I was thinking Black for Alex, short hair pretty straight edged, biracial for Tommy to the point where people would just make assumptions of where they are 'from' that span half the world: Kurdistan to Chile that kind of thing fits with the vibe and it's not like they know what their family tree is so they just kind of nod along, or just use the assumption for their own benefit. Amanda I'm less sure of, mousy brown haired white girl maybe, redeem the Bela Swan look?
Gotcha. Then, just for flavor's sake, I'll go with some Haitian on Alex's mother's side. I'll just go with typical Caucasian for Amanda then, and Tommy would joke that they're the mystery meat of the gene pool.
BTW this is interesting for Jiu to have. Has she been pretending to be a vampire or ghoul to stick with her friend? Because if so damn that's impressive for a mortal, even one who is an exaltation candidate. Or is this something the Exaltation gave her because she wanted it on some level to better stick with her friend?
BTW this is interesting for Jiu to have. Has she been pretending to be a vampire or ghoul to stick with her friend? Because if so damn that's impressive for a mortal, even one who is an exaltation candidate. Or is this something the Exaltation gave her because she wanted it on some level to better stick with her friend?
I would like to make a pitch to get people to vote for the vampire gang war, here's my reasoning.
1: one of the characters is already somewhat connected to the Vampire side of the setting
2: Vampires of both types make significantly more interesting characters than Banes do since they're actually people and not just embodied bits of negative things.
3: They're more mundane and more enmeshed into mortal society. In my personal opinion they're better starting villains.
I would like to make a pitch to get people to vote for the vampire gang war, here's my reasoning.
1: one of the characters is already somewhat connected to the Vampire side of the setting
2: Vampires of both types make significantly more interesting characters than Banes do since they're actually people and not just embodied bits of negative things.
3: They're more mundane and more enmeshed into mortal society. In my personal opinion they're better starting villains.
I don't think there's going to be a good time to fight them, heck it might be best to stop them here while they're busy killing each other and more likely to blame people vanishing on the people their at war with instead of… well you know. Trying to hunt us down?
I don't think there's going to be a good time to fight them, heck it might be best to stop them here while they're busy killing each other and more likely to blame people vanishing on the people their at war with instead of… well you know. Trying to hunt us down?
We're also a bunch of untrained teens, I expect someone to mess something up. And if we start killing vampires outside a gang war they're going to know that someone is out there.
Regardless my point is that we're going to have a much, much, much freer hand in the middle of a turf war, it's an opportunity, not a drawback.
We're also a bunch of untrained teens, I expect someone to mess something up. And if we start killing vampires they're going to know that someone is out there.
Regardless my point is that we're going to have a much, much, much freer hand in the middle of a turf war, it's an opportunity, not a drawback.
Excitable teens certainly, given the skills we are walking around with not to mention excellencies we are definitely not untrained. A fresh exalt can throw around enough dice to make an elder sit up and take notice (or not take notice if that is what they are rolling for).
Normally I'd only close the vote early if I have something ready to post and there's a clear majority, but unfortunately the past few days IRL have been a bit distracting for writing, which I won't get into for personal reasons, and I won't be around at 4 to close it then (yes, I know the system automatically does it for you at the end time, I just like doing it myself). I mean, I could preview what you've gained from the vote, but regardless the next update won't be coming out today. Hopefully tomorrow since I'm free then.
Scheduled vote count started by Critian Caceorte on Dec 15, 2024 at 12:14 AM, finished with 20 posts and 6 votes.
[X][Situation] An outpouring of smog-Banes from an old factory outside of the city's center, heading towards the populated suburbs. They must be fought, but can they even be killed by such an inexperienced team?
[X][Situation] A turf war between Vampires, as Kindred and Hungry Dead fought openly for dominance of the coastlines. The violence can be stopped here, either through diplomacy or overwhelming dominance, but it will be difficult.
Winning Vote:
[X][Boon] Ancient Secrets
[X][Degradation] A Damaged Machine
[X][Situation] An outpouring of smog-Banes from an old factory outside of the city's center, heading towards the populated suburbs. They must be fought, but can they even be killed by such an inexperienced team?
