Rolls
Willpower to avoid awkwardness 1, 2
Argument vs Counter
Bottom Line
Porter's Histories
Memories of... Jade
Willpower to avoid awkwardness 1, 2
Argument vs Counter
Bottom Line
Porter's Histories
Memories of... Jade
Green Flame Rising (Exalted vs Dresden Files)
- Thread starter DragonParadox
- Start date
- Crossover Fantasy
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
It'd be White Jade, wouldn't it?
Yellow Jade is weird glitch Jade that's a Magical Material that doesn't actually cost Attunement to get, it pays for itself. There's some vague implications that it's a Vitriol-based Jade in its original form (In which it's a transcendent catalyst, hence how it allows for supernatural effects without actually requiring an indefinite commitment of power), but nothing ever nailed down since it doesn't exist in nature and only gets created in fuckups.
Yellow Jade is weird glitch Jade that's a Magical Material that doesn't actually cost Attunement to get, it pays for itself. There's some vague implications that it's a Vitriol-based Jade in its original form (In which it's a transcendent catalyst, hence how it allows for supernatural effects without actually requiring an indefinite commitment of power), but nothing ever nailed down since it doesn't exist in nature and only gets created in fuckups.
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Grey actually it's been... a long time (WoD has it as Gold or Grey, but Grey works better with the Exalted cross; I mixed them up)
Had a thought on Denarian containment. We lack the ability to lock them up long term with any certainty, and don't have the heft to be sure of that many kills yet either.
So what if we pull an Aku and send them to the future whereour evil is law the good guys win? There's a 3 dot prodigy that shoots you forward in time 12 hours and does nothing else. Doing so isn't imprisoning them or taking the coins to a place where they can truly never be used. It's "just" delaying the game by a few decades to centuries depending on what we can make. Practically a blink of an eye to these people.
Time travel is more possible here than in creation, but this isn't WoD. Trying is really hard and I doubt Hell is allowed to do it unless Heaven itself cheated to do it first. Which they won't be because we're doing it.
It's not permanent, but if we send them 10-20 years into the future they are going to miss some really critical stuff.
Edit: error
So what if we pull an Aku and send them to the future where
Time travel is more possible here than in creation, but this isn't WoD. Trying is really hard and I doubt Hell is allowed to do it unless Heaven itself cheated to do it first. Which they won't be because we're doing it.
It's not permanent, but if we send them 10-20 years into the future they are going to miss some really critical stuff.
Edit: error
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fictionfan
Please sir, may I have some Meows?
- Location
- Tempe, AZ
I was just reading the demon-the-fallen-players-guide 2 (unfortunately not in a form that I can copy paste), but now that Tiffany has Lore of Longing and Humanity she should be able to do the ritual of siren song. Allow for singing by a lake or other body of water and everyone within 100 yard per success goes to drown themself unless they make a DC8 willpower save. Not useful, but interesting that Tiffany has it. Doubt she will mention is unless she wants to make people uncomfortable.
To torture the metaphor further, it might, if the mud contains a rusty nail, but yeah, ok, fair.
Tiffany is using it. They might be using something similar, but probably different.
Are they imprisoned in the coins, or would them leaving the coins result in retribution by the forces of Heaven? Those are different situations. And I lean towards the latter, because Fallen can break the rules, as shown by... I forget - Lasciel twisting Dresden's mind to make him commit suicide by proxy? Updating the coins so the Fallen actually cannot break the rules (as in "are physically incapable of", instead of " being able to do so and having to accept the consequences") might be an option, and probably based on the Surrender Oaths framework.
Yes, I thought of that too:
Our advantage of being much, much quicker than the Fallen could be leveraged here.
[X] Ask more questions
-[X] What sort of bones, and would some offering to them be appropriate?
--[X] Roll Etiquette/Occult (whatever is more appropriate) with excellency
-[X] What lies in the vicinity of his sanctum? Are there any neighbors you should be aware of?
-[X] Pass to the other side
--[X] Take Lydia and Harry with you
-[X] What sort of bones, and would some offering to them be appropriate?
--[X] Roll Etiquette/Occult (whatever is more appropriate) with excellency
-[X] What lies in the vicinity of his sanctum? Are there any neighbors you should be aware of?
-[X] Pass to the other side
--[X] Take Lydia and Harry with you
- Location
- Germany
Unknown.
I'd personally suspect that there will be an attempt to retrieve them made by the Fallen, and in our Soul-world, outside of God's area of influence, they can use their full angelic power instead of relying on mortal hosts.
Uriel said it would be "very painful" and a bad idea.
- Location
- Brazil
Considering that Uriel said that this would be a bad idea and would let the forces of Hell act to put the coins back into circulation and with us already being the threat that we are to them, I truly believe that Lucifer himself would use such an opportunity to break our world, our very soul, like a particularly dry and fragile biscuit.
BoredMan
Maintaining the Agenda is our top priority
I think Lydia would be too preoccupied with making arrangements for the dogs right now or whatever else she has going on but if she has the time then sure. I've no idea why Harry would be coming with though.
[X] Ask more questions
-[X] What sort of bones, and would some offering to them be appropriate?
--[X] Roll Etiquette/Occult (whatever is more appropriate) with excellency
-[X] What lies in the vicinity of his sanctum? Are there any neighbors you should be aware of?
-[X] Pass to the other side
--[X] Take Lydia and Harry with you
[X] Ask more questions
-[X] What sort of bones, and would some offering to them be appropriate?
--[X] Roll Etiquette/Occult (whatever is more appropriate) with excellency
-[X] What lies in the vicinity of his sanctum? Are there any neighbors you should be aware of?
-[X] Pass to the other side
--[X] Take Lydia and Harry with you
Harry is the local Warden, that has some weight, I feel. And he'd like to visit a spirit's sanctum, I feel - dude loves magic. I can remove him, I guess.
BoredMan
Maintaining the Agenda is our top priority
This guy kind of sounds important like there's some lore here. Could use the Crown to ask for a name.
I've no idea what he's talking about.
Nah, you should leave him there. His position as Warden slipped my mind. It has more weight now than it did before with the White Council setting up training grounds in Chicago.
This conversation, in short you feel like exalted, the only exalted he met are kind to dragons so you must be a dragon of some element he has never encountered
Given the confirmation of Porter having met a dragonblood exalted:
I think Porter could be talking about Lancelot Du lac, who, well, comes from a lake.
Since the recent arthurians knights were Dragonbloods too.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
I figured he was talking about Merlin.
There are hard rules and there are soft rules. My understanding is that Lasciel/Hell did that with other pawns and not by the Fallen sneaking out of the coin. Which is cheating, not busting out of prison. Butcher routinely describes the Denarians as frozen in carbonite Star Wars style - I think there's a good argument to be made that they should effectively count as helpless when without a bearer because the white god has put them in a custom straight jacket.
He said it would be very painful, do actual damage, and that as a result of the rules of the game that the actual Devil would get to go weapons free to get them back like he's not allowed to in mortal reality. We're good, but that is a whole different animals.
Time travel is more likely to work than orbital stuff. That counts as a physical prison somewhere away from people that they could theoretically interact with as far as I can see. A boot forward in time skips the middle part without constraining them at any point of their subjective timeline, which strikes me as significant from a rules lawyer standpoint for the Angel's game.
