Azure Crow, the Iron-Piercing Bodhisattva [Dreams of the Third Age]

MaHaSuchi's700

MaHaSuchi's700

Seducing them all, one Celestial at a time



  • Name: Azure Crow ne Cathak Suo


    Sobriquets: The Iron-Piercing Bodhisattva, The Third Sage


    Caste: Endings


    Concept: Wizened martial artist and the power behind Cathak


    Anima: A burning halo of lavender-tinged violet Essence


    Motivation: Ensure the prominence and survival of House Cathak until its fated end


    Intimacies: Bureau of Endings (loyalty+), Bureau of Battles (commitment+), House Cathak (accountability+), Cathak Cainan (fraternity+), Bronze Faction (regret-), Lupo (respect+),


    Appearance:

    Joshuan_The_Monk_Sketch_by_WillDan.jpg

    WIP
 
Damn that is an impressive Sidereal. Yeah, I kinda feel sorry for whoever has to fight Hellsing now...
 
Goddamnbatman, I've came up with a custom extension to Throne Shadows Style for your consideration.


Well Tended Fingers Blossom


Cost: ---; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Permanent


Keywords: Native


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Sifu's Useful Fingers


The true power of the Sidereals stems from their nature as viziers, guiding those who would influence the world in their stead. The more powerful those aided, and the more time spent, the more the Sidereal is strengthened by her position. This Charm allows the Sidereal to recover motes of Essence from serving as adviser, teacher, or some other position of counsel to one or more Fingers. Each hour spent recovers motes equal to the highest Essence of any Finger advised or two motes for each Finger advised, whichever is higher. For the purposes of this Charm only, "Finger" refers to any individual who:


- the Sidereal has committed a mote to through Sifu's Useful Fingers, whether current or past


- the Sidereal has advised regarding a position of political power or leadership


- the Sidereal has personally taught or mentored


In addition, each purchase of this Charm adds 10 motes to the Sidereal's Peripheral Essence Pool. This Essence cannot be committed to any artifact and can only be recovered through the method above or through Essence-recovery Charms. A Sidereal may not purchase this Charm more than (Essence) times.
 
So can only recover motes from someone you instructed, alright sure but the only change that I would give it, 2 motes recovered per finger each hour, considering that the numbers of fingers can be significant, it's not too bad and would be around the same power as meditation on war (melee 5, essence 3).
 
Goddamnbatman said:
So can only recover motes from someone you instructed, alright sure but the only change that I would give it, 2 motes recovered per finger each hour, considering that the numbers of fingers can be significant, it's not too bad and would be around the same power as meditation on war (melee 5, essence 3).
Click to expand...
Oh, wow. That could potentially be significantly better than my original thought. Hrm. Mind if I keep both? So, the minimum amount of motes you can recover is equal to the highest Essence score of an individual you've worked with - so if you work with two characters at E5 and E2, you regain 5m rather than 4m, but if you work with 6 E3 characters you regain 12m.


EDIT: Also, to clarify - for the purposes of BP costs for both character gen and later in-game progression, do Throne Shadow Expansion Charms count as CMA Charms or native Sidereal Charms?
 
you know what, sure, since it only goes into your sidereal expansion charms. Expansion charms are regular charms.
 
For reference, I've copy-pasted all of the SGambit rewrites and the custom Charms by Revlid that we'll be using here:


Mana Drips from Lotus Petals

Cost: 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive


Keywords: Combo-OK, Native, Overdrive


Duration: One scene


Prerequisite Charms: Throne Shadow Form


Water drips from the unstained petals of the lotus, just as earthly concerns are shed from the spirits of the enlightened. The Vizier’s mastery of archetypal Essence-patterns allows him to shrive wasted motes from the impurities of his surroundings, channelling them into a more perfected martial stance. Upon learning this Charm, the Sidereal gains an empty Overdrive pool with a capacity of ten motes. While this Charm is active, the Sidereal gains three offensive motes whenever he activates a new Form-type Charm (this gain cannot exceed the mote cost of the Form in question). He also gains one offensive mote whenever his DVs refresh, provided he has a Form-type Charm active. However, while this Charm is active, the Sidereal can only spend offensive motes on Charms of the Style to which his current Form-type Charm belongs; if he has no Form-type Charms active, he cannot spend offensive motes at all. Deactivating this Charm before the end of the scene removes (Martial Arts x2) offensive motes from the Sidereal’s Overdrive pool.


If the Sidereal has multiple Form-type Charms active at once (such as through Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form), he receives offensive motes for activating each one separately, but still only acquires one offensive mote at the start of each of his actions. He can, however, spend these offensive motes on any Charm belonging to any of his active Form-type Charms’ Styles. Sidereal akuma in a Form-type Shintai may treat all their Yozi Charms as belonging to the same “Style” as that Shintai
Horizon-Cresting Cavalry Rescue

Cost: — ; Mins: War 4, Essence 3; Type: Permanent


Keywords: Native, Overdrive


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Auspicious Recruitment Drive


As nations and wilderness fell into the all-consuming madness of the Balorian Crusade, the legendary Harbinger Amenka Ansa-Egode coaxed Mars to invent this Charm so that she might better deliver hope along with armies and champions. This Charm grants the Exalt an Overdrive pool with a capacity of ten motes. Initially empty, it gains motes when the Exalt arrives at the scene of battle after the conflict has already begun and rolls Join Battle or Join War to enter combat. She immediately gains one mote, plus an additional mote for every Essence 2+ ally who enters the battle alongside her. Alternatively, if she enters battle as part of a Magnitude 3+ unit, she instead gains (Magnitude +1) motes. In either case, the Exalt may gain a maximum of ten offensive motes from her arrival. Any allied combatant already engaged in the conflict and who possesses an Overdrive pool also adds three offensive motes to their pools when the Sidereal enters the conflict.


If the Exalt had previously promised to aid a being already engaged in the fight before she arrives or if she had somehow arranged for the fight to occur at this particular time and place, she gains another five motes, capped only by the size of her Overdrive pool.
SMA: The Student and Elder Sutras

While Solars are capable of learning Sidereal Martial Arts, Sidereals are the true masters of the bulb of the perfected lotus. Sidereals may spend Overdrive motes to fuel the charms of Sidereal Martial Arts regardless of whether or not they are offensive, but Form-Type charms and charms with a flaw of invulnerability can not be activated using offensive motes. Further, the first time in a scene where a Sidereal activates a Form-Type charm of any Sidereal Martial Art she gains 5 motes to her overdrive pool (up to once per style). She gains another 5 motes the first time in a scene where she benefits from the pinnacle charm. If the Sidereal does not have an Overdrive pool, she gains an Overdrive pool of 10 motes upon learning a Form-Type charm in a Sidereal Martial Art. This overdrive pool does not stack with that given by charms.
Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Style

The Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Style is a Sidereal Martial Arts Style. It has no form weapons and is incompatible with armour or shields. This is often the first advanced style taught to Sidereal Exalted.


The Student's Sutra of Essence: Once, there were maidens...


Deadly Starmetal Offensive


Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: None


...and their names were JI


The character infuses her fingernails with Essence, hardening them, sharpening them, lengthening them into bweapons - and, most importantly, causing them to bend, influence and predict the path of fate in the manner of starmetal. While this Charm is active, the character’s unarmed attacks gain a minimum damage of 3 and the O tag, may parry lethal attacks without a stunt, and may re-roll the the damage roll in step 8 whenever she attacks, taking the higher of the two results.


Editor's Note: I changed this one because Blade of the Battle Maiden makes the character's hands a Starmetal Daiklave. I felt this charm should be both different and synergistic.


Orichalcum Sheathing Stance


Cost: 5m; Mins:Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type:Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords:Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: None


and PENG


The character wraps her body in a sheath of Essence, mirroring in its interaction with her own anima the link between Solar Exalted and orichalcum. While this Charm is active, the character is considered to be wearing orichalcum armor with the martial artist’s (Essence + Martial Arts+2) Bashing and Lethal Soak, (Stamina+Martial Arts)/2+5 Hardness, a -0 Mobility Penalty, and a 0 Fatigue Penalty. Further, the martial artist subtracts 1 from any attack’s minimum damage (minimum of 1) and 2 from the damage of any environmental effect (minimum of 0). The armor provided by this charm is compatible with all martial arts, even those normally not compatible with armor. However, the benefits of this charm count as equipment and the rules for stacking equipment apply to it.