Yes, it was quite unfortunate how some things could not last, thought the being once known as Chejop Kejak. But that was perhaps his fault. In times more magical and more treacherous, when the Dragon-Blooded were more numerous and willing to risk their lives to defend the world, he had permitted a Circle of them access to "the machine" in order to combat a dire threat. A monstrosity greater than even the Exalted on their own could handle. The machine did its job well, sealing away the target for a much-needed time, but it paid the price. The cost was in the damage it suffered, a literal priceless artifact damaged nearly to the point beyond repair, a miracle that it wasn't rendered completely inoperable. Technically speaking, the secrecy regarding the machine was also gone, but it had been millennia since its last use. Very few out there who still lived could remember it, but if one had the right scraps of information, the correct secret histories, well… they might be able to piece it together. After all, who could forget how-
[][Damage] The Machine gave its all to protect a Dragon-Blooded clan from a most ancient Vampire.
The Machine was damaged in its attempt to seal away an Antediluvian, which worked… for a while. It did manage to cripple the monster for the rest of time, however.
Slightly increases Kejak's knowledge of Vampires (but not their current divisions).
[][Damage] The Machine had been crippled by such an awful spirit of malice, even after utilizing its weakness.
The Machine was damaged in its attempt to seal away a Maeljin Incarna for centuries.
Slightly increases Kejak's knowledge of the Wyrm (but not it's current form).
[][Damage] The Machine fought off the Raksha, as it did in times of old.
The Machine was damaged in its attempt to seal away a cruel and powerful fae, and even today it can't leave the depths of the Dreaming. Within that plane however, it is well and active.
Slightly increases Kejak's knowledge of the Fae (but not their current situation).
But all things have an ending, and the impressive armament was lucky to have been spared Saturn's touch. For now, it was to be kept in the underground storage below the crystal that stored his spirit. For now, all he could do was maintain the safety and security of-
[][Z.O.R.D.] the Zero Obstacles Revolutionary Deity (Starmetal Battlezord)
A Starmetal Noble Warstrider, exceptionally tall and thin, its limbs so thin as to resemble ribbons at the tips more than actual appendages. Imagine something like Deoxy Speed Form in Pokemon, except covered in an iron shell with a rainbow sheen. Yet, it is unnervingly precise, fast, and perfect for its Sidereal pilot to utilize.
Single Occupant, other team members have to get out of the way.
Primary Weapon: Quick unarmed strikes (More Precise, Slightly Less Damage)
Pilot can utilize their Sidereal Charms and Secret Arts through the Warstrider (even passive ones, like Ox-Body). Other Exalted can use Secret Arts through it, but perhaps not other charms.
Sidereals have no cap on dice for movement actions. Other Exalted vary here.
Same Durability as the other choice, but smaller health pool overall.
VERY Difficult to repair and find the right materials.
[][Z.O.R.D.] the Zealous Orthodox Revolution-Drones (Five Jade Megazord)
5 Vanguard Warstriders, each made of a different color of Jade and in the shape of one of the Elemental Dragons, who combine into a singular humanoid machine. When combining, the White (Earth) Jade Dragon extends its larger limbs into the other four Dragons. The Black (Water) Jade and Red (Fire) Jade Dragons form the legs, the Green (Wood) Jade and Blue (Air) Jade Dragons form the arms, and the White Jade Dragon forms the torso and head. Kind of like Voltron, in a sense. All five tails in turn separate and fuse together to form a massive Direlance.
Each Warstrider can fit a pilot and a passenger in the head, for 5 total pilots when combined and a few passengers if necessary.
Each Warstrider has an individual benefit, like flight or heat resistance.
Primary Weapon: Claws and Teeth (Individual)(Less Precise, Less Damage) / Direlance (Combined)(Less Precise, More Damage)
Sidereals cannot utilize their Charms through their Warstriders (and no Secret Arts REGARDLESS of who pilots). Other Exalted vary here.
Sidereals have a max cap on how many dice can be rolled for movement actions. Other Exalted vary here.
Same Durability as the other choice when combined, but larger health pool both individually and combined.
Difficult to repair and find the right materials.