Since Molly is an infernal with a world soul it seems like that actually might have a kernel of truth to it now.
The OG dragons were subsouls of Gaia, and a lot of what counts as stable reality these days is based on properties of her mythos. Since Molly has a solid world soul in the same way the mortal world is solid it's not totally unreasonable to assume whatever properties made Gaia ideal to source the substance of the world from are also present in her spiritual makeup.
So she'd be draconic like Gaia's fetitch soul would be.
fictionfan
Please sir, may I have some Meows?
- Location
- Tempe, AZ
Earthbound demons are definitely sufficiently powerful and allows DP to use actual rules rather than just hand waving.
Earthbound demons can use the normal lores at far greater range and area of effect*. Now consider that Lore of the Fundament is a universal lore. If we bring a coin into our world they likely can cause worldwide earthquakes and gravity anomalies.
*Although they are also so high Torment that they can't ever do anything constructive with them.
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Because the rules as expanded on by Butcher give no fucks about who keep the Coins in circulation.
That literally if some human managed to shoot the Coins off the planet, that they'd be teleported back.
If Uriel got himself killed lending his Grace to Michael, there's nothing preventing the White God resurrecting him and sending him back. He's famously done so once before in Christian mythology, remember?
1) They always succeed in a goal in the book. It might not be the central goal, but there's always one or more goals they pull off
2) Shiro had terminal pancreatic cancer. That doesnt mean he was dying soon, given who he works for
3) The Holy Grail in Skin Game was real.
To quote Dresden:
Hendricks said a bad word.
"Sideways," I agreed. "That's what Nicky and the Nickelheads have taken."
"With that kind of information at their disposal," Murphy said, "they could…My God, they could blackmail officials. Control governments."
"Launch nuclear warheads," I said. "Stop thinking so small." I nodded at Michael. "Remember, you told me that Nicodemus was playing Armageddon lotto. He makes big plans, but he plots them out so that he can make an incremental profit along the way. This was just one more scheme."
Michael frowned. "He was after the Archive all along? He deliberately came here and provoked a confrontation to get you to call her in to arbitrate?"
"That isn't much of a plan," Luccio said. "You could have chosen any one of a dozen neutral arbiters."
Murphy snorted. "But it's Dresden. He's lived in the same apartment since I first met him. Drives the same car. Drinks at that same little pub. Favorite restaurant is Burger King. He gets the same damned meal every time he goes there, too."
"You can't improve on perfection," I said. "That's why it's called perfection. And what's your point?"
"You're a creature of habit, Harry. You don't like change."
There wasn't much use denying that. "Even if I hadn't called Ivy, Nicodemus still could realize some gains. Maybe recruit Marcone. Maybe kill off Michael or Sanya. Maybe ditch some deadwood within his own organization. Who knows? The point is, I did call Ivy in, he did get the opportunity to take her down, and it paid off."
"But the Archive was created neutral," Sanya said. "Constrained. You said so yourself."
"The Archive was," I said. "But Ivy wasn't, and Ivy controls the Archive. She's still a child. That child can be hurt. Frightened. Coerced. Tempted." I rubbed at the spot between my eyes. "They want to make her one of them. Probably hoping to gobble up Marcone along the way."
"God help us if they're taken," Murphy said quietly.
"God help them if they're taken," Michael murmured. "We have to find them, Harry."
"Not even Mab could locate the Denarians with magic," I said. "Gard. Could your firm do any better?"
She shook her head.
"Sideways," I agreed. "That's what Nicky and the Nickelheads have taken."
"With that kind of information at their disposal," Murphy said, "they could…My God, they could blackmail officials. Control governments."
"Launch nuclear warheads," I said. "Stop thinking so small." I nodded at Michael. "Remember, you told me that Nicodemus was playing Armageddon lotto. He makes big plans, but he plots them out so that he can make an incremental profit along the way. This was just one more scheme."
Michael frowned. "He was after the Archive all along? He deliberately came here and provoked a confrontation to get you to call her in to arbitrate?"
"That isn't much of a plan," Luccio said. "You could have chosen any one of a dozen neutral arbiters."
Murphy snorted. "But it's Dresden. He's lived in the same apartment since I first met him. Drives the same car. Drinks at that same little pub. Favorite restaurant is Burger King. He gets the same damned meal every time he goes there, too."
"You can't improve on perfection," I said. "That's why it's called perfection. And what's your point?"
"You're a creature of habit, Harry. You don't like change."
There wasn't much use denying that. "Even if I hadn't called Ivy, Nicodemus still could realize some gains. Maybe recruit Marcone. Maybe kill off Michael or Sanya. Maybe ditch some deadwood within his own organization. Who knows? The point is, I did call Ivy in, he did get the opportunity to take her down, and it paid off."
"But the Archive was created neutral," Sanya said. "Constrained. You said so yourself."
"The Archive was," I said. "But Ivy wasn't, and Ivy controls the Archive. She's still a child. That child can be hurt. Frightened. Coerced. Tempted." I rubbed at the spot between my eyes. "They want to make her one of them. Probably hoping to gobble up Marcone along the way."
"God help us if they're taken," Murphy said quietly.
"God help them if they're taken," Michael murmured. "We have to find them, Harry."
"Not even Mab could locate the Denarians with magic," I said. "Gard. Could your firm do any better?"
She shook her head.
Which means that two Swords were on the bench, and for several years they only had to worry about a single Sword, giving them significantly greater freedom of action.
And no, you're misremembering again.
The Angel of Death came for Father Forthill in Ghost Story to guard him IF he did die. Shiro's death scene was a lot more mundane than that, at least to our PoV:
I stepped over them and into the chapel.
It had been a small, modest room. There were two rows of three pews each, a pulpit, a table, and subdued lighting. There were no specific religious trappings to the place. It was simply a room set aside to accommodate the spiritual needs of worldwide travelers of every belief, creed, and faith.
Any one of them would have felt profaned by what had been done to the room.
The walls had been covered in sigils, somewhat similar to those I had seen on the Denarians so far. They were painted in blood, and still wet. The pulpit had been leaned against the back wall, and the heavy table laid along it, so that it lay at an angle to the floor. On either side of the table was a chair covered in bits of bone, a few candles. On one of the chairs was a carved silver bowl, almost entirely covered in fresh blood. The room smelled sickly sweet, and whatever was in those candles made the air thick, languid, and hazy. Maybe opium. It had probably accounted for the slowed reaction of the second two gunmen. The candles shed muted light over the table's surface.
What was left of Shiro lay on it.
He was on his back, and shirtless. Torn flesh and dark, savage bruises, some of them in the clear outline of chains, lapped around from his back. His hands and feet were grotesquely swollen. They'd been broken so badly and in so many places that they looked more like sausages than human limbs. His belly and chest had been sliced up as I'd seen before, on the real Father Vincent and on Gaston LaRouche's corpse as well.
"There's so much blood," I whispered.
I felt Michael enter the room behind me. He made a soft, choking sound.
