General Exalted Thread

[Aleph]

Honestly, I would just compress the current five Dawn abilities down into Melee, Ranged and Command, and have done with it.

 

[Romantic_Kaiju]

If it were up to you, would you let a player use Melee for a brawling supplement?

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Nope, And if you grab a martial art that can use a weapon, when you use a weapon you have to have a Melee+specialty rating = to the MA rating of the Charms you know (Bare-handed brawling is Martial arts in second, brawling aids fall under MA, while Close combat weapons are under Melee)

Honestly, I would just compress the current five Dawn abilities down into Melee, Ranged and Command, and have done with it.

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That Actually looks like a really good idea Aleph

 

[Aleph]

It's one of the hacks we're using in Kerisgame. Makes everything so much easier.

 

[ThatGazzer]

It's one of the hacks we're using in Kerisgame. Makes everything so much easier.

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Can you elaborate? Might want to use it for any homebrewed Exalted games.

 

[horngeek]

One hack that was often used in Giant in the Playground Exalted games was to give free Excellencies. Five for Solars and Abyssals, Three for... I think three for Lunars, DB and Sidereals, and one free Excellency (plus the additional purchases you make as Essence increases). I forget how many for Alchemicals.

 

[Aleph]

Can you elaborate? Might want to use it for any homebrewed Exalted games.

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If you're not playing an Infernal, there's not much point, since they're the only ones with non-Ability or -Attribute based Charms, and this hack basically rips the Attribute/Ability system already in place to shreds and replaces it with something sleeker.

But if you want it anyway, we compressed the 9 Attributes and 25 Abilities down into a much more sensible 5/15 (which also makes it easy to set the relative xp costs - which are flat, same amount per dot no matter which one you're buying - to raise them. Attributes are 9xp, Abilities are 3xp. Styles are 2xp per dot.)

Attribute-wise, we fused Strength and Dexterity into Physique, since you actually kind of have to have muscle strength in order to move fast. Stamina, a bit of Strength and some of nWoD's Resolve became Endurance. Cognition is basically Intelligence with a bits of Wits. Reaction is a mixture of Wits, Perception and some social stuff - how well you notice things, how well you think on your feet, etc. You make Reaction+Awareness rolls, and it's also a social skill, since social interactions require fast reactions and subtle cues. The distinction between Charisma and Manipulation was basically meaningless, especially since real socialites use both, so we fused them into Persuasion; the "talking people into doing what you want" skill. If you have something against lying, that's just a roleplay thing. This also balanced them fairly well and meant that there wasn't really a god-stat in the sense that Dex was.

Ability-wise, we fused the Dawn skills into Command, Melee and Ranged - Command being leadership; arraying troops and training warriors and leading men into battle. The Zenith skills fused Survival and Resistance - which was basically "Stamina; the Attribute" - expanded Performance to be artistic expression in general, from poetry to painting to dance, and mostly folded Integrity into Presence; leaving them with Expression, Presence and Survival. We were doing this with an eye to how each Caste acted in the war, so we decided that if Dawns were leading men on the front lines and Zeniths were the standard-bearers bolstering morale among the troops; Twilights were the strategists and generals pouring over maps in big tents or at HQ. Investigation is much the same as always; Lore is general "humanities" knowledge, has taken quite a bit from Linguistics in literacy, "how you sound in writing" and the like, and is also what you use for planning campaigns and other "long-term strategy" stuff (shorter-term tactics in a single battle or for on-the-spot leadership of a small squad towards a set objective would be Command). If Lore is the humanities - geography, history, classics, etc; then Occult is the sciences, and has swallowed Craft and Medicine - the blacksmith of a village is, after all, a little bit magical, and sciences in Creation are closely linked to Essence and least gods and so on. Night-wise, Athletics has swallowed Dodge, Awareness is much the same, and Stealth and Larceny have been fused into a general skulduggery skill; Subterfuge. Lastly, the Eclipse abilities for the Exalts who managed the logistics and supply trains of the Primordial War armies; they have Bureaucracy, Socialise has become Politics, and Ride and Sail are fused into Travel.

To compensate for how the Abilities are wider in scope, mortals are limited to buying 2 dots in an Ability has a whole - 3 for truly exceptional heroic mortals - and use the Style system to specialise in specific subsets of a skill - a blacksmith would have maybe one dot in Occult and then two more in Iron-Handed Labourer style. This keeps their dice pools about the same, but means that they're far tighter; thematically - you don't have omnitactical combat hydras, you have a Realm Dynast who's been taught the spear, the sword and the longbow. Or your doctor doesn't have a massive breadth of medical know-how on everything ailment-related, but is a damn good surgeon due to Sawbones Form. Enlightened characters can buy Abilities all the way up to 5; as their holistic understanding of a skill is greatly aided by perception and comprehension of the Essence of all things.