Well, for all the setbacks that losing the machine turned out to be, at least one thing survived the turning of the ages intact. In his files were astralized grimoires, containing the secrets to many useful spells from Creation's heyday. And that wasn't even taking into account his shell's miraculous ability to cast Travel Without Distance (a method of teleportation across great distances) and a world travel Gate which could be used to enter the realms of the spirits and dead. Though, teaching those two particular spells might be a touch more difficult than the others, because while they were included in his systems as automatic functions, they were NOT included in the grimoires, a mistake he would need to rectify sooner rather than later.
Spell List:
Awakened Eye of the Dragon (Opens up a Dragon Nest to gain magical benefits)
Argent Miracle Binding (Creates Fetishes)
Calling the Calibration Gate (System-Locked, takes time to recreate)(Opens up a Gate to the Umbra, the Underworld or the Dreaming.)
Death of Obsidian Butterflies (Shred targets in an area)
Emerald Spirit Binding (Bind a weaker spirit as a familiar for a year and a day)
Incantation of Spiritual Discretion (Hide a room from spiritual watchers and raise its Gauntlet Rating to max)
Iron Shade Binding (Same as Emerald Spirit Binding, but with wraiths)
Raise the Skeletal Horde (Summon a horde of skeletons to serve for a month)
Sapphire Ritual of Exorcism (Remove a possessing entity from its host)
Travel Without Distance (System-Locked, takes time to recreate)(Teleports a group of characters to a known location, at the cost of a disorientation penalty some time after.)
Better yet, his many years of observation (while awake, that is), had given him some… insight into a few of the creatures that still roamed these nights. At least, they should, he had yet to verify if they still existed in this era. While he was no longer a Sidereal himself, and thus unable to utilize the mystical intuition necessary to create Sidereal Martial Arts, he still had his memories of creating such styles in life. He still knew roughly enough to give a boost to his Rangers when it came time for them to create these styles themselves.
??? revealed: the foundation for (some) Creature Arts have been completed already! Creature Arts are Secret Arts Styles based on each of the World of Darkness's monster types, and normally can only be started and advanced with observation of said types. The Exalted do not count as such a type, that's what Prismatic Arrangement of Creation is for. Hunters are too human to count. As for the Fae…
The first of these styles was actually not brand new at all. The Quicksilver Hand of Dreams was a very well-known Sidereal Martial Art, having been one of the favorites of the Traitor to Heaven, Rakan Thulio. It utilized knowledge of dreams and unreality in order to affect the Wyld and its inhabitants. As the original style was not contained in his databases, all he could do was attempt to recreate it using observations of the Raksha on Gaia. He liked to believe that he got close in that regard, but it was still too fragmentary at the moment to be considered complete. But, on the other hand, either due to his incompetence or remaining brilliance, the style had devolved to the point that it could serve as a beginner's style for any Exalted, not just elder Sidereals.
The first 3 dots of Quicksilver Hand (of Dreams) can be recreated with the usual cost in experience and training time. Further progress will require more observations of the Fae, but unlike other Creature Styles will not have increased XP costs because CK is working off of a known style.
Quicksilver Hand Charms:
The Quicksilver Staircase (•) Upon mastering this Charm, the character forever after becomes a lucid dreamer, able to control the course of her own dreams. Moreover, she may attune herself easily to the emanations of the Dreaming, and bend them to her advantage.
System: The Exalt may, at any time, spend a turn in concentration to see reality's fae aspect in the same manner changelings do for the rest of the scene. She becomes permanently immune to the Mists. Finally, she may invoke the Wyrd in the same fashion as changelings do in order to bring the full power of any chimerical objects, allies, or treasures in her presence into reality for the rest of the scene. Doing so requires either a turn spent in concentration and a successful Essence roll against difficulty 7, or else the reflexive expenditure of 1 Essence.
Dream Ravager Hand (••) The Exalt may deliver a terrible blow that drives out dreams and destroys the creative spark.
System: Spend 1 Essence and make an unarmed Dexterity + Brawl attack. If it successfully inflicts damage, the target loses the ability to dream (and thus to regain Willpower through sleep) for (Essence rating + levels of damage inflicted after soak) days. If the target possesses a Glamour rating, the strike also dissipates a number of points of Glamour equal to the damage inflicted. If this blow knocks its target unconscious, the Exalt may extract one of the target's passions of which she is aware and crush it in her fist; when he awakens, he simply no longer feels any emotional attachment to that ideal, person, or idea. This can't be a passion central to the target's Nature, but anything else is fair game. Fae beings whose passions are destroyed in this fashion gain a permanent dot of Banality from the experience.