Editor's Note: Made the soak scale. At E5, MA5, STM 5 you're looking at up to 12 Soak, 11 Hardness from armor which is still worse than just getting Superheavy Plate. At E10, MA10, STM10 you're looking at 22 Soak and 21 Hardness. This does stealthily, effectively have every magical material bonus applied.


Flickering Moonsilver Approach


Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: None


and LU


The character traces patterns through the air that echo the slippery, mutable ways in which moonsilver twists the flows of Essence around it. Opponents cannot precisely determine the character's location: she may cause her attacks to originate from any point within (her Essence x5) yards. Such attacks impose a -2 penalty to the defender's PDV, on top of ignoring all cover bonuses to DV.


Editor's Note: No longer ignores shields, and a change in wording allows for better stunting IMO, without altering the mechanics any.


Five Jade Fury


Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: None


and ZHOU


The character binds the substance of Creation to her Essence, shifting into a pattern of attacks that radiates the elemental authority of jade. Each gives a gift, which applies only to unarmed Martial Arts attacks. Her blows can be bashing or lethal, as she chooses, reflecting the compassion and conviction of green jade. The grace of black jade steers her attacks well: she adds 2 to the Accuracy and Defense values. The reliability of white jade ensures reasonable damage: she adds 3 to her Damage value. The force of blue jade grants her weapon the Piercing tag. Finally, the swiftness of red jade adds 1 to her weapon's Rate and -1 to its Speed. The benefits of this charm count as a Magical Material bonus and the appropriate rules for stacking apply.


Editor's Note: You effectively add every magical material bonus to your attacks. Balanced by the fact that, without other charms, you're still using your Punch's stats. It results in a Speed 4, Acc +4, Damage +3L, Defense +3, Rate 5 weapon with piercing. With Blade of the Battle Maiden this results in a Speed 4, Acc +4, Damage +8L/2, Defense +4, Rate 5 weapon with piercing. This is a nice, general weapon but nothing compared to the better artifact weapons.


Four Magical Materials Form


Cost: 15m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)


Keywords: Form-type, Obvious, Combo-Basic


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: Deadly Starmetal Offensive, Orichalcum Sheathing Stance, Flickering Moonsilver Approach, Five Jade Fury


and HOU TUI


The character attunes herself to the Essence of the world, drawing on the flows of interwoven fates, raw power, progressive change and elemental stability that play out all around her. In this fashion, while she maintains the Form, she becomes a living artifact. This Form does not mimic the Essence of soulsteel.


When using this Form, the character automatically and reflexively activates all four prerequisite stances as part of the Form activation for no cost. In addition, she becomes unbreakable, becoming immune to Crippling effects, unless the effect could damage the Five Magical Materials.


Editor's Note: No change, moving on.


Charm Redirection Technique


Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive (Step 2)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Counterattack


Duration: Instant


Prerequisites: None


and AN


The character learns to catch, tangle and throw the Essence flows of Charms as if they were the flailing limbs of her hapless flows. This Charm may be invoked in Step 2 in response to a Charm-enhanced attack. The martial artist immediately rolls their (Essence + Martial Arts) against a difficulty of the attacker’s Essence. If successful, they perfectly parry the attack and another character in range of the attack is immediately made the new target for the attack, starting in Step 2. The activation roll for this charm is considered a unique Flaw of Invulnerability.


Editor's Note: This one was a pain to balance. It's effectively an expensive PD with a bad flaw that doubles as a redirect. It's powerful, but expensive--hopefully I struck the right balance?


Sequential Charm Disruption


Cost: 4m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive (Step 2)


Keywords: Combo-OK


Duration: Instant


Prerequisites: Charm Redirection Technique


and CAI


This Charm expands on the principle of Charm Redirection Technique. Rather than redirecting the essence flows, this charm instead disrupts them. The martial artist may immediately cancel one or more charms used on the attack against them for the duration of that attack. If more than one offensive charm is canceled, add a +2m, +1wp surcharge to this charm. If an Excellency is canceled, add a +5m surcharge to the charm. Rather than cancel a charm with a duration longer than instant for just one attack, a charm may be completely canceled as a shaping effect by adding the cost of the canceled charm as a surcharge to this one. The cost of canceled charms is still paid. This effect may not cancel Form-type Charms, Extra Action charms or charms with a minimum essence higher than the martial artist’s permanent Essence.


Editor's Note: This charm is an odd duck. It's not quite a perfect defense but it might as well be. Late-step offensive charms bypass it, but other than that it's a psuedo-perfect that can be powered by overdrive. That's why it's as expensive, if not moreso, than a normal perfect defense.


Spell-Shattering Palm


Cost: 5m per Circle or (Minimum Essence of a Sorcerous Charm)*3m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive (Step 1 for attacker, Step 2 for defender)


Keywords: Combo-OK


Duration: Instant


Prerequisites: None


and LI


The character uses martial arts to yank the threads of a delicate construct of sorcery out of place. This charm allows the character to make Martial Arts attacks or defenses against sorcery, similar to countermagic. Used on the offense this modifies an unarmed strike, you must target the manifestation or center of the spell—such as the character benefiting, the spirit summoned, or the approximate center for spells like Rain of Doom. Spells that do not otherwise have a stated DV have a DV of (Circle)*4 or (Minimum Essence)*2 for Sorcerous Charms. If you defeat the DV by at least the Sorcerer’s (Essence)/2 than the effect is shattered as though struck by the appropriate level of countermagic.


Used defensively, this charms functions as defensive countermagic of the spell’s circle if the character’s PDV exceeds the caster’s Essence + Twice the Spell’s Circle or the caster’s Essence + The Sorcerous Charm’s Minimum Essence. This requirement is considered a unique Flaw of Invulnerability when used defensively.


Editor's Note: I tried to bring this in line with Magic-Shattering Palm and the Lunar equivalent, rather than bringing it in line with Adamant Circle Countermagic. It's occasionally cheaper, but you don't regain motes for success. I notably didn't use a mote-regaining mechanic because it can be made free/cheap with Overdrive and the form-charm.


Astrology Interruption Method


Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive (Step 1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch


Duration: Instant


Prerequisites: None


and HUA JI


The character uses her education in the nature of fate in conjunction with her martial skill to disjoint, snarl and otherwise tangle the fates the spiders weave. By lightly striking the target in the five points where the threads of the Loom of Fate attach, the character can negate Sidereal astrological effects. She must make a successful Martial Arts attack against the target. If she succeeds with threshold successes exceeding the Essence + College of the Sidereal that created the effect, the effect is dangerously torn or frayed, and the pattern spiders abandon it.


Editor's Note: It's cheaper now! Please use it? But seriously... >_> Also, added the Touch Keyword.


Soul Fire Shaper Form


Cost: 15m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)


Keywords: Form-type, Overdrive, Combo-Basic


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: Charm Disruption Technique, Sequential Charm Disruption, Spell-Shattering Palm, Astrology Interruption Method


and QIAN JING


The character balances her actions so perfectly to the local flow of Essence that the world around her cannot help but support her victory, regardless of whether she stands in Creation, Malfeas or the Underworld.


While using the Soul Fire Shaper Form, consider the Exalt's permanent Essence to be five higher than her current Essence for the purposes of resolving Charm conflicts and interacting with her enemy’s charm effects. She is unaffected by any condition or effect that would negatively impact her Essence pool or recovery, including but not limited to environmental factors such as being in the Underworld as a native of Creation, or hostile effects such as Charms that would prevent her from regaining motes in combat.