I stepped closer to Shiro's remains, noting clinical details. His face had been left more or less untouched. There were several items scattered around him on the floor-ritual implements. Whatever they had intended him for, they'd already done it. There were sores on his skin, fever blisters, I thought, and his throat was swollen. The damage to his skin probably hid many other such marks of pestilence.
"We're too late," Michael said quietly. "Have they already worked the spell?"
"Yeah," I said. I sat down on the first pew.
"Harry?" Michael said.
"There's so much blood," I said. "He wasn't a very big person. You wouldn't think there could be so much blood."
"Harry, there's nothing else we can do here."
"I knew him, and he wasn't very big. You wouldn't think there would be enough for all the painting. The ritual."
"We should go," Michael said.
"And do what? The plague has already started. Odds are we have it. If we carry it out, we only spread it. Nicodemus has the Shroud and he's probably out looking for a full school bus or something. He's gone. We missed."
"Harry," Michael said quietly. "We must-"
Anger and frustration suddenly burned hot and bright behind my eyes. "If you talk to me about faith I'll kill you."
"You don't mean that," Michael said. "I know you too well."
"Shut up, Michael."
He stepped up next to me and leaned Shiro's cane against my knee. Then, without a word, he drew back to the wall and waited.
I picked up the cane and drew the wooden handle of the old man's sword out enough to see five or six inches of clean, gleaming metal. I slapped it shut again, stepped up to Shiro, and composed him as best I could. Then I rested the sword beside him.
When he coughed and wheezed, I almost screamed.
I wouldn't have thought that anyone could survive that much abuse. But Shiro drew in a ragged breath, and blinked open one eye. The other had been put out, and his eyelid looked sunken and strange.
"Hell's bells," I stammered. "Michael!"
Michael and I both rushed down beside him. It took him a moment to focus his eye on us. "Ah, good," he rasped. "Was getting tired waiting for you."
"We've got to get him to a hospital," I said.
The old man twitched his head in a negative gesture. "Too late. Would do no good. The noose. The Barabbus curse."
"What is he talking about?" I asked Michael.
"The noose Nicodemus wears. So long as he bears it, he apparently cannot die. We believe the noose is the one used by Judas," Michael said quietly.
"So what's this Barabbus curse?"
"Just as the Romans put it within the power of the Jews to choose one condemned prisoner each year to be pardoned and given life, the noose allows Nicodemus to mandate a death that cannot be avoided. Barabbus was the prisoner the Jews chose, though Pilate wanted to free the Savior. The curse is named for him."
"And Nicodemus used it on Shiro?"
Shiro twitched his head again, and a faint smile touched his mouth. "No, boy. On you. He was angry that you escaped him despite his treachery."
Hell's bells. The entropy curse that had nearly killed both me, and Susan with me. I stared at Shiro for a second, and then at Michael.
Michael nodded. "We cannot stop the curse," he said. "But we can take the place of its subject, if we choose to do it. That's why we wanted you to stay away, Harry. We were afraid Nicodemus would target you."
I stared at him and then at Shiro. My vision blurred. "It should be me lying there," I said. "Dammit."
"No," Shiro said. "There is much you do not yet understand." He coughed, and pain flashed over his face. "You will. You will." He twitched the arm nearest the sword. "Take it. Take it, boy."
"No," I said. "I'm not like you. Like any of you. I never will be."
"Remember. God sees hearts, boy. And now I see yours. Take it. Hold it in trust until you find the one it belongs to."
I reached out and picked up the cane. "How do I know who to give it to?"
"You will know," Shiro said, his voice becoming thinner. "Trust your heart."
Sanya entered the room and padded over to us. "The police heard the gunfire. There's an assault team getting ready to-" He froze, staring at Shiro.
"Sanya," Shiro said. "This is our parting, friend. I am proud of you."
Sanya swallowed and knelt down by the old man. He kissed Shiro's forehead. Blood stained his lips when he straightened.
"Michael," Shiro said. "The fight is yours now. Be wise."
Michael laid his hand on Shiro's bald head and nodded. The big man was crying, though his face was set in a quiet smile.
"Harry," Shiro whispered. "Nicodemus is afraid of you. Afraid that you saw something. I don't know what."
"He should be afraid," I said.
"No," the old man said. "Don't let him unmake you. You must find him. Take the Shroud from him. So long as he touches it, the plague grows. If he loses it, it ends."
"We don't know where he is," I said.
"Train," Shiro whispered. "His backup plan. A train to St. Louis."
"How do you know?" Michael asked.
"Told his daughter. They thought I was gone." Shiro focused on me and said, "Stop them."
My throat clenched. I nodded. I managed to half growl, "Thank you."
"You will understand," Shiro said. "Soon."
Then he sighed, like a man who has just laid down a heavy burden. His eye closed.
Shiro died. There was nothing pretty about it. There was no dignity to it. He'd been brutalized and savagely murdered-and he'd allowed it to happen to him in my place.
But when he died, there was a small, contented smile on his face. Maybe the smile of someone who had run his course without wavering from it. Someone who had served something greater than himself. Who had given up his life willingly, if not gladly.
Sanya said, his voice strained, "We cannot remain here."
I stood up and slung the cane on its strap over my shoulder. I felt cold, and shivered. I put a hand to my forehead, and found it clammy and damp. The plague.
It had been a small, modest room. There were two rows of three pews each, a pulpit, a table, and subdued lighting. There were no specific religious trappings to the place. It was simply a room set aside to accommodate the spiritual needs of worldwide travelers of every belief, creed, and faith.
Any one of them would have felt profaned by what had been done to the room.
The walls had been covered in sigils, somewhat similar to those I had seen on the Denarians so far. They were painted in blood, and still wet. The pulpit had been leaned against the back wall, and the heavy table laid along it, so that it lay at an angle to the floor. On either side of the table was a chair covered in bits of bone, a few candles. On one of the chairs was a carved silver bowl, almost entirely covered in fresh blood. The room smelled sickly sweet, and whatever was in those candles made the air thick, languid, and hazy. Maybe opium. It had probably accounted for the slowed reaction of the second two gunmen. The candles shed muted light over the table's surface.
What was left of Shiro lay on it.
He was on his back, and shirtless. Torn flesh and dark, savage bruises, some of them in the clear outline of chains, lapped around from his back. His hands and feet were grotesquely swollen. They'd been broken so badly and in so many places that they looked more like sausages than human limbs. His belly and chest had been sliced up as I'd seen before, on the real Father Vincent and on Gaston LaRouche's corpse as well.
"There's so much blood," I whispered.
I felt Michael enter the room behind me. He made a soft, choking sound.
I stepped closer to Shiro's remains, noting clinical details. His face had been left more or less untouched. There were several items scattered around him on the floor-ritual implements. Whatever they had intended him for, they'd already done it. There were sores on his skin, fever blisters, I thought, and his throat was swollen. The damage to his skin probably hid many other such marks of pestilence.
"We're too late," Michael said quietly. "Have they already worked the spell?"
"Yeah," I said. I sat down on the first pew.
"Harry?" Michael said.
"There's so much blood," I said. "He wasn't a very big person. You wouldn't think there could be so much blood."
"Harry, there's nothing else we can do here."
