.
It organically incorporates Ulyssian and Odyssial without overwhelming one or the other. That was Odyssial's plan and it's the Way he found which gave all the benefits of a reincarnation via new perspective while integrating his memories. It says so right on the tin
To be perfectly fair, what the Empress did should not have been possible. The Sword of Creation was never designed to be wielded by any Terrestrial, no matter how puissant, which is precisely why it's such a remarkable feat. Having better odds than she did does not mean we are anywhere near likely to succeed.
Rihaku
The Internet
Does anyone object to taking Lore as your last Favored Ability?
If you voted for Sail, you don't get a vote. Ingrates!
There's not even a separate consciousness in that case. It's the same stream of consciousness experiencing both. Sort of like, if Lea removed all her traits, then gave herself the traits of a young Exalt, and then gave herself the traits of an Elder Exalt, and then went back to being a young Exalt again. She'd experience everything. The quest doesn't end cause you die, the quest ends because Odyssial is too powerful to be meaningfully interacted with outside of a scene at a time.
Hm. @Alectai, I have given some thought to your arguments. I think I will add a clause to Totality's possession mechanic whereby Odyssial's period of control is determined by how coherently he acts in sync with Ulyssian's current emotions and motivations. If he acts totally against them, he disappears almost instantly. If he acts almost totally in Ulyssian's best interests, he can persist for a scene. That constrains his scope of action considerably, making the effects of a emergence more predictable for the playerbase.
If you voted for Sail, you don't get a vote. Ingrates!
There's not even a separate consciousness in that case. It's the same stream of consciousness experiencing both. Sort of like, if Lea removed all her traits, then gave herself the traits of a young Exalt, and then gave herself the traits of an Elder Exalt, and then went back to being a young Exalt again. She'd experience everything. The quest doesn't end cause you die, the quest ends because Odyssial is too powerful to be meaningfully interacted with outside of a scene at a time.
Hm. @Alectai, I have given some thought to your arguments. I think I will add a clause to Totality's possession mechanic whereby Odyssial's period of control is determined by how coherently he acts in sync with Ulyssian's current emotions and motivations. If he acts totally against them, he disappears almost instantly. If he acts almost totally in Ulyssian's best interests, he can persist for a scene. That constrains his scope of action considerably, making the effects of a emergence more predictable for the playerbase.
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- Location
- N36°3.38472, W112°8.1894
You assume totality isn't coming out in life or death situations then disappearing immediately after, as is sort of hinted in the option. And if we rely on it too much, its BAD END, the only one mentioned explicitly so far, even.
[X] Essentially As Planned
I just don't like the others. A you lose button? No thanks. The XP Cost is temporary compared to the other costs...
I just don't like the others. A you lose button? No thanks. The XP Cost is temporary compared to the other costs...
- Location
- The savanna.
Man, first I have to fight this uphill battle against the bandwagon, now I don't even get a bloody vote? I feel oppressed!
Rihaku
The Internet
You'd better, maggot! There'll be no mutiny on THIS ship, thank you very much.
Ship? Oh I guess Oddysial didn't take Sail but Rihaku sure did
Well, I would suggest Occult, but that's mainly because I want Sorcery. The other Occult charms don't appeal to me that much, so I suppose Lore's pretty decent.
- Location
- The savanna.
Oppression aside, what does everybody think about the new Totality caveat? Odyssial has to act in our best interests. No bootstrapping himself up to omnipotence or rigging things so we need him again. I think it makes the option much more appealing. Thoughts?
It could have been worse. If you didn't use so many reincarnation options on this you would not have been left with a choice and everything would have been decided by dice.