In addition, the character gains an Overdrive Pool of 10 motes while this charm is active. Every time your DV refreshes while using this form, roll a number of dice equal to the highest minimum essence of any non-Sidereal Martial Art charm used by another character since the last time your DV refreshed and gain 1 offensive mote per success.


Finally, the martial artist also gains one free use of Sequential Charm Disruption, Spell-Shattering Palm, or Astrology Interruption Method every time his DV refreshes. Any effects, including surcharges that increase the cost of those charms increases it from a base cost of 0m, 0wp.


Editor's Note: A bunch of minor tweaks here. Instead of increasing one's mote pool it uses an overdrive mechanic. since PAoC is the general and buff Sid MA I made the refill mechanic general and pretty good. I modified what the +Ess applies to slightly and you can't use Charm Redirection with it anymore. I'm honestly skeptical about letting people use Sequential Charm Disruption with it but figure there's enough ways around it.


God Ways


Cost: 10m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Shaping


Duration: Indefinite


Prerequisites: None


and ZUO GU


The character steps into an object or person, displacing its natural spirit with his Essence manipulations as easily as a master of legermain might steal a mortal's coat. The character's player rolls Charisma + Martial Arts against a difficulty equal to the Essence of the Exalt's target - the body he wants to steal or the god or least god of the thing he wishes to possess. The target's player can spend a point of willpower to make a willpower roll difficulty equal to the martial artist's Essence once on each of the martial artist's action ticks to regain control over her body. As a restriction, the character may not possess any entity with a size greater than her Essence in yards in its largest dimension.


In the meantime, the character's body dematerializes and fades into her stolen form. She may move and take Martial Arts actions through her stolen flesh, using her own Physical Attributes or those of her stolen form, if they are higher (inanimate objects usually have 0s in all Physical Attributes). This Charm imbues any stolen form with supernatural flexibility and mobility - possessed trees can attack and unattended ox-carts can charge. Attacks that strike dematerialized entities damage the character's dematerialized self as well as her stolen form. Otherwise, she suffers no ill effects from having her possessed body damaged or destroyed.


The character cannot possess soulsteel. She can only possess objects made of other Magical Materials if she knows the style's Charm for emulating that Magical Material.


Editor's Note: I made ejecting the Sidereal more difficult. If you're caught without shaping defenses on an attack that costs more than 8m you deserve what you get.


[Exalt] [Caste] Ways


Cost: 5m, 1hl; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK


Duration: Indefinite


Prerequisites: None


and YOU PAN


The character strikes his throat, abdomen, spine, brow and crown chakras, forcibly reshaping his Essence and altering how his anima interacts with this world. This Charm allows the character to mimic the anima banner and anima effects of one other type and caste of Exalted. This Charm temporarily replaces the character's anima banner. This charm can never allow the character to learn charms she otherwise could not, for instance by mimicking the Eclipse Caste’s anima. Select one Caste when you first purchase this charm, and other castes may be added at the cost of 4xp each but you may only activate one [Exalt] [Caste] Ways at a time.


Editor's Note: Made learning new castes much cheaper, made the duration indefinite, and removed the limitation on caste marks so it can be used for disguises.


Games of Divinity Form


Cost: 10m 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)


Keywords: Form-type, Obvious, Emotion, Combo-Basic


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: God Ways, Exalt Ways


and WU JI


The character adopts the attitude and posture of the spirit courts, moving with the infinite baroque complexity necessary to the management of Creation. Directed by the four powers of her mind - aspiration, effort, intention and analysis - the whole of her Essence flows as one. Simultaneously, even the smallest mote of her being directs itself toward managing its own affairs.


Though no imperfect creature can truly master it, this Form has a perfect beauty to it. Anyone who does not know this charm immediately forms an unnatural, inviolable positive intimacy of addiction towards it unless they spend a number of points of willpower equal to half the character’s Essence, to a maximum of 5. If this intimacy is eroded, it attempts to re-assert itself every time the character sleeps—the perfect beauty dominating their dreams.


A character with the intimacy of addiction cannot harm someone using this Form-Type charm unless they fail a compassion roll. Once they fail a number of such compassion rolls equal to the martial artist’s permanent Essence they may attack the martial artist freely. The long-term addiction effect can be broken by Charms such as Transcendent Hero Meditation or other effects that shatter long-term Compulsions or by, of course, learning this charm herself.


Editor's Note: There's a couple of ways to defend against this charm, but if you don't--it's difficult to get over it. As a fun side-effect your allies can't be mind-controlled into attacking you.


Demesne Emulation Practice


Cost: 7m, 1w, 1hl; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: None


and KAO


Tugging gently on the flows of Essence around him, the character forms herself into a nexus, a convergence point through which power pours. While this Charm is active, each of the character's successful unarmed attacks that would apply at least one level of damage in step 10 convert one of those levels of damage to aggravated. The character's hand upon an enemy's chest burns him with raw Essence, her elbow in his ear fills her head with Essence lightning, and her foot against his knee is as terribly cold as the Essence of a saltwater siren's heart.


Editor's Note: Had to simplify this to be compatible with the new system. Multiple applications of damage is hax.


Demesne and Manse Form


Cost: 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)


Keywords: Form-type, Obvious, Combo-Basic


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: Demesne Emulation Practice


and CHUNG TING!


The character adopts the stately grandeur of a temple and radiates the ancient power of a Manse. She can now properly channel and constrain the raw Essence flow that the Demesne Emulation Practice feeds into her, coalescing it around her Caste Mark into a level 5 hearthstone set in her brow. This hearthstone only exists while the character is using Demesne and Manse Form. While using this Form, the character receives the hearthstone's benefits, as if it were set into an artifact. Treat major changes to the character's personality (on the same magnitude as changing her Motivation) as architectural alterations to a Manse for the purposes of altering the hearthstone, adjusting hearthstone abilities appropriately.


As a final benefit, upon activating this form the martial artist gains (Essence x10) attunement motes as her hearthstone serves to power her artifacts. She may substitute motes from this surge to substitute a Hearthstone required to power an artifact on a 10 per 1-dot basis. Upon de-activating this charm all attunement motes are lost as though the scene had ended.


Editor's Note: Here's the thing, for 15 XP I get the same hearthstone, a manse (all those awesome benefits), and great essence regeneration. I wanted this charm to not look like a foolish speed-bump by comparison. In that vein, I lowered the cost and made it grant a hax number of attunement motes. This is at least partial balanced by the fact that one of the forms in this tree basically replaces your equipment anyways.


Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form


Cost: 10m 1w; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)


Keywords: Form-type, Obvious, Combo-Basic


Duration: Scene


Prerequisites: Four Magical Materials Form, Soul Fire Shaper Form, Games of Divinity Form, Demesne and Manse Form


The Elder Sutra of Essence: The last maiden's name was TAO. These were their names, but they knew them not.


As she assumes this Form, the character vanishes into the flows of Essence around her. For a long moment, she is nowhere and everywhere, embodied in the dance of all things. Then, she manifests again, in every movement consummately aware of everything around her, reacting to intentions before they are formed, actions before they are taken and to the battle as a whole as easily as to a single blow.


Activating this Charm causes the character to vanish until her DV refreshes. While in this state, she may not be affected by any externally applied effect that requires her to be present. While the Charm remains active, the character is automatically aware of every attack against her and is immune to sensory penalties. She can sense every effect, object and creature within (Essence x10) yards, and adds her Essence in automatic successes to rolls to reveal hidden things within this radius.


The Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form is transcendent and accepts other Forms as lesser parts of itself. While the Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form is active, the character may have more than one Form-type Charm active, as an exception to the rules governing Form-type Charms, detailed as follows: All four of this Form's prerequisite Forms may remain active along with the main Form. Form-type Charms not part of this Style may also benefit, but any use of out of style Forms limits the character to two total Form-type Charms in addition to Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form. While multiple Form-type Charms are active, any form weapons of any of the Forms' styles are considered form weapons for all of them. This is a specific benefit of the Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form and not a general rule.


In addition, the character may choose to reflexively activate allowed sub-Forms as part of the activation of Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form.


