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To Save Your World, Again [Getimian Exalted]

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[X] Emulation of the Fair Folk
[X] Truth through Lies

[X] Beckoning That Which Stirs the Sky
[X] Flight of Separation
[X] Wood Dragon's Claw
 
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I. A Remarkably Bad Plan
  • Apocrypha
    • Gazetteer said:
    [Y] Die where we stand

    I want to see where this goes.
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    'Maybe if I stab myself in the heart, it will give me additional power somehow,' you think to yourself, incongruously, before you decide to not use sorcery against a dangerous fae sorcerer who has promised to kill you if you don't use sorcery, while standing in the heart of her domain. This sounds like a good way to get her to help you, which was, after all, the whole point of coming out here.

    Despite a significant amount of high-speed thought, you can identify no problems with this plan before, somehow, you find that you're bleeding really heavily. 'This seems entirely unfair,' you think to yourself, even as you waver and fall to the ground, the already cold world going dark to match it. 'The theory was so sound, so I don't know how anything went wrong with the execution of this very smart plan.'



    ...


    What did you expect would happen?​


    Anyway, real vote still ongoing.​
    ​
     
  • Apocrypha
    • omg Getimian quest lets gooooo

    can someone link to the basic premise of getimian again? It's not time travel so much as the exalt is the same age as they were in their memories but in a world that is different?
     
    astergremlin said:
    omg Getimian quest lets gooooo

    can someone link to the basic premise of getimian again? It's not time travel so much as the exalt is the same age as they were in their memories but in a world that is different?
    Click to expand...
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    The Getimian is made from an unrealised destiny, one that did not happen in reality due to heaven having prevented it. Usually, the point of divergence is the Getimian's birth. So, for the Getimian, they were born twenty-odd years ago, grew up, did something great or heroic, then went to sleep one night and... Woke up in a Creation where they never existed, fully formed at the age they recall being, now a Getimian Exalt. Like Alchemicals and Liminals, they outright did not exist as a person prior to their Exaltation, but the stuff they're made out of is a lot more intangible than a corpse or a soul and an artificial body.

    Everyone the Getimian ever knew is changed and thinks of them as a stranger, if they're even alive. Everything they ever accomplished has gone undone. Everything they ever built has crumbled to ash in front of them, and they're just left with this surreal nightmare in its place.
     
    Speaking about what the Getimians are, what is the meaning/origin of the name 'getimian'? Every other exalted's name are real word in modern language.

    BTW, or some reason searching 'getimian dictionary' in google got redirected into seach for 'exigent dictionary' instead.

    The best I can found so far is Anglo-Saxon document. The Homilies of the Anglo-Saxon Church/XXVII - Wikisource, the free online library which contained sentence 'Hwæt sceal us getimian?' which apparently translated to 'What shall become of us?'.

    This is really obscure reference the writers are choosing.

    Fake edit, searching on google with '-exigent' and '-liminal' can finally yield proper result
    Old English getimian "to happen, befall," from time (n.). Meaning "to appoint a time" (of an action, etc.) is attested from c. 1300; sense of "to measure or record the time of" (a race, event, etc.) is first attested 1660s. Related: Timed; timing.
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    www.etymonline.com

    time | Etymology of time by etymonline

    "temporal duration, limited space of time," from Proto-Germanic *timon- "time" (source… See origin and meaning of time.
    www.etymonline.com www.etymonline.com

    I guess whoever come up with the name have hobby browsing dictionary of old languages (can't fault them, I do the same) :V
     
    Last edited:
    Salbazier said:
    Speaking about what the Getimians are, what is the meaning/origin of the name 'getimian'? Every other exalted's name are real word in modern language.

    BTW, or some reason searching 'getimian dictionary' in google got redirected into seach for 'exigent dictionary' instead.

    The best I can found so far is Anglo-Saxon document. The Homilies of the Anglo-Saxon Church/XXVII - Wikisource, the free online library which contained sentence 'Hwæt sceal us getimian?' which apparently translated to 'What shall become of us?'.