"I knew him, and he wasn't very big. You wouldn't think there would be enough for all the painting. The ritual."
"We should go," Michael said.
"And do what? The plague has already started. Odds are we have it. If we carry it out, we only spread it. Nicodemus has the Shroud and he's probably out looking for a full school bus or something. He's gone. We missed."
"Harry," Michael said quietly. "We must-"
Anger and frustration suddenly burned hot and bright behind my eyes. "If you talk to me about faith I'll kill you."
"You don't mean that," Michael said. "I know you too well."
"Shut up, Michael."
He stepped up next to me and leaned Shiro's cane against my knee. Then, without a word, he drew back to the wall and waited.
I picked up the cane and drew the wooden handle of the old man's sword out enough to see five or six inches of clean, gleaming metal. I slapped it shut again, stepped up to Shiro, and composed him as best I could. Then I rested the sword beside him.
When he coughed and wheezed, I almost screamed.
I wouldn't have thought that anyone could survive that much abuse. But Shiro drew in a ragged breath, and blinked open one eye. The other had been put out, and his eyelid looked sunken and strange.
"Hell's bells," I stammered. "Michael!"
Michael and I both rushed down beside him. It took him a moment to focus his eye on us. "Ah, good," he rasped. "Was getting tired waiting for you."
"We've got to get him to a hospital," I said.
The old man twitched his head in a negative gesture. "Too late. Would do no good. The noose. The Barabbus curse."
"What is he talking about?" I asked Michael.
"The noose Nicodemus wears. So long as he bears it, he apparently cannot die. We believe the noose is the one used by Judas," Michael said quietly.
"So what's this Barabbus curse?"
"Just as the Romans put it within the power of the Jews to choose one condemned prisoner each year to be pardoned and given life, the noose allows Nicodemus to mandate a death that cannot be avoided. Barabbus was the prisoner the Jews chose, though Pilate wanted to free the Savior. The curse is named for him."
"And Nicodemus used it on Shiro?"
Shiro twitched his head again, and a faint smile touched his mouth. "No, boy. On you. He was angry that you escaped him despite his treachery."
Hell's bells. The entropy curse that had nearly killed both me, and Susan with me. I stared at Shiro for a second, and then at Michael.
Michael nodded. "We cannot stop the curse," he said. "But we can take the place of its subject, if we choose to do it. That's why we wanted you to stay away, Harry. We were afraid Nicodemus would target you."
I stared at him and then at Shiro. My vision blurred. "It should be me lying there," I said. "Dammit."
"No," Shiro said. "There is much you do not yet understand." He coughed, and pain flashed over his face. "You will. You will." He twitched the arm nearest the sword. "Take it. Take it, boy."
"No," I said. "I'm not like you. Like any of you. I never will be."
"Remember. God sees hearts, boy. And now I see yours. Take it. Hold it in trust until you find the one it belongs to."
I reached out and picked up the cane. "How do I know who to give it to?"
"You will know," Shiro said, his voice becoming thinner. "Trust your heart."
Sanya entered the room and padded over to us. "The police heard the gunfire. There's an assault team getting ready to-" He froze, staring at Shiro.
"Sanya," Shiro said. "This is our parting, friend. I am proud of you."
Sanya swallowed and knelt down by the old man. He kissed Shiro's forehead. Blood stained his lips when he straightened.
"Michael," Shiro said. "The fight is yours now. Be wise."
Michael laid his hand on Shiro's bald head and nodded. The big man was crying, though his face was set in a quiet smile.
"Harry," Shiro whispered. "Nicodemus is afraid of you. Afraid that you saw something. I don't know what."
"He should be afraid," I said.
"No," the old man said. "Don't let him unmake you. You must find him. Take the Shroud from him. So long as he touches it, the plague grows. If he loses it, it ends."
"We don't know where he is," I said.
"Train," Shiro whispered. "His backup plan. A train to St. Louis."
"How do you know?" Michael asked.
"Told his daughter. They thought I was gone." Shiro focused on me and said, "Stop them."
My throat clenched. I nodded. I managed to half growl, "Thank you."
"You will understand," Shiro said. "Soon."
Then he sighed, like a man who has just laid down a heavy burden. His eye closed.
Shiro died. There was nothing pretty about it. There was no dignity to it. He'd been brutalized and savagely murdered-and he'd allowed it to happen to him in my place.
But when he died, there was a small, contented smile on his face. Maybe the smile of someone who had run his course without wavering from it. Someone who had served something greater than himself. Who had given up his life willingly, if not gladly.
Sanya said, his voice strained, "We cannot remain here."
I stood up and slung the cane on its strap over my shoulder. I felt cold, and shivered. I put a hand to my forehead, and found it clammy and damp. The plague.
In their first appearance, Nicky kills Shiro. Sure, he was sick, but sick doesnt really mean all that much for an agent of Heaven. And Shiro was, by Michael's description in Small Favor, the single best swordsman then active.
Furthermore, Denarians gain power by torturing and killing others, particularly Knights and those opposing them.
In killing Shiro, Nicky got a personal powerup.
Nicky turned a profit there, even though he didnt accomplish his primary goal.
In their second appearance, they disabled Michael, and recruited Marcone.
That left only one active Knight to interfere with their schemes, and put a hidden Denarian in the middle of Chicago.
In the third appearance, he DID get his hands on the Holy Grail. The REAL Holy Grail, not any substitutes.
All that happened was that Nicodemus didnt make his stretch goals, which was to also acquire the other four or five divine artifacts, kill or turn Michal and Dresden. And that Mab fucked him rep-wise.
The closest we've seen to Nicodemus' A-game was in Skin Game, where he actually called on the Winter Queen to repay a debt, and there he did achieve his primary goal of securing the Holy Grail.
No, you are mistaken.
There was no fight at the airport. Michael shanked an acolyte through the door, but Dresden cast no magic there either.
They sneaked in, discovered Shiro dying in the chapel, kept him company until he died, and left.
Dresden did nothing there other than call Murphy to call in a bomb threat to clear the area.
COMMENTARY
Bears pointing out that Dresden was explicitly told by Father Forthill that the Church dont have much lore about the Denarians.
Because Nicky makes a point of running down any archives and archivists every century or so and wiping them out.
Forthill frowned and nodded. "What happened to you last night?"
I told him the short version-all about the art auction and the Denarians, but I elided over the details afterward, which were none of his chaste business. And which would have embarrassed me to tell. I'm not particularly religious, but come on, the man was a priest.
When I finished, Forthill took off his glasses and stared hard at me. He had eyes the color of robin's eggs, and they could be disturbingly intense. "Nicodemus," he said quietly. "Are you sure that is what he called himself?"
"Yeah."
"Without a doubt?"
"Yeah. We had a nice chat."
Forthill folded his hands and exhaled slowly. "Mother of God. Harry, could you describe him for me?"
I did, while the old priest listened. "Oh, and he was always wearing a rope around his neck. Not like a ship's hawser, a thin rope, like clothesline. I thought it was a string tie at first."
Forthill's fingers reached up to touch the crucifix at his throat. "Tied in a noose?"
"Yeah."
"What did you think of him?" he asked.
I looked down at my half-eaten doughnut. "He scared the hell out of me. He's - bad, I guess. Wrong."