Editor's Note: Removed references to the Student and Elder Sutra.
Charcoal March of Spiders Style

Student’s Sutra of Consumption: Once, there was a small maiden…


Unnatural Many-Step Stride


Cost: 4 or 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: None


…whose skill was great enough to climb a whirlwind over water.


The character scuttles along the unseen strands of fate woven throughout Creation, allowing him to move and stand freely on thin air as easily as the ground. In a location outside fate the martial artist is force to constantly reweave his own fate, tethering it to points in the area, increasing the cost of this charm to 6m. Further, the martial artist may reflexively spend a point of willpower (in Step 2 if in response to an attack) to hide between the strands in the web until his next action, turning him both invisible and immaterial. When used in Step 2, this acts as a perfect defense against an attack if the attacker cannot strike dematerialized targets. If the attacker can strike dematerialized targets, but has no way of seeing invisible targets, use normal rules for fighting blind apply.


Dance of the Hungry Spider


Cost: 6m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Counterattack


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Unnatural Many-Step Stride


Arrows fell upon her, forcing her to descend.


The character moves in a sliding, shifting kata—her feet constantly moving and nearly impossible for the eye to track. All attempts to sweep the martial artist, knock her down, clinch, or hold her, or make a targeted attack against her lower body suffer an external penalty equal to the martial artist’s Essence. Further, she may always stand back up as a reflexive action.


Finally, the martial artist glides effortlessly across creation. Once per tick she may reflexively move (Martial Arts x2) yards. This can be done in Step 9 as a counterattack to move after the effects are applied in Step 10.


Maw of Dripping Venom


Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Supplemental


Keywords: Combo-OK, Poison, Stackable, Touch


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: None


But the Essence burning within her set the arrows afire.


The martial artist’s fingers needle into the target’s flesh, tainting the target’s Essence such that her soul slowly dissolves from the inside. An unarmed attack supplemented by this charm is modified by a special poison (Special/Action, --, Trauma (Essence), -(Martial Arts)/2) that is applied if at least one die of damage is rolled. On each of the character’s actions, she bleeds off 5 motes minus threshold successes on the Trauma roll. This lasts for (Essence) actions. Multiple applications stack the duration and penalty like a normal poison.


If the defender runs out of motes, she falls into a coma for the attacker’s (Martial Arts) days, during which she need not eat, drink or breath (though they wake up ravenous enough to make up for lost time) and she does not regain motes or Willpower. Upon waking, the target has nothing but the haziest recollection of what happened during the scene she fell unconscious as an Illusion effect that costs 5wp to overcome.


Rain of Unseen Threads


Cost: 6m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Extra Action


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: None


She answered the arrows’ flight with a storm of her own.


The character extrudes a number of fine threads of essence equal to her permanent Essence, each with a length of (Essence) x10 yards, use the martial artist’s (Strength + Martial Arts) as its strength. These threads are under her control, and each thread immediately does one of the following:


• Lift and manipulate a single unattended weapon or object. Attacking with a weapon held by a thread relies on the martial artist’s normal traits and counts as an unarmed martial arts attack for purposes of this charm


• Pierce an opponent’s skin, using the statistic for the martial artist’s punch, except that it deals lethal damage and adds the piercing tag.


• Disarm or sweep an opponent.


Each of these actions is Speed 6, DV -0 and are unparriable unless the target is immune to unexpected attacks. These actions are in addition to the character’s normal action, but he not split any of these actions.


Nest of Living Strands


Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (DV -2)


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Shaping


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Rain of Unseen Threads


And the small maiden began


Hundreds of fine, transparent filaments of Essence launch from the character’s hands, weaving around the surroundings and each other to entangle all opponents within (Essence + Martial Arts) x10 yards. Inside this radius movement speed is halved and the martial artist can reflexively perform blockade movement actions on anyone in the radius. Further, everyone in the area takes a (Martial Arts)/2 External Environmental Penalty on all actions that require movement. The martial artist and up to (Essence) additional people at a time can be rendered immune to these penalties, chosen at the beginning of each action tick. These threads move with the martial artist, catching new opponents who enter the radius yet eerily bending out of the way of anyone he wishes to give passage. This is a shaping effect on the environment, not an individual.


Charcoal March of Spiders Form


Cost: 15m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple


Keywords: Form-Type, Combo-Basic, Overdrive


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: One complete Celestial martial art (all Charms), Dance of the Hungry Spider, Maw of Dripping Venom, Nest of Living Strands


to climb the waterspout again.


The character moves her hands with the deft, arachnid precision of a weaver, her fingers flicking like the limb of a spider. With such grace and coordination, she may take three fully independent physical actions at a time. In effect, on each action tick the character goes three times, functioning as though three characters were going simultaneously. You take the highest speed of any of your actions but the DV penalties from all your actions are cumulative. If any of your independent actions contain a charm that is not Combo-OK or Combo-Basic then you are unable to use any reflexive charms after your action tick until your DV next refreshes. Although the martial artist may split these actions normally (only taking the penalties for doing so within that Independent Action), if any of his actions contain an Extra-Action charm then you lose the benefits of this charm—that is, you can choose to either take three independent actions from this charm or use an Extra Action charm, not both. Independent actions do not allow you to move more than once, and only one action’s worth of time has elapse for the purpose of duration.


Further, the character gains an Overdrive pool of 10 motes while this Form is active. While this form is active, the character gains 1 mote on any tick where he successfully hit more than one enemy with an attack, an enemy loses motes in a fashion other than spending them, or she attacks someone outside her engagement range as it was at the beginning of her action tick. You can gain, at most, 1 mote per tick from this charm.


Cannibalistic Heritage Technique


Cost: 4m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Reflexive (Step 2)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Charcoal March of Spiders Form


to climb the waterspout again.


The martial artist learns how to consume the power of attacks directed against her. Swirling her hands in a hypnotic pattern, the character creates a vortex of Essence that draws in and disrupts the substance of the attack. This functions as a Martial-Arts based parry that may parry unparriable attacks, ignores all penalties to PDV, and can not be halved. If successful, the attack is bound up with the committed motes of this charm. As a Simple (Speed 5, DV -1), Combo-Basic action the character may release the motes committed to this charm to also release the consumed substance of the attack, using that attack against someone else. The attack uses the same original dice pool and everything else that modified the attack is still modifying it.


If the martial artist does not release the stored attack against someone else by the end of the scene, then they internalizing it—suffering the effects of the attack as though it hit with 0 threshold successes.


Thumbnail Spider March


Cost: 7m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Extra Action


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: Charcoal March of Spiders Form


…and to one child she said, “I have many things to show you.”


A character using this Charm is as destructive to anything in her path as the swarming, hungry thumbnail spiders of the East. These tiny spiders sometimes migrate in the millions, devouring any creature in their way.


As part of this attack, the martial artist immediately moves up to (Essence x10) yards. Afterwards, she launches up to three Martial Arts attacks at her full dice pool, taking only the highest DV penalty of those attacks and applies them to everyone she chooses within (Martial Arts) yards of her during any point of that movement. Everyone defends separately, and one person’s defense does not help anyone else in the area. These attacks ignore all internal penalties and all counter-attacks, much as a swarm of spiders ignores the loss of a few of their number. Ghostly, evanescent images of the martial artist multiply and swarm all over the path of destruction, and are the ones actually performing these attacks. These images disappear as quickly as they appear. These attacks can hit both materialized and dematerialized entities equally.


Jumping Spider Strike


Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Supplemental


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Crippling


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: Cannibalistic Heritage Technique


And to another she said, “You may rest within my home, and eat; no need to fly.”


People of the South tell stories of the idol Ma-Un-Enle and the great sand spiders who worship before it. Sometimes, Ma-Un-Enle speaks a name. In response, one of the spiders bows on all its legs and walks away. It hides in the sand, waiting years or centuries, until the person whose name Ma-Un-Enle spoke comes near. The spider then leaps from the sand to strike.