    This is really obscure reference the writers are choosing.

    Fake edit, searching on google with '-exigent' and '-liminal' can finally yield proper result

    www.etymonline.com

    time | Etymology of time by etymonline

    "temporal duration, limited space of time," from Proto-Germanic *timon- "time" (source… See origin and meaning of time.
    www.etymonline.com www.etymonline.com

    I guess whoever come up with the name have hobby browsing dictionary of old languages (can't fault them, I do the same) :V
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    Click to shrink...
    Yes, this is the reason they're called that, it was a super weird pull compared to other new Exalt types (Exigent and Liminal are contemporary if slightly obscure words, but certainly less obscure than "Sidereal"), but it's what they were name-dropped as in the 3e corebook, so it's what the current developers had to work with when they fleshed out the concept.
     
    [x] Soul-Perfecting Elixir

    We're supposed to be a great alchemist, right?

    [x] Peacock Shadow Eyes
    [x] Wood Dragon's Claw
     
    Gazetteer said:
    Yes, this is the reason they're called that, it was a super weird pull compared to other new Exalt types
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    Because they don't belong.

    Solar, Lunar, Terrestrial, Liminal, all have Latin roots.
    Abyssals come from Abyss, from the Latin Abyssus.
    Infernals come from the Latin Infernus.
    Alchemicals is stretching it a bit because it's Arabic, but we have the medieval Latin Alkemia so close enough

    Getimian isn't.
    It's pure Anglo-Saxon Germanic, no Latin roots whatsoever. A square peg in a round hole, a glove without a ball, a piece of the world that just doesn't fit. Or perhaps a piece of the world is m̷͖̪̗i̱̥͍͚̦̺͢ṣ̡̥͓s̢̤̺̟͈̪i̞̯͇͡ͅn̛g̛̤̤.
     
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    III. The Tale is Told
  • Threadmarks
    • Winning votes:
    - Flight of Separation
    - Peacock Shadow Eyes

    You immerse yourself in your mind, reaching through the truth to a lie and then through that to a deeper truth. Delicately, you pick through the threads of reality that this reveals to you, mental fingers stretching to touch a power to change this to a form you like better. Most specifically right now, the form you want reality to take is for you to burst into a cloud of mockingbirds, because doing so will let you secure Orchid's aid instead of her ire.

    The basic roll in Exalted Essence is Attribute (basically a type of approach to things) + Ability (a broad skill) + any relevant modifiers + 2 dice if the player "stunts" the action, which essentially means to describe the effort in any sort of way more interesting than the very most blatant. These dice are d10s, and a 1-6 is a failure, 7-9 is one success, and 10 is two successes. Getimians have a unique benefit where they can get a bonus success based on balancing their internal alchemy; I won't be getting too deep into the exact rules, because that's what the book itself is for.

    Most rolls are against difficulty 3, and the expected value is that two dice will usually give about one success, so getting 6 or 7 dice on a roll means that, typically, you'll succeed more often than not: you don't need huge dice pools or multiple Charms to feel competent at a task. You can also basically always add the two stunt dice; this is one of the important edges that PCs can employ, giving them a strong baseline ability to succeed at basic heroic tasks. However, more dice are always better for trying to achieve great things.

    In this case, our protagonist rolls to Focus Will with Finesse+Sagacity+stunt for 11 dice total, and adds 1 automatic success. Our protagonist gets 1 Will for meeting the base difficulty of 3, and 1 more for every success past the third one.

    8, 1, 10, 9, 6, 4, 2, 3, 3, 9, 10 + 1AS = 8 successes, resulting in 6 Will.
    Next turn, we cast Flight of Separation by spending 4 of this banked Will. Full success in the sorcery!

