You are absolutely right here. Energy Projection is absolutely inferior solution in term of pure combat firepower. Please note though, Sandstrike consumes essence to activate while Energy Projection requires none. It can be invoked for free. While it's not exactly defined how to it will behave in non-shintai form, I would expect it to be available number Essence times per scene.
And again, it's free.
Sure its free. Its also a 10-yard range ability that is cast at DC7 and can only be used (Essence) times.
Sandstrike Blast requires 1m to activate.
But it has a range of 60 yards, it casts at DC5, which makes it much easier to hit, and it will last for the rest of the scene, regardless of how many engagements need to happen in that time.
Principle Invoking Onslaught also costs 1m to activate.
But it casts at DC6, and is flexible enough to be used for everything from grenades to rocket launchers to bombs, where the range starts in hundreds of yards and the damage can go all the way up to Nuke.
We only get 1x Rage Recast purchase per Essence, which means a total of 5x ever.
Things we can spend on speed, on armor, on nightvision and other things.
Spending 1x of those on something as situational and limited as energy projection is....suboptimal.
Effect can be supressed, which results in lack of IFF not being much of a problem. Plus in long term Molly will max Anima Control merit making it non-issue.
Before that happen it is a free point of aggravated damage each time she attacks, or someone attacks her in melee. It's both action-free and essence free, which is very valuable. It's great supplementary damage-dealer. Those additional points adds up. Faster battle, means less essence used.
Effect is only suppressed when you pass your Essence roll, which is not guaranteed at any time.
And if you fumble that Essence roll, like say if you are in an AoE that penalizes your DCs, you kill or cripple people.
Molly has Transcendent Anathema, which means that if she had Fat-Burning Aura in her charmset, at Essence 4 she would be putting out 2 Levels of Agg Damage/turn for everyone and everything withing 4 yards of her, which is a sphere approximately 8 yards across. Including her friends and allies.
Loot. Evidence. Environment, like when Molly was in Arianna's plane and there were civilians.
Furthermore, you mistake how it works. It doesnt add to an attack, it is a separate roll in itself.
Any serious enemy will have enough agg soak to ignore it.
The juice is just not worth the squeeze.
There are area of effect charms that do this kind of thing but better, like World-Grinding Devastation and All-Devouring Depths, for when you want to kill armies of lightly protected mooks.
They have IFF settings, or other charms that allow you to immunize friendlies.
o be honest, I find it a rather strange stance to take.
Sure, tinkering with Essence economy can turn badly. But I don't see how character using existing charms which counts as parts of the system, can possibly break combat and the game. How could it, after all? If characters works within the system, how their decisions can break said system?
Because unintentional interactions are a thing to worry about when you are drawing from.
With regards to Essence?
You'll notice that Dragon-Blooded Exalts get to acquire the Jade Talisman Background, which allows them to store up to 5m of Essence in an artifact that can recharge.
Solaroid Exalts(Solars, Abyssals, Infernals) dont get it. Nor do Lunars or Sidereals or Alchemicals or Liminals.
Those Essence limitations were deliberate on the part of the author.
So do I. As far as I know, charms I'm asking about exists in the game and are available for purchase. Splendor to store essence is a question to Dragon Paradox, and not much of a stretch.
Please correct me if I'm mistaken.
There is, strictly speaking, no Splendor feature that will allow you to store Essence.
That appears to have been deliberate as well.
Any practicing magic user is pretty much untouchable reminder Dresden wards suck. Mostly because he refuses to use magic to make money. Most magic users will have an fortress just from putting random new up wards every few months around their mansion, by the time their Dresden's age.
This is not true.
The series backstory started with Harry Dresden killing a former senior Warden inside his house, inside his own wards.
Storm Front saw a demon bulldozing its way through Harry's wards, forcing him to flee his own house.
Summer Knight started with the news that Senior Council member Simon Petrovich and his entire crew getting murked in their own home base, in the middle of their own wards and protections, by a bunch of Red Court vampires.
Dead Beat saw a swarm of undead literally brute force their way through Harry's wards, again.
Small Favor started with the Denarians shattering the wards set up by Valkyrie Sigrun Gard in order to kidnap Marcone.
Changes ended with The Red King and his Court getting genocided in the middle of THEIR center of power, wards and all.
Ghost Story saw Harry invade and force his way through wards and protections established by Evil Bob + Corpsetaker.
Cold Days saw Sharkface and his merry band come close to pushing their way through the outer wards of Demonreach.
Peace Talks saw Ethniu and the Eye of Balor blast a hole through the wards of the several hundred year old imported wizard fortress that later became Castle Dresden.
The Queen of Air and Darkness Mab herself has had a group of someones, blow a hole in the gate and magical protections of Arctis Tor. We saw the aftermath at the beginning of this quest.
There is always a Bigger Fish, at least below the level of the White God.
) so this is what between half and what one third looks like