 

[SerGregness]

Maybe I'm missing something, but if Dex was a god stat before, and you made it broader I don't understand how that makes it less of a god stat.

EDIT: Err, crap, how do I get rid of the die roll?

SerGregness threw 1 6-faced dice. Total: 2

 

[Cosar]

Maybe I'm missing something, but if Dex was a god stat before, and you made it broader I don't understand how that makes it less of a god stat.

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There are 2 ways to remove Dex as a god stat: re-write the system so that importance is spread out, or re-write it so that the other options don't exist(because if you only have one state, then it's not really a god-stat). They seem to have largely gone for the latter option(yeah, stamina is still there, but it's appears to have been buffed a bit, and depending on the rules it could actually be reasonable important. Certainly a second tier stat, but still one you need for combat).

At least, that's how I would see it.

 

[Aleph]

Maybe I'm missing something, but if Dex was a god stat before, and you made it broader I don't understand how that makes it less of a god stat.

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Instead of decreasing Dex's importance, we've increased the others. Reaction, Cognition, Persuasion and to a slightly lesser extent Endurance are all about as useful, important and vital for various character concepts as Physique is (I admittedly haven't had to do many Endurance rolls, but part of that is because Keris never wears armour, doesn't try to go for days without food or sleep, and doesn't technically need to breathe while swimming underwater, or indeed at all).

 

[SerGregness]

I'm actually more interested in the principles stuff to be honest. It says that it replaces intimacies along with Virtues, but since they go to 5 does that mean the MDV adjustment goes to 5 as well?

 

[Kylar]

If you're not playing an Infernal, there's not much point, since they're the only ones with non-Ability or -Attribute based Charms, and this hack basically rips the Attribute/Ability system already in place to shreds and replaces it with something sleeker.

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Hey that's not true.

You could totally play a Jadeborn/Dragon King with this system .

 

[Aleph]

I'm actually more interested in the principles stuff to be honest. It says that it replaces intimacies along with Virtues, but since they go to 5 does that mean the MDV adjustment goes to 5 as well?

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+/-5 dice to your MDV, yes, because if you try to make someone go against something they literally care about on the same level as surviving, you're going to have a bloody hard time of it.

That said, if you try and load yourself down with a bunch of 5-dot Principles:
a) You are playing a batshit insane nutcase.
b) If anyone works out what they are and starts social-attacking you in ways that play to them, you're about as hard to manipulate as warm playdough.

(Keris has "Be Loved" at 5 dots and "Get Revenge" at 4, which has so far made her about as difficult for Sasi to manipulate as a baby kitten in a one-way corridor with a big bowl of food and some shiny ribbon at one end.)

 

[greensun]

+

(Keris has "Be Loved" at 5 dots and "Get Revenge" at 4, which has so far made her about as difficult for Sasi to manipulate as a baby kitten in a one-way corridor with a big bowl of food and some shiny ribbon at one end.)

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As a person who has a lot of kittens in the house over the years, I can tell you that that is the worst way possible of manipulating a kitten. They just get all confused over what to pick and inevitably fall over in exhausting indecision.

 

[Aleph]

As a person who has a lot of kittens in the house over the years, I can tell you that that is the worst way possible of manipulating a kitten. They just get all confused over what to pick and inevitably fall over in exhausting indecision.

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Well yes, that's kind of what's going to happen to Keris when she reaches the point where she can actually get her hands on what she wants. At which point Sasi will no doubt be waiting with a quiet suggestion and delicate manoeuvring of the relative positions of bowl and ribbon, possibly hiding the latter under something until Keris is done with the first, then using it to lure her further into Sasi's metaphorical pet basket.

In the short-term sense of "getting her to go in the direction that Sasi wants", however, it is proving remarkably effective.

 

[MJ12 Commando]

When I was considering rebreaking the 9 WW basic stats for Aberrant 2.0, it was basically Body, Agility, Presence, Composure, Intelligence, and Wits. This gets you the physical/mental/social break that Alephhack doesn't, but does more or less the same thing.

Of course, since this was for Aberrant 2.0, I didn't end up using it because it would make Mega-Body so ridiculously overpowered and I would have to figure out where exactly to dump half the Mega-Appearance Enhancements. I mean, "I look sexy" could go into M-Presence, but do I put appearance alteration into M-Composure? "My upper lip is so stiff I can literally look like other people?"