    You succeed, quite quickly in fact. The flows of sorcerous power are never fully reliable, but typically it would have taken you a breath longer to pull this trick. You don't worry about the why just yet, just embrace it. Your mind fractures into pieces as your body does, turning from a singular point of view to dozens of individual pieces, each piloting a little bird.

    Flight of Separation, this spell, requires you to name a destination. In this case, you've just selected the other side of the clearing. Before you can do so, a sticky net of sorcerously-conjured thread appears over you, dropping and catching all the birds that make up you. It takes a moment to react. It's hard to think when you're a flock of birds. Once you do, you revoke the spell, and revert from being a bunch of birds trapped in a net to a human who can just peel a thin net off of yourself.

    Orchid is looking at you with puzzlement as you do so. "Yes, this is much like I would have done. But I have never met you." Even though it's not the first time you've heard it from her, it still hurts. "Yet, I must conclude that you have good reason to believe me your teacher. Most curious. I gave you a name when I taught you sorcery, did I not?"

    You nod. "Victorious Mockingbird," you say, by way of introduction. It's not the name you were born with, but by now it's the name you think of yourself as.

    "Then I claim you as my apprentice again," she says, sitting back on the wolf-in-progress she's been working on. "Persistent Mockingbird." You bow your head, accepting the change in name. Names have power; the fae will not be your ally if you do not accept this token of her authority. "Now, Mockingbird," she says, steepling her fingers together. "Tell me more of our previous time together."

    You sketch the broad strokes of your life out. It takes a little time, time enough that another of her hobgoblin servants interrupts with a mid-day meal. You demurr accepting the food until Ice-Rimed Orchid says the right things, enough for you to trust it. Thoughtlessly accepting a meal provided by Fair Folk can be... problematic.

    You tell her of Grieve, of its splendor and wealth, of its power and independence. You tell her of the sorcerer who helped hold it together with training from the fae and alchemic brews. You tell her of Queen Shield Glory, who listened to her sorcerer and gambled wisely, and was blessed for it. You tell her of the graveborn twins, and their mighty swords, who served as both generals and champions. You tell her of the sly tongue and peerless head for numbers of the Balance-Sheet's Chosen. You tell her of the priest of Grieve, whose mystic intercession with gods ranging from the great Hin-Sai of the blizzards to the frail Hearth's Embers, who oversees hospitality in the immediate area, brought great blessings on your land. You tell her of the Tamer, whose beasts of burden and war improved safety and quality of life throughout the land. You tell her of the Pale Rider, who wanders woods and roads, who never stood aligned with you, but who did stand shoulder-to-shoulder with you in some dark times.

    And, when you run out of words, you have Orchid looking at you with a sad and sympathetic eye. "I know only two of the names you shared. Queen Shield Glory is, indeed, still queen of Grieve, though different than you describe, and the Pale Rider is known to me. The others? Nothing." She shrugs. "So what will you do now?"

    For a moment, the weight of the world seems to settle on your shoulders. Everyone is gone? Everyone is missing, your work is undone, and even memory has been wiped away. You take perhaps a minute to compose yourself. Orchid waits patiently, smiling slightly as she sees you struggling with yourself. "I need to find out some things," you say, finally. "First... what's this 'White Elixir'?"

    "Ahhh, the sort of question that makes me believe you more." Orchid pats the wolf's lifelessly-still head with one hand, as she considers it. "It's a story that has spread so far that I cannot believe anyone in the area would not have heard of it. The White Elixir is said to hold soul and body in the moment of death, preserving the drinker against all but the most thorough of physical trauma or the light of the sun. Thus, neither aging nor poison nor disease will ever bother one who has consumed it. It was first revealed only a few years ago. Only a few alchemists in the city know the secrets of even a few steps of its brewing, and only a few of the merchants know for sure which ingredients are needed for its creation... and only the royal family is allowed to sell it."

    You grind your teeth on hearing that. "It's not a real immortality, is it?" That's not a real question. "It's doing something much worse than that to its drinkers."

    "Of course it is."