"The word you are looking for is 'evil,' Harry."
I shrugged, ate the rest of the doughnut, and didn't argue.
"Nicodemus is an ancient foe of the Knights of the Cross," Forthill said quietly. "Our information about him is limited. He has made it a point to find and destroy our archives every other century or so, so we cannot be sure who he is or how long he has been alive. He may even have walked the earth when the Savior was crucified."
"Didn't look a day over five hundred," I mumbled. "How come some Knight hasn't gone and parted his hair for him?"
"They've tried," Forthill said.
"He's gotten away?"
Forthill's eyes and voice stayed steady. "He's killed them. He's killed all of them. More than a hundred Knights. More than a thousand priests, nuns, monks. Three thousand men, women, children. And those are only the ones listed in the pages recovered from the destroyed archives. Only two Knights have ever faced him and survived."
I had a flash of insight. "Shiro is one of them. That's why Nicodemus was willing to trade me for him."
Forthill nodded and closed his eyes for a moment. "Likely. Though the Denarians grow in power by inflicting pain and suffering on others. They become better able to use the strength the Fallen give them. And they gain the most from hurting those meant to counter them."
"He's torturing Shiro," I said.
Forthill put his hand on mine for a moment, his voice quiet, calming. "We must have faith. We may be in time to help him."
"I thought the whole point of the Knights was to deal out justice," I said. "The Fists of God and all that. So why is it that Nicodemus can slaughter them wholesale?"
"For much the same reason any man can kill another," Forthill said. "He is intelligent. Cautious. Skilled. Ruthless. Like his patron fallen angel."
I guessed at the name. "Badassiel?"
Forthill almost smiled. "Anduriel. He was a captain of Lucifer's, after the Fall. Anduriel leads the thirty Fallen who inhabit the coins. Nicodemus wasn't seduced into Anduriel's domination. It's a partnership. Nicodemus works with Fallen as a near-equal and of his free will. No one of the priesthood, of any of the Knightly Orders, of the Knights of the Cross, has so much as scratched him."
"The noose," I guessed. "The rope. It's like the Shroud, isn't it? It has power."
Forthill nodded. "We think so, yes. The same rope the betrayer used in Jerusalem."
"How many Denarians are working with him? I take it that they probably don't get along with each other."
"You are correct, thank God. Nicodemus rarely has more than five or six other Denarians working with him, according to our information. Usually, he keeps three others nearby."
"Snakeboy, demon-girl, and Ursiel."
"Yes."
"How many coins are running around the world?"
"Only nine are accounted for at this time. Ten, with Ursiel's coin."
"So Nicodemus could theoretically have nineteen other Fallen working with him. Plus a side order of goons."
"Goons?"
"Goons. Normal hired hands, they looked like."
"Ah. They aren't normal," Forthill said. "From what we have been able to tell, they are almost a small nation unto themselves. Fanatics. Their service is hereditary, passed on from father to son, mother to daughter."
"This gets better and better," I said.
"Harry," Forthill said. "I know of no tactful way to ask this, so I will simply ask. Did he give you one of the coins?"
"He tried," I said. "I turned him down."
I told him the short version-all about the art auction and the Denarians, but I elided over the details afterward, which were none of his chaste business. And which would have embarrassed me to tell. I'm not particularly religious, but come on, the man was a priest.
When I finished, Forthill took off his glasses and stared hard at me. He had eyes the color of robin's eggs, and they could be disturbingly intense. "Nicodemus," he said quietly. "Are you sure that is what he called himself?"
"Yeah."
"Without a doubt?"
"Yeah. We had a nice chat."
Forthill folded his hands and exhaled slowly. "Mother of God. Harry, could you describe him for me?"
I did, while the old priest listened. "Oh, and he was always wearing a rope around his neck. Not like a ship's hawser, a thin rope, like clothesline. I thought it was a string tie at first."
Forthill's fingers reached up to touch the crucifix at his throat. "Tied in a noose?"
"Yeah."
"What did you think of him?" he asked.
I looked down at my half-eaten doughnut. "He scared the hell out of me. He's - bad, I guess. Wrong."
"The word you are looking for is 'evil,' Harry."
I shrugged, ate the rest of the doughnut, and didn't argue.
"Nicodemus is an ancient foe of the Knights of the Cross," Forthill said quietly. "Our information about him is limited. He has made it a point to find and destroy our archives every other century or so, so we cannot be sure who he is or how long he has been alive. He may even have walked the earth when the Savior was crucified."
"Didn't look a day over five hundred," I mumbled. "How come some Knight hasn't gone and parted his hair for him?"
"They've tried," Forthill said.
"He's gotten away?"
Forthill's eyes and voice stayed steady. "He's killed them. He's killed all of them. More than a hundred Knights. More than a thousand priests, nuns, monks. Three thousand men, women, children. And those are only the ones listed in the pages recovered from the destroyed archives. Only two Knights have ever faced him and survived."
I had a flash of insight. "Shiro is one of them. That's why Nicodemus was willing to trade me for him."
Forthill nodded and closed his eyes for a moment. "Likely. Though the Denarians grow in power by inflicting pain and suffering on others. They become better able to use the strength the Fallen give them. And they gain the most from hurting those meant to counter them."
"He's torturing Shiro," I said.
Forthill put his hand on mine for a moment, his voice quiet, calming. "We must have faith. We may be in time to help him."
"I thought the whole point of the Knights was to deal out justice," I said. "The Fists of God and all that. So why is it that Nicodemus can slaughter them wholesale?"
"For much the same reason any man can kill another," Forthill said. "He is intelligent. Cautious. Skilled. Ruthless. Like his patron fallen angel."
I guessed at the name. "Badassiel?"
Forthill almost smiled. "Anduriel. He was a captain of Lucifer's, after the Fall. Anduriel leads the thirty Fallen who inhabit the coins. Nicodemus wasn't seduced into Anduriel's domination. It's a partnership. Nicodemus works with Fallen as a near-equal and of his free will. No one of the priesthood, of any of the Knightly Orders, of the Knights of the Cross, has so much as scratched him."
"The noose," I guessed. "The rope. It's like the Shroud, isn't it? It has power."
Forthill nodded. "We think so, yes. The same rope the betrayer used in Jerusalem."
"How many Denarians are working with him? I take it that they probably don't get along with each other."
"You are correct, thank God. Nicodemus rarely has more than five or six other Denarians working with him, according to our information. Usually, he keeps three others nearby."
"Snakeboy, demon-girl, and Ursiel."
"Yes."
"How many coins are running around the world?"
"Only nine are accounted for at this time. Ten, with Ursiel's coin."
"So Nicodemus could theoretically have nineteen other Fallen working with him. Plus a side order of goons."
"Goons?"
"Goons. Normal hired hands, they looked like."
"Ah. They aren't normal," Forthill said. "From what we have been able to tell, they are almost a small nation unto themselves. Fanatics. Their service is hereditary, passed on from father to son, mother to daughter."
"This gets better and better," I said.
"Harry," Forthill said. "I know of no tactful way to ask this, so I will simply ask. Did he give you one of the coins?"
"He tried," I said. "I turned him down."