As part of using this charm, the martial artist may leap up to (Essence)/2 miles to anyone she can see. An unarmed attack supplemented by this charm adds (Essence) dice to its raw damage. If any damage dice are rolled in step 8 than the target’s body immediately loses cohesion—it becomes a mosaic of bone chips, blood-fog and ripped skin held together by essence and a soul that doesn’t realize the target should be dead. Any future dice of damage against the target are automatically successes. The target takes one unsoakable level of lethal damage on every action tick she does anything but remain still (being inactive) as her body slowly falls apart from the inside out. When the target’s incapacitated health level is filled from any source, they explode into a gory mess as causality finally catches up to them.


Water Spider Bite


Cost: 8m; Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Touch, Sickness


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: Cannibalistic Heritage Technique


And to a third she said, “How beautiful you are.”


Far to the West, hand-sized green spiders scuttle along the underside of the ocean’s surface as if it were a web. Their pinprick bite paralyzes fish, even sharks or whales, and the spiders burrow into the flesh of their prey as it sinks into the depths. They rise to the surface again days or years later, when they have eaten every piece of their kill.


One swift blow supplemented with this Charm sends the martial artist’s essence flooding the system of the person touched. This functions as a Third Circle Disease with the following traits:


Virulence: (Essence); Incubation: Immediate


Diagnosis: 5; Difficulty to Treat (Mundane/Magical): 20/(Martial Arts)


Morbidity: (Martial Arts) Treated Morbidity: (Martial Arts)/2


The martial artist is connected to the parasitic essence, allowing her experience the infected person’s perception as a faint overlay that doesn’t interfere with the martial artist’s senses. The person infected can’t heal health levels except through supernatural means, and that requires a charm roll-off for every instance of healing. Further he recovers only half the motes (rounded up) from all sources, including stunting. Finally, the martial artist may cause some of the essence to burst out of the target’s body and attack. She may use the infected person as the origin-point of any unarmed martial arts attack and thus target the infected person over any distance. All charms lose the Touch keyword when targeting the infected person.


Pattern Spider Touch


Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Supplemental


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Touch, Shaping


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: Thumbnail Spider March, Jumping Spider Strike, Water Spider Bite


And as each heard her words and came to the center of her web...


Once, changes to the Loom of Fate could change anything in creation. The pattern spiders, which tend to the Loom, no longer permit swift and drastic changes, but that potential remains. Wish a successful unarmed attack, a character can use this Charm to fundamentally change his target, reweaving the structure of the target’s existence. Doing so causes one of the following effects:


• Diminish and transform the target’s body. This can reduce any number of her attributes. Note that leaving an attribute at 0 often makes the target incapable of many actions. It can also grant the target any number of negative mutations. She may also grant up to an equal number of points worth of positive mutations, usually to represent the target’s new form.


• Transform the target into an object—usually corresponding to one of the five elements; a breeze, a flame, a stone, a pool of water, or even a living tree. The target remains alive and aware, serving as that object’s least God but being rendered completely unable to interact with the world around them.


• Grant the target a new life and identity as any type of creature commonly found inside fate (this cannot mimic a specific individual inside fate). As far as everyone else is concerned, the target was simply always this way—immediately everyone’s memories are rewritten to accept the new reality. Being outside Fate or spending 5 WP negate this Illusion effect. This can transform the character’s physical appearance, motivation, intimacies, and memories but it offers no other mechanical changes beyond purely aesthic ones. A Dragonblood turned into a Lunar still has all of his Dragonblood charms and isn’t actually a Lunar beyond appearance and memory.


• Unmake the target utterly. The target is irrevocably killed, their soul(s) completely consumed. This charm’s effect is as absolute as Ghost-Eating Technique and is capable even of turning Primordials into Neverborn.


• Remove a Shaping effect on the target. You must succeed in an Essence + Martial Arts roll with an external penalty equal the Essence of the character that inflicted the shaping effect. In the case of natural phenomena, use an Essence of 1 or how man steps towards the Wyld it occurred in.


Grandmother Spider Mastery


Cost: –(+10m, 1wp); Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 7; Type: Permanent


Keywords: Prayer Strip


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Pattern Spider Touch


…she ate them.


To master this style is to emulate the grandeur of Asna, the first of the pattern spiders. When the character strikes, she seems to divide into many onrushing warriors at once or spin endless invisible filaments of web, as with Rain of Unseen Threads. Either way, fighting such a character is like taking on an army of Asna’s own young. Her attacks buffet the victim from all sides, as she surrounds and bewilders her foes.


This charm permanently enhances Charcoal March of Spiders form. By adding a 10m, 1wp surcharge to the form and wrapping a prayer strip inscribe with the Elder Sutra of Consumption on her left leg, the martial artist gains the ability strike out against multiple foes at once. Instead of taking 3 independent actions, the martial artist can note every opponent in her engagement range, regardless of where the martial artist actually moves. Any unarmed attack she makes attacks all opponents in her engagement range, regardless of where she actually moves. Everyone defends separately, and one person’s defensive charms do not apply to anyone else. Unlike the normal use of Charcoal March of Spiders form, this form is compatible with extra action charms but not with charms that inherently target multiple people.


However, she gains the ability to use Thumbnail Spider March when using the Independent Action option of Charcoal March of Spiders form.
Obsidian Shards of Infinity Style

Black Shards Fall Like Ice


Cost: 8m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Shaping


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: None


…who broke her mirror, and dropped the pieces to the ground.


With a shout, a step, and a ringing clap, the martial artist calls forth a rain of sharpened glass. Her player makes an unarmed martial arts attack that adds +(Essence) to the raw damage, which is made lethal, and adds the Piercing Tag. The martial artist releases shards bearing every possible attack she didn’t do in an area centered no farther than (Essence x25) yards away that is (Martial Arts x5) yards wide. The multitude of the falling shard overwhelm any attempt to parry them, making the attack unparriable. These highly reflective shards persist until the end of the scene. Anyone who moves over the area at faster than half speed is hit by a one-time environmental effect that deals (Essence)L damage with a Trauma of (Martial Arts). While the creation of the black shards is a Shaping effect, the actual attack is not. The martial artist is not immune to this attack.


Ripple in the Silvered Glass


Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive (Step 1 or Step 5)


Keywords: Combo-OK


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: None


She thought to repair it, but was arrested by the sight of the scattered shards.


The Sidereal brings her hands together, then parts them as if he were opening a pair of curtains. On a successful dice-roll, this Charm posits an alternative outcome, which then becomes true. The Sidereal may say that her attacker, for example, stumbled and fell at her feet or that the ship’s navigator plotted a course that sent the ship in the other direction. Perhaps a potential suitor leans in for a kiss, only to head-butt the princess instead. For scope, but not anything else, consider the poor victim to have catastrophically botched that roll as per breaking an oath enforced with the Eclipse Anima rather than succeeding. Used during an attack sequence, this may be used in Step 1 to cause an opponent to botch their DV (setting all DVs to 0) or as the defender in Step 5 to cause the attacker to botch their roll. Stunt dice and rewards do not apply to the affected roll.


This functions as though it were a native Sidereal Charm altering fate—except that it works on things outside fate as a Shaping effect—allowing people to spend 3wp to realize causality has been affected. If the victim does so, they may roll (Wits + Awareness) with an internal penalty equal to the Sidereal’s Martial Arts and a difficulty equal to half the Sidereal’s Essence. If successful, the victim ignores the Sidereal’s attempt to alter causality and the roll passes or fails on its own merits. This is considered a unique Flaw of Invulnerability


This Charm may be used against non-sentient things, in which case it works automatically. Furthermore, as a permanent effect, the Sidereal is alerted to any action launched through a reflective surface at the martial artist—for example, someone scrying him in a forest pool—and can choose to pay for this charm and likewise deflect that action as well.


Reaching Through the Mirror


Cost: 10m, 1+wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Shaping


Duration: One scene


Prerequisite Charms: None


which showed so many visions of her face.