I have no idea how it'd feel to try to actually dissect a system with such a close attribute-power relationship as Exalted and rebuild it around this. I would probably literally shoot myself an hour in.

 

[Aleph]

We just turned Appearance into a Merit; Striking Looks. Because seriously, you never roll the fucking thing, its only real function is as an MDV modifier, and that can be represented better as a Merit without taking up Attribute space.

 

[Romantic_Kaiju]

I've Got Anathema for managing my NPCs and one of the options under Dragon-Bloods is Cheraki, Who where the Cheraki again?

(stupid heroic mortal not having MA options available)

 

[MJ12 Commando]

We just turned Appearance into a Merit; Striking Looks. Because seriously, you never roll the fucking thing, its only real function is as an MDV modifier, and that can be represented better as a Merit without taking up Attribute space.

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That's entirely possible in Exalted. Aberrant's Mega-Attributes system makes altering Attributes, though, to be somewhat hard.

I'll probably try it again after finals and see if I can't get a more sensible attribute spread.

 

[samdamandias]

We just turned Appearance into a Merit; Striking Looks. Because seriously, you never roll the fucking thing, its only real function is as an MDV modifier, and that can be represented better as a Merit without taking up Attribute space.

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I don't think OWoD or NWoD uses Apperance as a stat. They have Charisma, Presence, and Composure for the stats, and of them composure is only slightly more important. (The LARP I play play in has a strongly worded suggestion that minimum Presence score be two). Dex is still the godstat of anything physical.

 

[Scia]

I've Got Anathema for managing my NPCs and one of the options under Dragon-Bloods is Cheraki, Who where the Cheraki again?

(stupid heroic mortal not having MA options available)

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Cherak is one of the Tributary states at the northern cost of the imperial sea, it is the domain of a splinter house so it is between outcast and dynasts in terms of organisation.

I don't think OWoD or NWoD uses Apperance as a stat. They have Charisma, Presence, and Composure for the stats, and of them composure is only slightly more important. (The LARP I play play in has a strongly worded suggestion that minimum Presence score be two). Dex is still the godstat of anything physical.

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The old World of Darkness had Appereance as stat but nearly never did anything with it.

 

[Kylar]

That's entirely possible in Exalted. Aberrant's Mega-Attributes system makes altering Attributes, though, to be somewhat hard.

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Exalted honestly runs into many of the same problems, since Lunars and Alchemicals kinda rely on attributes for charms (ok, Alchemicals and TAWs, since ahahah, social Lunars). The system Aleph describes (and she admits as much) forces entire splat rewrites when you use anything but Infernals, Jadeborn, Dragon Kings or Spirits for it, and not all of us are friends with ES and Revlid and can get an entire splat written for her when she asks for Lunar fixes (we are very glad she did, though).

 

[Roadie]

When it comes to merging stats and skills, I think my ideal list would be something like...

Attributes:

Brawn
Dexterity

Charisma
Manipulation

Intelligence
Wits

Abilities:

Melee (Melee/Martial Arts merged)
Ranged (Archery/Thrown/Firearms merged)
War

Athletics (Resistance/some Athletics merged)
Integrity
Presence (Presence/Performance merged)

Craft
Lore (Lore/Occult merged)
Medicine

Acrobatics (Dodge/Stealth/some Athletics merged)
Awareness (Awareness/Investigation merged)
Larceny

Bureaucracy
Socialize (Socialize/Linguistics merged)
Wayfaring (Survival/Ride/Sail merged)

 

[Aleph]

Exalted honestly runs into many of the same problems, since Lunars and Alchemicals kinda rely on attributes for charms (ok, Alchemicals and TAWs, since ahahah, social Lunars). The system Aleph describes (and she admits as much) forces entire splat rewrites when you use anything but Infernals, Jadeborn, Dragon Kings or Spirits for it, and not all of us are friends with ES and Revlid and can get an entire splat written for her when she asks for Lunar fixes (we are very glad she did, though).

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You can kind of do it if you unhook the Charm trees from the Abilities and have them as "Dawn Charms" or whatever. Possibly substituting the relevant new!Abilities in for the Mins and so on (you already have to tweak what's rolled, obviously). Then say that each Caste automatically favours all of their Caste Charms and... I dunno, can choose a second Caste Charm Cloud to favour as well, so you could have a Dawn-favouring Zenith, etc. Then you Favour your three Caste Abilities and can pick three more to Favour from elsewhere.