It bears remembering why the Swords exist.
Not just to oppose the Fallen, but to rescue their hosts. Thats why Knights invariably offer surrender.
Molly doesnt know this, Michael does. So does Harry.
There are six types of Jade in Exalted: 5x natural, and 1x artificial.
JADE
The most common magical material is jade. Each
of its five varieties forms in a place most suited to its
elemental association and works especially well for
certain kinds of artifacts, though they see use in all
manner of wonders. An artifact whose power can be
associated with a particular Ability requires jade of the
element associated with the Dragon-Blooded caste that
favors that Ability. Stealth artifacts demand blue jade,
for example, and Survival artifacts need green jade.
White jade occurs beneath mountains and near large
deposits of dense stone. It is incredibly plentiful beneath
the Imperial Mountain, directly over the Elemental Pole
of Earth. The Realm uses white jade for its official cur-
rency because it resists wear and is so readily available.
White jade is ideal for artifacts that manipulate earth
and stone or restrain another being's mind.
Green jade looks as if it grew like a plant. It develops
in regions of plentiful vegetation, such as thick forests
or jungles, often entangled among the roots of the
greatest trees. Wood elementals and forest gods often
become protective of the jade that forms naturally in
their domains. Green jade is best for controlling plants,
affecting animals and drawing ambient Essence into
an artifact.
Red jade deposits appear in the hottest regions of the
world—beneath active volcanoes and in the center of
scorching deserts. Its location makes it difficult to har-
vest, sometimes requiring Fire Aspects, artifact-equipped
mortals or summoned elementals to retrieve it. Red jade
is warm to the touch and often flickers in the light. It is
perfect for controlling fire or making people immune to
it, as well as causing harm or heightening reflexes.
Black jade forms in deep lakes where water pools for
a long time and in large seas. The floor of the Western
Ocean holds astoundingly quantities, but most of it is
so many miles beneath the surface that even Water
Aspects cannot easily obtain it. Even a thin shaving
of black jade seems to hold infinite depth, making it
highly prized as a meditation aid. Apart from controlling
water, this variety of jade works well for affecting or
communicating with gods, elementals and demons.
Blue jade looks almost translucent with misty shapes
that appear and vanish. Occultists and soothsayers
sometimes use these shapes as an alternative to reading
entrails or the constellations. This jade appears in areas
of rarifi ed air or great cold, such as the heights of the
Imperial Mountain or the glacial wastes of the North.
Artifacts that control the weather or sense or affect
thought are usually best made with blue jade.
==============
YELLOW JADE
Yellow jade is a mistake. It doesn't appear
naturally, and no one knows how to create it.
Dragon-Blooded alchemists try to create it with
different mixtures of regular jade, but none of
their experiments ever succeed more than once.
Yellow jade only appears when a thaumaturge
makes an unrepeatable error when following an
intended formula, such as spilling in unknown
exotic ingredients or leaving a mixture to simmer a
day too long. If any intelligent force decides when
and where yellow jade appears, it certainly isn't
the Dragon-Blooded.
This is a shame, because yellow jade has a
wide variety of uses. Artifacts made with this rare
material often require less committed Essence or
none at all. It is a primary component of many
artifacts that mortals can use.
The most common magical material is jade. Each
of its five varieties forms in a place most suited to its
elemental association and works especially well for
certain kinds of artifacts, though they see use in all
manner of wonders. An artifact whose power can be
associated with a particular Ability requires jade of the
element associated with the Dragon-Blooded caste that
favors that Ability. Stealth artifacts demand blue jade,
for example, and Survival artifacts need green jade.
White jade occurs beneath mountains and near large
deposits of dense stone. It is incredibly plentiful beneath
the Imperial Mountain, directly over the Elemental Pole
of Earth. The Realm uses white jade for its official cur-
rency because it resists wear and is so readily available.
White jade is ideal for artifacts that manipulate earth
and stone or restrain another being's mind.
Green jade looks as if it grew like a plant. It develops
in regions of plentiful vegetation, such as thick forests
or jungles, often entangled among the roots of the
greatest trees. Wood elementals and forest gods often
become protective of the jade that forms naturally in
their domains. Green jade is best for controlling plants,
affecting animals and drawing ambient Essence into
an artifact.
Red jade deposits appear in the hottest regions of the
world—beneath active volcanoes and in the center of
scorching deserts. Its location makes it difficult to har-
vest, sometimes requiring Fire Aspects, artifact-equipped
mortals or summoned elementals to retrieve it. Red jade
is warm to the touch and often flickers in the light. It is
perfect for controlling fire or making people immune to
it, as well as causing harm or heightening reflexes.
Black jade forms in deep lakes where water pools for
a long time and in large seas. The floor of the Western
Ocean holds astoundingly quantities, but most of it is
so many miles beneath the surface that even Water
Aspects cannot easily obtain it. Even a thin shaving
of black jade seems to hold infinite depth, making it
highly prized as a meditation aid. Apart from controlling
water, this variety of jade works well for affecting or
communicating with gods, elementals and demons.
Blue jade looks almost translucent with misty shapes
that appear and vanish. Occultists and soothsayers
sometimes use these shapes as an alternative to reading
entrails or the constellations. This jade appears in areas
of rarifi ed air or great cold, such as the heights of the
Imperial Mountain or the glacial wastes of the North.
Artifacts that control the weather or sense or affect
thought are usually best made with blue jade.
==============
YELLOW JADE
Yellow jade is a mistake. It doesn't appear
naturally, and no one knows how to create it.
Dragon-Blooded alchemists try to create it with
different mixtures of regular jade, but none of
their experiments ever succeed more than once.
Yellow jade only appears when a thaumaturge
makes an unrepeatable error when following an
intended formula, such as spilling in unknown
exotic ingredients or leaving a mixture to simmer a
day too long. If any intelligent force decides when
and where yellow jade appears, it certainly isn't
the Dragon-Blooded.
This is a shame, because yellow jade has a
wide variety of uses. Artifacts made with this rare
material often require less committed Essence or
none at all. It is a primary component of many
artifacts that mortals can use.
There are also six types of jade in Kindred of the East
The Powers of Jade
Power comes in many forms, among them the ability to
understand your enemy. The shen of Asia study a multitude
of different ways to harness Chi; among the most efficacious
is the use of jade. But that doesn't mean they know
everything. The shen are secretive by nature, and history has
taught them the error of being too blatant. Despite the
knowledge of the elders, the shen still only comprehend a
fraction of the truth. Perhaps some things aren't meant to be
understood.
Jade is a very special material in the Middle Kingdom. Jade
is a "Soul Substance." Capable of protecting the soul from
the various elements. It is generally considered to bring luck.
Jade also preserves life, extends life, and purifies the male
spirit. The color and quality of jade can make differences in
how a shen can use the material as a defense or even as a
weapon against her enemies. Below is a list of different types
of jade and what the shen can use them for
Blue or Green Jade
Controllers of the (Blue) Dragon - In control of the Element of
Wood, and associated with Wind, Jupiter, Spring, Liver and
Jade, one does homage to Heaven, and to the region of the
East.