Gesturing at as many opponents as she spends points of willpower, the Sidereal calls that opponent’s reflection to face her. Any reflective surfaces up to (Martial Arts) yards from the target, no matter how they are angled, show that person. For the rest of the scene, the martial artist can attack the reflection of her foe with even more facility than she could attack the foe himself. Attacks against the reflections are transfered to their respective opponents as Undodgable, Piercing, Shaping attacks. An attack that somehow hits multiple reflections is only transferred once.


Shattering the Balance


Cost: 8m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Compulsion, Illusion


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: Black Shards Fall Like Ice, Ripple in the Silvered Glass, Reaching Through the Mirror


She put the pieces back together at all the wrong angles,


Catching her target’s eye, the martial artist strikes her reflection—and the target’s mind shatters into madness. The martial artist makes an unarmed martial arts attack that targets the victim’s MDVs rather than their normal DVs. The attack substitutes the target's Willpower + Conviction as soak with zero hardness instead of their normal soak and hardness. The attack deals no damage. Instead, every success on the damage roll means the target must spend a point of willpower or allow the martial artist to to switch the emotional context of one intimacy the target has with the emotional context of another intimacy they have. Furthermore, the victim will “replace” those two intimacies in all relevant memories—which can result in some very unorthodox life stories. As a separate compulsion effect, the victim must always resist any attempt to alter or erode those intimacies and memories unless he spends 1wp per action.


The emotional context of those intimacies may not be further changed except by another application of this charm, only eroded. Only eroding the intimacy and then creating an intimacy that matches the original context can restore a victim’s memories. The Sidereal may use this on herself as a Reflexive (Step 2 and/or Step 10) charm.


Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form


Cost: 10m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple


Keywords: Form-type, Obvious, Shaping, Overdrive


Duration: One scene


Prerequisite Charms: Shattering the Balance, one complete Celestial Martial Art


and was delighted at the image of herself.


Enemies cannot easily find the person behind the Obsidian Shards of Infinity Practioner’s endless reflections. Any time a reflective surface catches a glimpse of the Sidereal, she may choose to cause that surface to hold her image as long as she maintains this form—regardless of her location or orientation. Further, the images may also produce echoes of her voice if she so chooses. Once every time the Sidereal’s DV refreshes, she may reflexively shatter her own body and “become” one of her reflections that are within (Essence x10) yards. The ST secretly rolls a die. If that roll is a one, the ST may choose which reflection the Sidereal becomes and inform her of that choice at any point before her DV refreshes. If done in response to an attack, this is a Step 9 counterattack that resolves after the attack that triggered it. If the Sidereal has done this since the last time her DV refreshed, she is considered to meet the requirements to re-establish surprise, since it is often impossible to follow which of the Sidereal’s reflections is real. Other than confusion, being a reflection offers no particular defense. On the Sidereal’s next action tick they automatically step out of the reflective surface (regardless of its size), and that surface becomes incapable of bearing her image until the next moonrise.


The Sidereal also gains an overdrive pool of 10 motes while this form is active. Initially empty, the Sidereal gains 1 mote on any tick where at least one character other than the Sidereal does at least one thing categorically impossible (to a maximum of 1 mote per tick). This includes dodging the undodgeable, parrying the unparriable, or successfully defending against a surprise attack. Perfect effects do not inherently allow the Sidereal to gain a mote unless they also do one of the above. Other “impossible” things may fill this pool at the storyteller’s discretion. The Sidereal also gains 2 motes at the end of any action tick where no one else in the combat is aware of who and what she is; and/or aware of her exact location. Other characters who know this charm do not count as “someone else" for these purposes. If the Sidereal is co-located through Draw Forth One Shard, only one of the Sidereal's images need to be hidden to gain motes from this charm.


The Mirror Does not Lie


Cost: 8m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple (Speed 5, -1 DV)


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Shaping


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form


The Elder Sutra of Reflection: The maiden wanted to show everyone how wonderful she looked,


Reflections don’t just portray the world, they give back a new vision. The Sidereal causes the core of her being to become a reflection of another’s primal being. By allowing her own imperfections to bleed through this transformation, they become a part of what the Sidereal reflects. The Sidereal performs an unarmed martial arts attack. Rather than resolving her attack's Step 10 as normal, apply the results of any attack that the Sidereal is still suffering from to the target. The results are removed from the Sidereal and applied to the target. For all intents and purposes, including people’s memories, the attack that hit the Sidereal was always aimed at and a successful attack against the target. This alteration of memory functions like Sidereal charms that alter fate. Only the Sidereal and the original attacker’s memories are left untouched. This charm carries the Compulsion, Crippling, Emotion, Illusion, Poison, and/or Sickness keywords if the attack it intends to transfer had those keywords.


Vanished Within the Glass


Cost: 15m, 2wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 6; Type: Simple (Speed 5, -1 DV)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch, Shaping, Sorcerous


Duration: Indefinite


Prerequisite Charms: The Mirror Does not Lie


but it seemed as though none could see it.


Who can resist looking in a mirror? The Sidereal shows her enemy her reflected image—and while the enemy looks, he throws her in. With a mere touch, the target vanishes. They find themselves in a mirrored world, a replica and a shell created from everything that has ever been reflected. Only inanimate objects and others who have been subjected to this charm are there, except where there are mirrors. Mirrors act as windows, allowing the target to peer into the real world and be seen there, but never to speak. This charm may also be used on any mirror while in either world, turning the window into an open portal for one scene. While inside the mirrored world, a person will find themselves not needing any type of sustenance.


Draw Forth One Shard


Cost: 5m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 6; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Shaping


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form


So she painted a self-portrait


The martial arts extends a hand of friendship to one of her reflections. A hand reaches out of the mirror in response and thus, the martial artist pulls out one of her own images to fight for her. The affected reflective surface is rendered unable to hold the martial artist’s image until the moonrise after this charm ends. This duplicate is not actually a clone, but instead the same martial artist existing in two locations. Move and Dash actions allow all of the martial artist's images to move independently. Co-locating with this charm does not otherwise allow the martial artist to have more actions, but any action may originate from either image. Likewise, since this is the martial artist co-locating and not her creating a separate entity, any action directed at either image is targeting the martial artist, and any effect applied to the martial artist affects all images. In the case of attacks that would affect multiple images, the martial artist is still only affected once. Flurries involving actions originating from multiple images are automatically considered to be coordinated attacks with one another. The Sideral may reflexively end the commitment to this charm and decide which of the images will remain, and causing all others to disappear. If done in response to an attack, this counts as a Step 9 counterattack that resolves after the attack that triggered it.


Draw Forth Every Shard


Cost: –(+5m per Image, +1wp or +5m); Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Permanent


Keywords: None


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Draw Forth One Shard


and portrait after portrait after that


This charm enhances its prerequisite as well as Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form. Draw Forth One Shard may now be used on any of the martial artist’s reflections, regardless of whether or not she can touch it. The image appears next to the reflective surface. Furthermore, she may draw forth as many duplicates as she desires by spending a 1wp surcharge and committing 5m per image created. The martial artist lowers the penalties for flurrying by 1 per image involved in the flurry (remember, there is no “original” for these purposes). The martial artist may also cause images to cease to exist one at a time by reflexively de-committing 5 motes per image. If done in response to an attack, this is resolved as a Step 9 counter-attack that resolves after the attack that triggered it.


If the martial artist chooses to spend +5m when activating Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form, then all of the martial artist’s reflections (actual reflections, not duplicates) gain a small degree of sentience. They may all look like, do, and say different things so as to confuse onlookers. Further, the martial artist may cause any attack or action to originate from any of her reflections—the reflection reaches out of the mirror as necessary to perform the attack.