It's both easier and harder with TAW, since their Charms aren't really that linked to the Attributes anyway, and it's easy to just say "okay, you auto-favour your three caste branches and can pick two others", but splitting up the Attributes is a pain (I'm tempted to say "yeah, Full Moons have Physique, Changing have Persuasion and New Moons have Cognition, then choose two to Favour based on your character - 3/5 being almost the same as the 5/9 2e TAW favoured ratio). It's still kind of a crude fix, though, yeah, and the redundant trees (cough Archery and Thrown) are a problem. Alchemicals are the other way around; they have five castes that you can split into one-Attribute-per-caste-plus-two-Favoured (plus Adamant, but just say they have no caste Attribute and can pick whatever three they want to Favour), but their Charm trees are a lot more strongly based on the 2e Attributes.

Sidereals are a massive pain to do this for, of course, and I'm pretty sure Dragonblooded are an issue as well.

 

[Aleph]

So yeah, Shyft gave me a couple of prompts - well, okay, he gave me a picture of Inque, from Batman Beyond, and said "a liquid-ink/oil creature" - and asked if I could turn it into a First Circle. I could have gone with TED, of course, and made some sinister formless mimic-thing... but this way seemed more interesting. And cuter.


Olajiyae, the Quenching Shadows
Demon of the First Circle
Progeny of the Living Tower

The empire of Octavian fills a quarter-layer of Malfeas; two Directions in size. Its factories pour endless clouds of soot and smoke into the skies of Hell as they work to outfit his armies. The Quarter Prince has crafted many races for many purposes; each custom-made to fill its place in his militaristic hierarchy. One such race are the olajiyae. They tend the vast gears and pounding machinery of his production lines, sweep the floors clean of vermin, and quench red-hot blades and iron components as they come off countless anvils. He shaped them to carry out their roles by natural instinct, and thus far he has been well pleased with the results.

An olajiya in its natural, relaxed state resembles a formless pool of liquid shadow; its consistency akin to some thick, exotic oil or tar. When alert, olajiyae can shift their form, shaping their amorphous bodies in mimicry of those around them. It is their habit to yield to the expectations of others - in front of their master, they adopt small and cowering shapes; a narcissist would speak to a mirror image of himself, and the vermin and pests of Malfeas see swift and predatory monsters. Octavian learned certain secrets from dissecting those among his empire who fell under the spell of Erembour, and used them in his work, with the unintended side effect of attuning them to the presence of That Which Calls to the Shadows - whenever the Unquestionable passes close to his empire, he loses thousands of Quenching Shadows to her music as they brave the terror of the outside to be close to her.

The tasks of the Quenching Shadows are threefold, and Octavian shaped their basic nature to ensure they would perform each of them. Their liquid bodies lubricate the black-iron components of the machines in his factories, and so he made them shy and agoraphobic; fearful to the point of phobia of open spaces and the unbounded sky. An olajiya is never happier than when it is tucked away in some tight crevice or cranny, and their fluid forms can flow through the smallest of gaps. As they hide among the inner workings of the steel-punches and powered hammers, they leave them coated in oil, and so accomplish their purpose. That their phobia prevents them from fleeing his factories is merely an added boon.

The oil that their bodies consist of is useful in crafting; the treatment of hot metal to temper and harden it. Towards this end, Octavian made them lovers of heat, and so they will gladly flow into the quenching troughs next to anvils, hiding from the terrifying gulf outside and quivering happily at the touch of the red-hot blades. The blackened tint to the Quarter Prince's swords and shields comes from this tincture, which protects the metal from weathering under the merciless glare of the Green Sun. Finally, the pests and vermin of the Demon City have no place in Octavian's ordered citadels. He made the olajiyae hungry, and they prey on those smaller than themselves; pouncing on lesser demons and demonic fauna from hiding to swallow them and dissolve them within themselves.

Summoning: (Obscurity 3/5): Olajiyae are often summoned as spies, for their shy, reclusive nature and amorphous bodies make them excellent at hiding in places few would think to look. The oil they are comprised of is useful in certain alchemical formulas that ward off the effects of bright light, though they themselves dislike the sun and the wide expanses of Creation, and tend to hide in buildings or underground when they are there. Their intended functions as lubricant and steel-quenchers are sometimes used by artificer-sorcerers, and they see occasional use as assassins; set loose inside a house to muffle and suffocate targets before slipping away without a trace. Olajiyae gain one point of Limit for every hour they are forced to stay outside or in wide-open spaces. When machinery grinds to a halt at night in a tightly-enclosed space, an olajiya can escape from Malfeas to hide there and set it moving once more.

 

[horngeek]

D'awwwww.

That is rather cute. In that weird way of Malfeas.