System: Blue Jade is used for defense, and when held out
*as a ward it can repel many lesser demons. The holder must
expend one Yin Chi in order to properly ward an entrance
with blue or green jade. Any shen attempting to enter the
warded area is repelled, though spending a Willpower allows
them through. The warder instantly knows if any demon
attempts entry into a warded area. Blue or green True Jade
have a more pronounced effect on the Kuei-jin than on other
demons. Kuei-jin take no damage from passing one of these
wards, but they suffer considerable pain and can be
incapacitated if they fail to make a Willpower roll (difficulty 8).
Yellow or Gray Jade
Gives homage to the Earth - Considered the perfect balance
of all other forms of jade, yellow and gray jades are
"controllers" (for lack of a better term). These jades are
capable of mimicking or influencing the potency of other
forms of True Jade.
Yellow and gray jade are the perfect fill-in- the-blank tools for
the shen. Yellow jade can be used as a weapon, using Yin
Chi, or as a defense against evil attacks, using Yang Chi.
System: Yellow and gray jades are good for one use only.
Either color adds damage to a hand-to-hand strike against a
shen, if the holder expends one Yin Chi. The attacker rolls
Wits + Occult (difficulty 7); for each success the aggressor
inflicts one health level of lethal damage. For defenses, the
holder spends one Yang Chi and the player rolls Wits +
Occult (difficulty 7). Each success negates one health level of
mystical damage (Disciplines, the claws of shen, etc.) from
one attack. Yellow and gray jade are especially effective
against hsien, who suffer aggravated wounds when the jade
is used as a weapon against them.
White Jade
Controllers of the (White) Tiger - Autumn, Wind, Metal, Lungs
and Small Intestine. White jade is a powerful form of
protection and, perhaps, the most potent form of jade. With a
single small piece of white jade a ritualist can ward a room
against entry by the shen.
System: The player spends one Yang Chi and rolls
Willpower (difficulty 7) to create the ward. No supernatural
creature can enter the warded area without spending
Willpower points equal to the number of successes. The
Restless Dead take actual damage if they force their way into
a room warded by white jade, as do all other forms of spirits -
generally, one health level of lethal damage is inflicted for
each turn spent in the warded area.
Black Jade
Controller of the (Black) Tortoise - Winter, Cold, Water,
Mercury, Kidneys and Bladder. Black jade makes an
excellent weapon against the shen. However, it must be
shaped into a weapon before it is effective. Daggers, swords,
clubs or even arrowheads made of black jade and held by a
shen who empowers it with Yin Chi always cause aggravated damage.
System: The player spends one Yin Chi to awaken the black
jade. Once awakened, the stone causes aggravated damage
on all attacks against shen for one night. Items of black jade
awakened by the user may be given to others to use. The
hengeyokai are particularly susceptible to the effects of black
jade. In addition to the aggravated damage the stone causes,
each strike with a black jade weapon steals one point Gnosis
from the werecreatures.
Red Jade
Controllers of the (Red) Bird - In control of the element of
Fire, the Sun, Mars, Heart, Large Intestine. Red jade is
especially powerful in the eyes of the shen, for once
empowered by sacificing one Yin Chi and one Yang Chi, the
red jade brings luck.
System: The character sacrifices one Yin and Yang Chi to
empower the red jade. Once per story the character wearing
empowered red jade can reroll a botch in either offensive or
defensive combat. Empowered red jade remains "awakened"
indefinitely though, at the Storyteller's discretion, it may need
another sacrifice of life force in order to bring luck. Anyone
wearing red jade has a defense against mages. Every piece
of the Stone automatically grants the wearer one die of
countermagick. This power works only against magick cast directly
at the wearer, and has no effect on the vicinity
around the wearer. Clever mages know about this and use their
magick to cause coincidental injuries to the targets of their ire
Yu Ying Jade
The Perfection of Jade - a rare form of Jade that bestows
eternal life.
If a shen is lucky enough to find this nearly mythological form
of jade, and is willing to expend 2 Yin Chi and 2 Yang Chi to
dedicate the jade to her, it returns the favor one hundredfold.
The Yu Ying Jade absorbs latent Chi from the world and can
be used to replenish the individual's Chi from time to time.
This is particularly useful after fighting in extremely
dangerous situations where the user has expended a
substantial amount of her Chi in Combat.
System: The player spends 2 Yin and Yang Chi and rolls
Stamina + Occult (difficulty 8). Each success allows the Yu
Ying jade to absorb one Chi for the character to use later. Yu
Ying jade always absorbs one Yang Chi, then one Yin Chi,
repeating the process until it has absorbed all that it can. The
process is slow, and the shen must wait for one week before
draining the Chi collected from Yu Ying jade after each use.
Taking the Chi before then destroys the jade's ability to
continue gathering ambient Chi. Yu Ying jade has no direct
effect on the shen. Note that this differs from normal jade's
Chi-absorption capabilities, for most forms of Jade can only
store Yin or Yang Chi, not both.
Power comes in many forms, among them the ability to
understand your enemy. The shen of Asia study a multitude
of different ways to harness Chi; among the most efficacious
is the use of jade. But that doesn't mean they know
everything. The shen are secretive by nature, and history has
taught them the error of being too blatant. Despite the
knowledge of the elders, the shen still only comprehend a
fraction of the truth. Perhaps some things aren't meant to be
understood.
Jade is a very special material in the Middle Kingdom. Jade
is a "Soul Substance." Capable of protecting the soul from
the various elements. It is generally considered to bring luck.
Jade also preserves life, extends life, and purifies the male
spirit. The color and quality of jade can make differences in
how a shen can use the material as a defense or even as a
weapon against her enemies. Below is a list of different types
of jade and what the shen can use them for
Blue or Green Jade
Controllers of the (Blue) Dragon - In control of the Element of
Wood, and associated with Wind, Jupiter, Spring, Liver and
Jade, one does homage to Heaven, and to the region of the
East.
System: Blue Jade is used for defense, and when held out
*as a ward it can repel many lesser demons. The holder must
expend one Yin Chi in order to properly ward an entrance
with blue or green jade. Any shen attempting to enter the
warded area is repelled, though spending a Willpower allows
them through. The warder instantly knows if any demon
attempts entry into a warded area. Blue or green True Jade
have a more pronounced effect on the Kuei-jin than on other
demons. Kuei-jin take no damage from passing one of these
wards, but they suffer considerable pain and can be
incapacitated if they fail to make a Willpower roll (difficulty 8).
Yellow or Gray Jade
Gives homage to the Earth - Considered the perfect balance
of all other forms of jade, yellow and gray jades are
"controllers" (for lack of a better term). These jades are
capable of mimicking or influencing the potency of other
forms of True Jade.
Yellow and gray jade are the perfect fill-in- the-blank tools for
the shen. Yellow jade can be used as a weapon, using Yin
Chi, or as a defense against evil attacks, using Yang Chi.
System: Yellow and gray jades are good for one use only.
Either color adds damage to a hand-to-hand strike against a
shen, if the holder expends one Yin Chi. The attacker rolls
Wits + Occult (difficulty 7); for each success the aggressor
inflicts one health level of lethal damage. For defenses, the
holder spends one Yang Chi and the player rolls Wits +
Occult (difficulty 7). Each success negates one health level of
mystical damage (Disciplines, the claws of shen, etc.) from
one attack. Yellow and gray jade are especially effective
against hsien, who suffer aggravated wounds when the jade
is used as a weapon against them.