Fervent Night Phantasm (•••) The Exalt may, with a precisely calibrated touch, insert a dream of her design into someone else's soul, or with a harsher blow send him into a waking dream where she may influence the evidence of his senses.
System: Spend 1 Essence to activate this Charm. With a light touch, the Exalt may cause the target to dream a dream of her devising when he next sleeps. This has no particular metaphysical power, although the Exalt may design a nightmare that prevents the target from regaining Willpower from restful slumber if she desires. Often, it is best used to impart omens, warnings, and instructions.
Alternately, the Exalt may make an unarmed Dexterity + Brawl attack. If it inflicts damage, the Exalt may force the target to perceive one element of the world in an illusory fashion for the rest of the scene. He might confuse a friend for an enemy, or believe that it is night time when in truth the sun is shining outside, or could even behold a monster that is not truly present in any way shape or form. As one final alternative, rather than casting an illusion over the target's senses, the Exalt may instead open his eyes to the world's chimerical qualities for the rest of the scene, though the Mists will close in once the brief enchantment fades.
Next were the more… theoretical styles. Based on his observations of both the Spawn of the Dark Father, as well as Gaia's Soldiers, he had been able to create a decent hypothesis for each species. Granted, these proposed styles had yet to even be physically attempted, let alone completed and perfected. Yet, something deep within the ancient said that they just… might… work…
The Creature Arts "The ???????? Blood (of Ages)" Style and "The Bestial Avatar (of the ??????????)" Style have been formulated! The first 3 dots of each can be learned with the usual amount of experience and training time. The remaining dots will require additional observations of vampires / werewolves as well as increased XP costs.
NOTE: These are Homebrew Styles created by myself, and thus subject to revision.
???????? Blood Charms:
Blood-Draining Atemi (o) Curving the index and ring fingers outward like fangs, the Exalt strikes, drawing blood and draining it through the fingertips.
System: When making an unarmed attack, you can increase the difficulty to hit by 1. On a success, the damage dealt is lethal, and if the damage dealt changes the target's wound penalty to [5 - Essence] or higher, the Exalt heals 1 level of bashing or lethal damage.
Lost Vitality Exhaustion (oo) When a person loses their blood, weakness is sure to follow. Deprived of that vital element, the Exalt's foe staggers and wilts.
System: Spend 1 Essence after the Exalt has dealt damage with an unarmed attack. Divide [Target's Current Wound Penalty + 1] penalty dots amongst their Physical Attributes and Appearance (min 0 except for Stamina, which is min 1). For every dot assigned to an Attribute, that Attribute is treated as being 1 level lower. This explicitly stacks with wound penalties. If a target's Strength or Dexterity would be reduced to 0, they cannot move or hold items. If a target's Appearance would be reduced to 0, they gain a +5 die bonus to Intimidation rolls and cannot attempt to seduce a target. A target can only suffer from one instance of this curse at a time, using it again allows the penalty dots to be re-allocated.
Blood of Ages Form (ooo) The Exalt's skin pales and their teeth extend, a mockery of the Kindred studied to create this modern Art. They become a predator of the night, looking for the nearest prey.
System: Spend 1 Essence. The Exalt gains fangs like an Abyssal Exalt, dealing lethal damage and allowing them to drain blood to restore Essence (3 levels of damage per point.) Abyssal Exalted instead gain a Vampire's Kiss: Anyone they drain blood from must roll Willpower (difficulty Essence + 4] or else cannot resist the Abyssal's bite, even in combat, and automatically suffers from Lost Vitality Exhaustion for free if the Abyssal chooses so. In addition, the Exalt halves all bashing damage they suffer, treating handheld firearms as bashing for this purpose. In exchange, the Exalt suffers 1 unsoakable level of bashing damage every minute they spend in sunlight. This Charm's effects last for as long as the Exalt wishes, but cannot be active at the same time as another Form-type Secret Art.