Echoes of Infinity


Cost: –(+5m or +5m, +1wp); Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 7; Type: Permanent


Keywords: None


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Vanished Within the Glass, Draw Forth Every Shard


until she made everyone look at her


Mirrors opposed to mirrors seem endless. This charm enhances the Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form. By increasing its cost by 5 motes, the Sidereal may hide her image in the corners of reflections, just out of sight. Sometimes people will catch a Sidereal using this charm for just a moment, out of the corner of their eye—but never enough to be sure. Although no mirror can be rendered unable to bear the Sidereal's reflection, all of her reflections are effectively invisible. She may use Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form’s ability to transport to reflections once per tick, and never with any error. If Draw Forth One Shard has been used, all images transport at the same time (possibly to different mirrors). Finally, the Sidereal is aware of everything else that’s in a reflective surface with her reflection


This charm may also enhance Vanished Within the Glass. By spending an additional five motes and one willpower, the target’s reflection is also hidden, rendering them unable to be seen or heard unless the Sidereal chooses to allow it. Even within the context of the mirror world, they are unable to affect, be affected, be seen, or be heard by anything. As an additional benefit, the Sidereal can cause the victim to instantly teleport inside the reflection of any mirror the Sidereal is currently looking in, and can always choose to have themselves be the only one to see or hear it.


Breathing on the Black Mirror


Cost: –(+5m, 1wp); Mins: Martial Arts 7, Essence 7; Type: Permanent


Keywords: None


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Echoes of Infinity


and they all believed her.


They say a person’s whole life flashes before their eyes before they die. In truth, this is but a pale reflection that serves only as a lukewarm reminder in a person’s last moments. Those images are but memories that can’t be changed—except by a master of the Obsidian Shards of Infinity Style. This charm enhances the Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form charm, increasing its cost by 5m, 1wp. When the Sidereal “kills” someone while the form is thus active, they are given access to the core of a person’s soul and every strand of their destiny. This charm alters fate like a sidereal charm. It takes place in that moment just before death, when the target has no motes of essence, no willpower, no empty health levels, all commitments have lapsed, and is otherwise defenseless.


The Sidereal may rewrite how the scene went in relation to herself and her defeated foe, and fate agrees. Both causality and people's memories fall in line with the Sidereal's interpretation of events, although she can never describe someone as violating their intimacies or motivation. She may choose to have used any combination of charms and attacks in any number on the foe, all for free and all to whatever degree of success the Sidereal chooses, instead of whatever actually happened. She may also decide who, if anyone, remembers any attacks on the defeated for (the original or the altered version). The new effects are applied rather than what actually happened. Likewise, the Sidereal may remove the most direct effects and health levels inflicted by the defeated foe's actions as though they were never there, although this can not bring someone back to life. The Sidereal may not choose to apply any action that requires long ticks, such as most social actions--the period of time she can control is too brief.


If the Sidereal chooses to kill the subject, they may have fate erase the person's body and all evidence of the murder. She may also, in this instance, retroactively erase the target from the existence--all memories and records involving the subject are altered to account for them not being there and all intimacies involving the defeated foe are erased. This is an illusion effect that requires 1wp per intimacy to be preserved and 3wp for all memories to remain intact. If the Sidereal chooses to not kill the defeated foe and knows Avoidance Kata, they may immediately use it on that person's behalf. Either way, she may choose whether or not everyone in the scene remembers the subject even being there. Remember, although the alteration of fate is broad in its scope, it is still one effect and anyone may spend 3wp to retain their true memories.
Quicksilver Hand of Dreams Style

The Dreaming Student’s Sutra: Once, there was a maiden who slept.


The Quicksilver Staircase


Cost: –; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 2; Type: Permanent


Keywords: None


Duration: Enlightening, Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: None


As she slept, she fought and loved and saw the world


The martial artist learns to take control of his dreaming self, and by doing so grow closer to his dreams. He is now an entirely lucid dreamer and may remember his dreams perfectly. He also gains other benefits:


• All Illusion effects, all Fair Folk charms and all Oramus Charms are Obvious to the martial artist’s senses. This does not grant the martial artist the ability to pierce the illusion, but at least he knows to try.


• The character can handle raw dream-stuff, such as dreams pulled out using Dream ravager Hand, as if he held a physical object. By drawing out the substance of his own dreams, he has access to his (Craft[Gossamer]) Gossamer every time he sleeps. After being used or when the martial artist next sleeps, all of his unused gossamer stores are absorbed into his mind to form his dreams.


• The character takes the first step towards leaving the waking world behind. If the character does not have Arcane Fate (see MoEP: Sidereals p.g. XX), she gains it. Either way, the character’s Arcane Fate works on creatures outside fate and Sidereals. Further, not just the initial storage—but the accessing of memories relating to the martial artist becomes a trial. As an Illusion effect, memories of the martial artist are recalled as though dreams, daydreams and idle fantasies (as in, not real). It costs 1wp to suppress this Illusion for a scene. Finally, every day spent without knowingly being in the martial artist’s presence counts as a scene spent eroding any intimacies the character has regarding the martial artist unless the character spends 1wp to hold onto those intimacies.


Peaceful Repose Touch


Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Compulsion, Touch


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: The Quicksilver Staircase


And none could awaken her.


The character knows how a person’s Essence changes between waking and sleeping. He can use that knowledge to strike a person’s Essence and force it into a waking or sleeping pattern. This is an unarmed martial arts attack. If this attack hits, the martial artist rolls (Charisma or Manipulation + Martial Arts) against the target’s DMDV. If successful, the target is immediately place asleep (Inactive) or forced awake, even if the target was previously put to sleep or forced awake through magical means. The target can resist this unnatural compulsion by spending 2wp. The target sleeps or stays awake for up to one full day. If the target hit by this charm has no willpower than the slumber or removed capacity to sleep can last indefinitely. In the case of making someone awaken or sleep indefinitely, the martial artist must set some reasonable circumstance to end the effect (such as true love's kiss or a heart-felt apology) that can awaken the target. Anyone with a positive intimacy towards the target instinctively knows what the condition is.


Fervent Night Phantasm


Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Illusion, Touch


Duration: Instant


Prerequisite Charms: The Quicksilver Staircase


For in her dreams, she had a lover who truly knew her,


As a student of this martial art learns the secrets of dreams, she can induce dreams in other people. A strike to the target’s Essence plants a dream within her consciousness. This charm is an unarmed martial arts attack that deals no damage. Instead, if you hit roll (Charisma or Manipulation + Martial Arts) against the target’s DMDV. If successful, you may implant a dream in the target’s subconscious that manifests the next time she sleeps, unless she spends 5wp to resist the dream when this attack takes hold. This dream is remembered perfectly but has no mechanical implication other than that it may contain a social attack (including one enhanced by other charms, even non-martial arts charms).


Alternatively, the martial artist can force the target to dream while awake. This allows the martial artist to introduce one new element to the character’s perception or to alter the look, sound, smell, taste and touch of another element. For instance, the martial artist can introduce a duplicate of himself to confuse an enemy, or make a simple hovel look like a luxurious mansion. This is an unnatural illusion that costs 3wp to resist. A target without any willpower hit by this attack can have their entire world altered at the martial artist’s whim until they manage to spend the willpower to break the illusion. Either way, this use of the charm lasts until the target next sleeps.


Dream ravager Hand


Cost: 1m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Shaping, Touch


Duration: Indefinite


Prerequisite Charms: The Quicksilver Staircase


though she did not see him.


The martial artist makes a grab past his target, his hands reaching deep into his target’s subconscious. There he lays claim to the substance of the victim’s dreams, plucking a bright green molasses blot from the depth. The martial artist immediately gains 1 gossamer. As long as the motes remain committed to this charm, the martial artist may ignore the Touch Keyword for other charms of this style, meaning that he only has to overcome the target’s DMDV and he gains +1 gossamer when he sleeps. The martial artist may maintain up to Craft[Gossamer] activations of this charm at a time. While mote remains committed to this charm, the target cannot dream and thus cannot regain willpower through sleep. For what it’s worth, the target also can’t be ravaged by the Fair Folk.


Ephemeral Presence Technique


Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Illusion


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Peaceful Repose Touch, Fervent Night Phantasm, Dream Ravager Hand


She searched and searched but could not find him.


No longer sure whether he is in the real world or wandering in dreams, the martial artist seems to have transcended mere physicality. In the clear light of everyday reality, it seems that he is not exactly where he appeared to be. As the world grows darker or more dubious, the character seems to be in more than one place at a time. Where people cannot see the world or there’s no stable reality to see, it’s obvious that he is everywhere.