White Jade
Controllers of the (White) Tiger - Autumn, Wind, Metal, Lungs
and Small Intestine. White jade is a powerful form of
protection and, perhaps, the most potent form of jade. With a
single small piece of white jade a ritualist can ward a room
against entry by the shen.
System: The player spends one Yang Chi and rolls
Willpower (difficulty 7) to create the ward. No supernatural
creature can enter the warded area without spending
Willpower points equal to the number of successes. The
Restless Dead take actual damage if they force their way into
a room warded by white jade, as do all other forms of spirits -
generally, one health level of lethal damage is inflicted for
each turn spent in the warded area.
Black Jade
Controller of the (Black) Tortoise - Winter, Cold, Water,
Mercury, Kidneys and Bladder. Black jade makes an
excellent weapon against the shen. However, it must be
shaped into a weapon before it is effective. Daggers, swords,
clubs or even arrowheads made of black jade and held by a
shen who empowers it with Yin Chi always cause aggravated damage.
System: The player spends one Yin Chi to awaken the black
jade. Once awakened, the stone causes aggravated damage
on all attacks against shen for one night. Items of black jade
awakened by the user may be given to others to use. The
hengeyokai are particularly susceptible to the effects of black
jade. In addition to the aggravated damage the stone causes,
each strike with a black jade weapon steals one point Gnosis
from the werecreatures.
Red Jade
Controllers of the (Red) Bird - In control of the element of
Fire, the Sun, Mars, Heart, Large Intestine. Red jade is
especially powerful in the eyes of the shen, for once
empowered by sacificing one Yin Chi and one Yang Chi, the
red jade brings luck.
System: The character sacrifices one Yin and Yang Chi to
empower the red jade. Once per story the character wearing
empowered red jade can reroll a botch in either offensive or
defensive combat. Empowered red jade remains "awakened"
indefinitely though, at the Storyteller's discretion, it may need
another sacrifice of life force in order to bring luck. Anyone
wearing red jade has a defense against mages. Every piece
of the Stone automatically grants the wearer one die of
countermagick. This power works only against magick cast directly
at the wearer, and has no effect on the vicinity
around the wearer. Clever mages know about this and use their
magick to cause coincidental injuries to the targets of their ire
Yu Ying Jade
The Perfection of Jade - a rare form of Jade that bestows
eternal life.
If a shen is lucky enough to find this nearly mythological form
of jade, and is willing to expend 2 Yin Chi and 2 Yang Chi to
dedicate the jade to her, it returns the favor one hundredfold.
The Yu Ying Jade absorbs latent Chi from the world and can
be used to replenish the individual's Chi from time to time.
This is particularly useful after fighting in extremely
dangerous situations where the user has expended a
substantial amount of her Chi in Combat.
System: The player spends 2 Yin and Yang Chi and rolls
Stamina + Occult (difficulty 8). Each success allows the Yu
Ying jade to absorb one Chi for the character to use later. Yu
Ying jade always absorbs one Yang Chi, then one Yin Chi,
repeating the process until it has absorbed all that it can. The
process is slow, and the shen must wait for one week before
draining the Chi collected from Yu Ying jade after each use.
Taking the Chi before then destroys the jade's ability to
continue gathering ambient Chi. Yu Ying jade has no direct
effect on the shen. Note that this differs from normal jade's
Chi-absorption capabilities, for most forms of Jade can only
store Yin or Yang Chi, not both.
My first guess at the Water-Aspect DB who came looking for Jade was Merlin, for building Demonreach.
But I dont think that Gray Jade/Yellow Jade as described by the Kindred is particularly aspected for construction of Supernatural Supermax. Then again, maybe he knew something we dont.
First IC hint of Demonreach in this AU so far.
I find Potter's unconscious dragon chauvinism to be hilarious.
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Hilarious suggestion.
But I give approximately negative odds of successfully punting those Coins into the future without their active cooperation, in which case we'd almost certainly be making things worse.
They are bound in the Coins. Against their will.
They cant leave them, have limited ability to act outside them, and other people cant break them out. People have tried.
Frankly, Lucifer wants them there as well, because they were some of the most unruly of his lot.
Breaking them out, even if we could, would be a Good Job Breaking It Hero moment, according to Butcher.
Fallen are not Raksha, or Raksha-adjacent like the Primordials. Lucifer is called the Prince of Lies for a reason. The rules they operate under are externally imposed by the White God's faction, and require active monitoring by loyal angels, because they will happily lie, cheat and break any agreements they make if they can gain some advantage, or even just spite someone.
Good night guys.
1) Managing to get something most of the time is a sign of skill, but fundamentally not the same as getting what they want or actually winning a full encounter.
2) the white god doesn't intervene on stuff like that, Shiro certainly thought his time was limited.
3) Nicodemus didn't get it though, that was Mab's revenge. He'd give up his reputation, burn significant resources, and give up one of the few people he had some sort of love for to the mercies of a angry Greek God without ever getting what he lost them for.
I'm pretty sure there was a mention of some trick like this during the exchange specifically so that they couldn't try to drag him to hell after torturing him to death.
I need to find the quote, but I don't have digital copies of the books. Exploiting his regen's rules is something Harry does in the books.
Anything we attempt to do to them is going to have to contend against perfect defenses on some level. The only way this is going to be anything other than a fractally stupid waste of time is if we have a workaround and use it to apply something Hell can't just reverse without spending appreciable resources.
I think a key element here is that the coins are an active impediment that render them nearly helpless without a host. They cannot exercise significant power on their own because the white god froze them in carbonite.
For good measure we also need a mote tap plan. Spam stuff they have to defend against with perfects to waste power and kill their hosts, then slap them with the time travel trap.
The position that they're all powerful entities that cannot be tricked or overcome isn't supported by the evidence and doesn't propose a viable course of action. They're powerful and dangerous, but they're also basically crippled by the intervention of the white god and their own fractured psyches.
Ivar
Dark Reaper
- Location
- Russia Moscow
[X] Ask more questions
-[X] What sort of bones, and would some offering to them be appropriate?
--[X] Roll Etiquette/Occult (whatever is more appropriate) with excellency
-[X] What lies in the vicinity of his sanctum? Are there any neighbors you should be aware of?
-[X] Pass to the other side
--[X] Take Lydia and Harry with you
-[X] What sort of bones, and would some offering to them be appropriate?
--[X] Roll Etiquette/Occult (whatever is more appropriate) with excellency
-[X] What lies in the vicinity of his sanctum? Are there any neighbors you should be aware of?
-[X] Pass to the other side
--[X] Take Lydia and Harry with you
You are inventing this wholecloth. There was no indication that this was possible or plausible in the books. The miracle of resurrection was a very special thing.
I think willpower draining is a bit more viable than mote tapping, actually. Or at least more viable as the first step to mote tapping. Willpower is harder to regenerate quickly, and cannot benefit from cult ratings like essence/faith can. And splendors provide a number of ways to quickly drain someone of their willpower.