Bestial Avatar Charms:
Frozen Homid Form (o) To understand the beast, one must first understand the man it hides inside. This stance takes natural human stances, but freezing at awkward enough intervals to seem like a glitch in a system.
System: Spend 1 Essence for the scene. While active, the Exalt may treat their Craft, Computer and Technology ratings as the higher of [Essence or natural rating]. In addition, the character can substitute any of the above three Abilities at their natural ratings for any other ability when interacting with Weaver-spirits. This can include social interaction, mental insight or physical violence. This Charm lasts for one scene, and cannot be used at the same time as another Form-Type Secret Art.
Devouring Crinos Form (oo) Delving deep into the darker psyche of the wolf, the Exalt channels the sheer fury granted to the War-Wolf by the Wyrm. This stance looms large, fingers curling into claws to demonstrate the danger found within.
System: Spend 1 Essence for the scene. The Exalt's fingernails extend into claws, allowing them to make Claw maneuvers like a Crinos werewolf (see WtA20, pg. 296; Dexterity + Brawl, Difficulty 6, Strength + 2 Aggravated). They can also spend 1 point of Willpower during a turn (max once per turn) in order to add [Essence/2] additional attacks at the end of the round (does not stack with other sources of additional attacks). This Charm lasts for one scene, and cannot be used at the same time as another Form-Type Secret Art.
Shifting Lupus Form (ooo) Change is the nature of all werewolves, the Exalt merely channels that potential into their art. This stance huddles low to the ground, the Exalt's hands touching the earth, ready to pounce when the time has come.
System: Spend 1 Essence for the scene. The Exalt doubles all movement done while this Charm is active, and treats the local Gauntlet as [Essence] points lower for all purposes. If this would bring the rating down to 4 or below, then the Exalt is able to detect and physically interact with spirits in the Spirit World, and can swap between realities once per turn as a reflexive action. This Charm lasts for one scene, and cannot be used at the same time as another Form-type Secret Art.
And finally, there was the more established Sidereal Martial Art Styles which he had learned in life and retained the necessary secrets for in death. Not enough to utilize it for himself, but enough that it could be taught to the next generation. Of course, those versions would not be the versions he taught… at first.
In the days of old, his compatriot Anys Syn eventually had her grand revelation: It was truly impossible to raise a Dragon-Blood to the level of Sidereal Martial Arts. Nothing, absolutely NOTHING could breach this barrier without some kind of substantial assistance much like the Mantle of Brigid did for Sorcery. However, while you couldn't bring a Dragon-Blood to the level of Sidereal Martial Arts, as it turned out you COULD bring those arts down to their level.
Thus, the "Simplified" Sidereal Styles were theorized, tested and successfully integrated by the ailing Immaculate Order in the days before Creation's collapse. Styles which he made sure to learn, even as his last days ticked away before the process of transferring memories could begin. Each simplified style cut away much of the art and versatility of the original in favor of reaching some of the more well-known moves. Prismatic Arrangement of Creation, for instance, lost all of its useful prerequisite maneuvers (save Spell-Breaking Palm) in order to create a linear chain of Forms to the top. Was it a desecration of the work each style's creator put in to make these beautiful practices? Yes. Was it very useful to have a legion of Immaculate Monks able to break spells with just a palm strike?
Yes, yes it was.
The worst part of this process, however, was that the most difficult and intensive maneuvers were still beyond the efforts of the Terrestrial Exalted. Even the Solar, Abyssal and likely Infernal Exalted (they were NEVER used as test subjects for this) could only make some progress before requiring the usual in-depth study to advance further. The project was, technically speaking, a failure. And yet, its successes helped buy Creation a few more years before…
…Best not to dwell on it. In any case, before his death he had only managed to fully complete 2 of these "simplified" styles, and make progress in another 2. In particular, he had spent his last moments working on-
Choose 2 Styles to Master, and 2 Styles to Partially Master. Mastery entails all 5 dots, and Partial Mastery the first 3 dots. Keep in mind, each Ranger will start with 1 dot in an unknown style which they can progress in, so these aren't the only options for Secret Arts Styles.