    "What is the truth behind it?"

    "I haven't spared it a thought." Orchid grins widely at your disapproving stare. "Mockingbird, I have lost track of how many generations of immortals I have outlived. For all that's been proven, the White Elixir might just improve physical stamina a bit and hide the passing of age for ten years, then cease to do anything at all. I could not possibly care less about the White Elixir if I fed my entire soul and all of my graces to the next hannya I find. You are correct that it can't do what it says, but I do not care what it does."

    "Then I'll have to find out myself."

    "Excellent." Orchid's smile becomes a little more predatory. "Regardless of what happens, I expect that you will create an intriguing story for me. Go, stir up trouble in the city, with my blessing. I'll give you support as you go."

    She hops down from her wolf, and goes to root around the piles of discarded treasures that ring her clearing. "Let's see. You'll get more respect if you have a few more changes of clothes. You might need to fight. Hm..." After a moment, Orchid hands you a pack with a few essentials, a sword, and some simple armor for you. You accept it all. She waits patiently for a moment, but seems to lose interest when she finds you're not stripping down to put on the armor. "Anyway, go cause some trouble, then come back and let me know how it went."

    She wanders off. You know that you've just been dismissed, so you go over what she's provided you. The pack contains nothing unexpected. The sword is a jewel-encrusted one-handed straight sword, something appropriate for a noble's child going off to play soldier. It's made of bronze, but seems functional and in good shape. The armor is a leather jacket that covers you from neck to knee, with enough give in its skirt to keep it from hampering your movements. It's threaded throughout with treated bone, probably something hefty like a siege lizard or river dragon, to give you a bit more protection when wearing it.

    It's still a tremendous shock to you that even Orchid can't remember the true history of Grieve, but it's a relief in another way: if even she can't recall, you have no belief anyone else will remember. It's also an advantage: if she doesn't recognize all your allies and friends (and one true love, your treacherous mind whispers before you manage to silence it), then likely no one else knows their capabilities, either. You can whip up a terrifying force all but overnight.

    That's your thought when you select which of your allies you go seek out first. You have no idea just then exactly how disappointing your reunion will be.

    With this, our protagonist's sheet is actually complete, and can be seen in the Informational post. Persistent Mockingbird is actually close to completely legal; although Mockingbird is the only PC-equivalent here, I only really needed to swap out the secondary Merit (where I didn't have anything that made much sense to put in there) for an extra Charm (which I used to get a second spell, to represent Mockingbird being a talented sorcerer). These shouldn't logically be something that can get exchanged this way, but this just happened to be a good match. The spread of abilities, attributes, and Charms is me laser-focusing on stuff that I know will be relevant; this is me ensuring that this is as good a spread as possible for what I have prepared for the story.

    There are a few game elements that I'm abstracting away a little bit: right now, I haven't filled in Intimacies, but will so so as they become relevant. Some "per session" stuff is getting handwaved as 'I'll know it when I see it.' There's a handful of similar stuff. You can ask about specifics if you have any questions, here.

    Who do you seek out first?
    This is a case where all of these are true, but it tells a lot about Mockingbird to pick one over the others. Why was this pick the first one?

    [] You seek out the graveborn twins, and find one drunk in a bar
    Their father was a ghost and their mother passed when they were young, but these sisters took to the sword and made a name for themselves on the battlefields. At least, they did so in your memories. Here, you find only one, and she's in a dark place.

    [] You seek out Balance-Sheet's Chosen, and find a broke gambler in a ditch
    The Exigent you know, whose insight and bureaucratic skills were second to none, is nowhere to be seen. In his place, with the same name and face, is only a card shark, and not one talented enough to have anything more than a marginal existence.

    [] You seek out the priest, and find only a grave, watched by a son
    The talented bridge between the divine and the mortal is no more. He's long since dead and buried, his remains beneath an unremarkable grave. His son cares for the family tomb, but he does not seem to be made of the same stuff as his father.
     
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