Effects: Anti-Mage Tactics, Many Form Charms which warp reality, Can "use up" a target's MP equivalent (like Gnosis or Blood Points) upon hit (5th dot)
[][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
-[] Mastery
-[] Partial Mastery
Effects: Combat Precognition, Multiple Attacks, Can "pause" and potentially undo the effects of an enemy's attacks (5th dot)
It was a treasure trove of information, he knew that objectively. But would it be enough? Would it be enough to not only assist this team… but also entice them to fight in his place?
Meanwhile, over by a smog-filled factory, five teens would gather together in a moment which would seal their destinies forever… forever destroyed, that is. But they didn't all arrive there at once. Someone got there first, and by circumstance ended up serving as a temporary leader for the group. A temporary position which would become permanent with time. It would become their responsibility to lead this team to victory, and to maintain morale for the group.
Who would take up this august position?
For this vote only, DO NOT add this to your plans. It should be something that all voters can decide on.
[][Leader] Tommy
Tommy will become the team leader, and the Quest will use their POV from this point on. Their commitment to the mission will be set at the max and never go down.
Pros: Very good social stats in general, Has contacts that can give the team information
Cons: No leadership experience, not an impressive fighter, used to taking morally dubious options
[][Leader] Seth Anderson
Seth will become the team leader, and the Quest will use his POV from this point on. His commitment to the mission will be set at the max and never go down.
Pros: Has the 2nd most leadership experience of the team, does well with "brainy" actions
Cons: No combat experience at all, very specialized with certain social situations
[][Leader] Alex Green
Alex will become the team leader, and the Quest will use his POV from this point on. His commitment to the mission will be set at the max and never go down.
Pros: Has the most leadership experience of the team, plenty of combat experience
Cons: LOTS of Tension with Amanda, not good in other social situations, terrible with "brainy" actions
[][Leader] Jiu Lee
Jiu will become the team leader, and the Quest will use her POV from this point on. Her commitment to the mission will be set at the max and never go down.
Pros: Has an existing "in" with the supernatural, very good at BS and finding information
Cons: No leadership experience, not an impressive fighter
[][Leader] Amanda Hawkins
Amanda will become the team leader, and the Quest will use her POV from this point on. Her commitment to the mission will be set at the max and never go down.
Pros: VERY difficult to ambush or hide from, good at patching folks up, technically 3rd most leadership experience
Cons: LOTS of Tension with Alex, already dealing with a lot of stress with what she's got piling on.
[][Leader] Chejop Kejak
The former Sidereal will become the team leader in general matters, and the Quest will maintain the 3rd person perspective.
Pros: No concentration of stress on any one team member. CK will take on leadership duties (being VERY experienced in such matters), and slightly improve Mission Commitment for everyone.
Cons: Mission Commitment will depend solely on the team's efforts, as well as their relationships to each other and to CK. If it gets to 0, they will leave the team. CK cannot take part in any fights, and a "sub" leader may need to be established for such occasions, complicating things.
The Vote will End on December 24th at 4:00 PM PST Please formulate your vote as a plan EXCEPT for the leadership vote.
Author's Note: Yeah, I said I wasn't going to have this out today. Well, I cut a large chunk of it off, I spent hours on end writing as quickly as I could, all just to prove that I'm a dirty dirty liar.
So yeah, you get to pick your Zord, pick your assortment of Kejak's knowledge, and the leader. If you're wondering where I came up with the "simplified" Sidereal styles, it was to provide an explanation for why Sidereals in ExWoD can teach any Exalt the basics of their Secret Arts despite them being otherwise exclusive in Exalted proper. It also handily explains the lack of many other charms in the style itself, and gives me the chance to homebrew some expansions for later on. As for why those styles in particular were chosen, it was because I used Kejak's Scroll of the Exalts character sheet to find what SMA's he mastered, and added Emerald Gyre because it was cool and I had made a homebrew version of it previously.
Speaking of which, homebrew. With the exception of Quicksilver Hand, all of the potential Creature Arts are Homebrew styles I made years ago, and I wanted to see how they would actually work with user feedback. As such they're going to be more volatile in what precisely they do until I get a solid understanding of how they should work. If you want an in-character reason for this, the characters are experimenting on this theoretical styles until they have them figured out.
The Z.O.R.D. meanwhile is the choice between singular perfection and group-wise "It'll do." The Jade Megazord is easier to repair, and gives the whole squad something to do, but comes at the cost of not being very compatible with Sidereals, hence why it's slow and inaccurate. Meanwhile the Starmetal Battlezord is perfectly suited for a Sidereal Pilot... A Sidereal Pilot. Plus, Starmetal is just much harder to find, particularly in this Age.
Finally, the leader vote. Whoever becomes the leader becomes the main character, the person we the audience use to gain insight into the squad as a whole. This will be especially important, which is why I made it separate from the rest of the plans. Please, if nothing else, vote on who you want to be the leader.
If you have any questions, as always make sure to ask. I'm tired and all writing'ed out, so that's all from me tonight. I'll try and respond to any questions in the morning. Thanks everyone for participating!
It is going to take me a while to write up a vote so I'm just going to out this here so people can see my reasoning
[X][Leader] Jiu Lee
She is one of the best suited to sorcery which is our ace in the hole and she has a skill at pretending to be some other kind of supernatural with an in already, that is very important for diplomacy, we do not want what we actually are to be out there in the world. At the same time the leader must be the one to do diplomacy since that is how this world works, you can't just phone someone for policy advice in the middle of conversing with Werewolf McRage Guy or Throat-Ripper the Gangrel. Speaking of werewolves we are not them, we do not need the most powerful person in charge, none of these high school teens is going to challenge her to single combat to keep her leadership. When we fight we are best as a team and our leader doesn't have to be the one to take point.
Edit:
[X] Plan Dream ZORD Duck-Puncher
-[X][Damage] The Machine fought off the Raksha, as it did in times of old.
-[X][Z.O.R.D.] the Zero Obstacles Revolutionary Deity (Starmetal Battlezord)
-[X][Style] The Kaleidoscopic Border (of Logic)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Prismatic Arrangement (of Creation)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Emerald Gyre (of Aeons)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
--[X] Mastery
Reasoning
Synergy on the Zord, I chose the more expensive one and then the damage that isn't really damage, we just need to extract it from the Dreaming, which is going to be hard since the deep dreaming is hard to get into and filled with Weird Shit (TM) but it isn't going to involve finding magical material from the lost ages, something that might be in the possession of people we do not want to kill, holding up the sky so the Nephandi don't invade, that kind of thing. I am weary of committing to some kind of large scale theft of star-metal here given that it is likely in use. Just getting the thing out of the Dreaming on the other hand is likely to be less invasive and also hey it is the best version of 'the Machine' for us
KBoL: First rank is a cheap dice adder for things we do not want to spend an excellency on, the second one is being able to do everything including fly in pursuit of a target, which is very useful when fighting flying smoke banes, the third one isn't quite anti-shaping but it is one of those strange conceptual defenses that is going to mess with a lot of Bane powers, Four is you just drag people into the nether-realm and decide that one element of the world works the way you say so. What's that you are a fire elemental... fire doesn't burn in this reality, you are going to have to try to punch us to death. Five is you punch someone you can spend their magic juice, which is particularly powerful against stronger supernaturals which are more limited by their pools than than their number of actions
PAoC: This is the Meta-style, the Secret Art for people who want to learn a lot of secret arts. The thing is we are not going to be at that level for a while so I'd rather have it on partial. At the same time soul shaper form is very good for conserving essence by getting excellencies to work for longer and anima control is very good for keeping our cover
EGoA: More attacks are very important in this system and unfortunately they are also something a lot of enemies can get at low level. A new vampire player at character creation can technically take Celerity 5 and then do six attacks in a round with 5 Blood Points. Now is that a reasonable thing for a player to do? No, but that does not mean they do not exist as NPCs and the less said of werewolves and their rage the better. If you make a werewolf too angry congratulations you refill their rage and they are going to try to blend you, if you wound them too much they heal, get all their rage back and blend you, if you look at them funny they just might refill their rage and try to blend you. PC werewolves do not want to frenzy because they might kill someone they care about, but that is a very cold comfort to someone fighting a raging werewolf let alone several
CMoS: Contrary to popular beliefs this isn't just here for the memes, this Secret Art turns you into spider man with all the advantages that modern urban environments give that verticality and it gives a paralytic touch for when we do not want to kill someone (given that we are playing normal and non-murderous teenagers, that is going to be pretty often). Also yes, being able to render an enemy into a harmless form with one hit is a very nice potential show stopper for when we get to level five
The Machine was damaged in its attempt to seal away a cruel and powerful fae, and even today it can't leave the depths of the Dreaming. Within that plane however, it is well and active.
The Machine is not the one sealed away in the Dreaming, it's the Fae Lord who is very much active even if they cannot leave the Dreaming itself. The Machine is located in a basement floor beneath Kejak's memory crystal in the base. Damage is damage, you still need Starmetal to repair the Battlezord.
The Machine is not the one sealed away in the Dreaming, it's the Fae Lord who is very much active even if they cannot leave the Dreaming itself. The Machine is located in a basement floor beneath Kejak's memory crystal in the base. Damage is damage, you still need Starmetal to repair the Battlezord.
Ah...gotcha. In that case changing over to vampire because it has synergy with the supernatural connection we choose. Even if our mentor does not know what a Giovani is knowing a bit more about vampires in general will help dealing with them.
[X][Leader] Jiu Lee
[X] Plan Vampire ZORD Duck-Puncher
-[X][Damage] The Machine gave its all to protect a Dragon-Blooded clan from a most ancient Vampire.
-[X][Z.O.R.D.] the Zero Obstacles Revolutionary Deity (Starmetal Battlezord)
-[X][Style] The Kaleidoscopic Border (of Logic)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Prismatic Arrangement (of Creation)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Emerald Gyre (of Aeons)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
--[X] Mastery
[X] Plan: Vampire ZORD Hyper Beam
-[X][Damage] The Machine gave its all to protect a Dragon-Blooded clan from a most ancient Vampire.
-[X][Z.O.R.D.] the Zero Obstacles Revolutionary Deity (Starmetal Battlezord)
-[X][Style] The Citrine Poxes (of Contagion)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Prismatic Arrangement (of Creation)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Emerald Gyre (of Aeons)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
--[X] Partial Mastery
Reasoning in the plan name. I just think death lasers are neat.
Edit: approval voting this
[X] Plan: Vampire MEGAZORD Hyper Beam
[X] Plan Vampire ZORD Duck-Puncher
-[X][Damage] The Machine gave its all to protect a Dragon-Blooded clan from a most ancient Vampire.
-[X][Z.O.R.D.] the Zero Obstacles Revolutionary Deity (Starmetal Battlezord)
-[X][Style] The Kaleidoscopic Border (of Logic)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Prismatic Arrangement (of Creation)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Emerald Gyre (of Aeons)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
--[X] Mastery
[X] Plan Vampire ZORD Duck-Puncher
-[X][Damage] The Machine gave its all to protect a Dragon-Blooded clan from a most ancient Vampire.
-[X][Z.O.R.D.] the Zero Obstacles Revolutionary Deity (Starmetal Battlezord)
-[X][Style] The Kaleidoscopic Border (of Logic)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Prismatic Arrangement (of Creation)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Emerald Gyre (of Aeons)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
--[X] Mastery
If we want to be very technical, it's a death typhoon concentrated into a long cylinder. But considering that A) It's half a mile long, not including the width or height, and B) it's still very bright and flashy, it might as well be a Death Kamehameha.
So yes, you are very correct, and they are very neat.
[X][Leader] Tommy
[X] Plan: Vampire ZORD Hyper Beam
As cool as the battlezord is, a megazord would be so much cooler. A team effort is a lot more satisfying, even if it doesn't get to use the hyper beam.
[X] Plan: Vampire MEGAZORD Hyper Beam
-[X][Damage] The Machine gave its all to protect a Dragon-Blooded clan from a most ancient Vampire.
-[X][Z.O.R.D.] the Zealous Orthodox Revolution-Drones (Five Jade Megazord)
-[X][Style] The Citrine Poxes (of Contagion)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Prismatic Arrangement (of Creation)
--[X] Mastery
-[X][Style] The Emerald Gyre (of Aeons)
--[X] Partial Mastery
-[X][Style] The Charcoal March (of Spiders)
--[X] Partial Mastery
Well it's not like the girl who made friends with a Giovani revenant is a straight arrow, she might not have as much experience as Tommy but she is a peak human liar with a specialty.