Even if the martial artist can be seen with perfect clarity, he is immune to onslaught and coordinated attack penalties, gains +2 DDV, and doubles his movement speed. While inside a Bordermarch or an area of poor visibility, the character’s bonus to DDV increases by the martial artist’s (Essence) and his movement speed instead triples. Further, the character may roll to re-establish surprise even if she doesn’t have cover. While inside the Middlemarches or an area with no visibility the martial artist’s speed instead quadruples and he may reflexively attempt to re-establish surprise once per action tick.


Additionally, the martial artist ignores all penalties to his perception and, indeed, adds (Martial Arts)/2 as automatic successes to any Awareness or Perception pool. While in the bordermarches or deeper in the wyld, the martial artist also ignores all environmental penalties and environmental damage.


Dreamwalker Kata


Cost: 20m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Shaping, Touch


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Ephemeral Presence Technique


She questioned everyone in her dream.


Brushing her hand past a dreaming person’s head with a gesture like unlocking a door, the martial artist opens a momentary, silver-shimmering portal into the world of his dreams and steps through. For the next scene, she is physically present in his dream. While inside, the martial artist can unobtrusively observe the dream as it plays out… or use Fervent Night Phantasm to take control, to whatever extent he chooses. He can interact with the sleeper’s dream self as if they were both corporeal or create whatever fantasy or nightmare he wants. The target can fight back against whatever the martial artist does, but only using Charms or stunts and with every physical dice pool reduced to zero before Charm or stunt modifiers.


Nothing that happens in the dream is real, so the dream invader cannot cause any physical harm, but she can give the dreamer a very bad night—or a good one, or just a strange experience. At the storyteller’s option, this may result in up to a +/- 3 modifier to the dreamer’s Conviction roll to regain willpower.


If the martial artist possesses one of the target’s dreams, taken through Dream Ravager Hand, or the target is currently experiencing a dream implanted using Fervent Night Phantasm, the martial artist can enter the target’s dreams without being physically present. She simply makes the kata in the air and steps through. When the scene ends and the character must depart the dream, however, she stands beside the sleeper instead of wherever she was before.


The dreamer will not naturally awaken while the martial artist influences his dreams, but some external event can wake him up. In that case, the martial artist suddenly appears beside his target and for the rest of the scene he automatically botches all Join Battle, Join Debate, and Join War rolls.


Inescapable Nightmare Pursuit


Cost: 8m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simply (Speed 5, DV -1)


Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Ephemeral Presence Technique


No one escaped her queries.


When the martial artist activates this Charm, he must designate one person within his sight at that time. For the rest of the scene, the martial artist gains the ability to successfully chase the target to the end of Creation and beyond. No matter what form of movement the target uses: move action, dashing, jumping, riding on a horse, transporting herself by a spell… the martial artist moves a little faster and can never be hid from or evaded.


The martial artist gains perfect awareness of the target. Further, at the end of each action tick place the martial artist anywhere that is one yard closer to the target than her current location instead of moving for that action (if the target is already within one yard than she does not move).


Further, for the duration of this charm the martial artist can move through barriers, walk on walls or the water, any form of movement required to chase his chosen query is provided him—although the speed is always the same. This charm automatically fails against targets who can’t dream, such as most automata or someone who’s had their dreams stolen.


Quicksilver Hand of Dreams Form


Cost: 16m, 2g; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple


Keywords: Form-type, Combo-Basic, Obvious, Shaping


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: One complete Celestial martial art (all Charms), Dreamwalker Kata, Inescapable Nightmare Pursuit.


As time passed, she forgot him and did not know why she wept in her sleep.


The martial artist activates the Quicksilver Hand of Dreams Form through a weird, slow kata while the world around her seems to ripple like water. The martial artist gains the benefits of Ephemeral Passage and the area with ((Essence + Martial Arts) x10) yards around her moves one step towards the wyld (turning creation into a bordermarch, or a middlemarch into the deep wyld). If this opposes an effect like Chaos Repelling Pattern, it provokes a roll-off where the martial artist gains Craft[Gossamer] bonus successes.


The dice (not reward) bonus of the character’s stunts is doubled. Further, the character gets to have far more narrative control when performing at least a two-die stunt. Objects and things can be shaped into existence for him to use and the laws of physics are loosened for the sake of his imagination. He can run across a flight of birds that just happens to swoop by, or any other dramatic effect with no mechanical implications or narrative significance. Often, these things are shaped into existence just for the martial artist’s use. The ST can feel free to veto anything that is an attempt to gain an unwarranted edge or anything that simply could not happen—using the surrounding wyld as a guideline.


Further, the character is immune to all attacks by extras and gains (Martial Arts) bonus successes in any dicepool not actively opposed by magic or at least a two-die stunt, which does not count as a bonus added by charms.


Finally, the character gains an overdrive pool of 10 motes while this form is active. He adds one mote to this pool when his DV refreshes if he is in the presence of at least one person who is asleep; at least one enemy is suffering from an illusion or compulsion or shaping effect he caused. He adds one mote per condition that is fulfilled. He may also choose to add 3m per stunt die to his offensive pool instead of a stunt’s normal rewards.


Gossamer Understanding


Cost: –(Cost Varies); Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 5; Type: Permanent


Keywords: Shaping


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Quicksilver Hand of Dreams Form


The Dreaming Elder’s Sutra: The maiden awakened into daylight, silver tear tracks on her cheeks.


Even the poorest, most sordid and colorless dream can be beautiful to the dreamer, and that beauty is more real than anything in creation. The martial artist may use the Craft[Gossamer] skill to craft items and artifacts, using the normal rules for doing so. Particular types or particularly potent dreams make for excellent exotic ingredients and as long as the martial artist has access to the right dreams, almost anything can be made with Craft[Gossamer].


When time is not on the martial artist’s side, she can use essence to hammer dreams into the desired shape immediately and will to bind it to that useful form. As a reflexive action, the martial artist determines what he is going to make and rolls Wits + Martial Arts, adding Craft[Gossamer] in bonus successes, with a difficulty equal to twice the Resources or quadruple the Artifact rating of the item being made. If successful, the martial artist may immediately commit 3m and spend 1g to bring the item into existence for up to one scene. If the creation is an artifact, than the martial artist must instead spend 1wp, commit to its Attunement Cost and spend 1g per Artifact dot to do the same. Only generic, non-magitech, non-intelligent, non-biotech, non-consumable artifacts may be created. A Daiklave is acceptable, the Daiklave of Conquest or a Soulbreaker Orb is not. Artifact weapons gain +1 accuracy and +1 defense from being made of gossamer, while artifact armor has no mobility penalty. Items created by this charm are automatically considered committed (included in the cost of this charm) and worn/readied as appropriate. Items created like this disappear at the next sunrise. In the underworld they instead disappear at the end of the scene.


All weapons created by this charm are considered form weapons for this style, and armor created by this charm is considered compatible with this style. The martial artist may spend 1g in Step 8 when he hits someone with a Gossamer weapon. If he does and the hit rolls at least one die of damage, the next charm from this style he uses that targets that person with the Touch keyword loses that keyword.


Chimerical Ascension


Cost: 10m, 2g; Mins: Martial Arts 6, Essence 6; Type: Simple


Keywords: Combo-Basic, Obvious, Shaping, Stackable


Duration: One Scene


Prerequisite Charms: Quicksilver Hand of Dreams Form


and she rose from her bed and blinked the last tear away,


The martial artist strikes the air and Creation breaks, letting the wyld pour in. The area around her becomes otherworldly and peculiar—cause and effect become distant cousins and people immediately start to change. The area within (Martial Arts) x10 yards moves one step closer to the Wyld. If this charm comes into conflict with charms such as Chaos Repelling Pattern, it provokes a charm roll-off where the martial artist gains Craft[Gossamer] bonus successes. Every use in the area beyond the first expands the radius of the area by another (Martial Arts) x10 yards, while all areas that were previously effected move one step closer to Pure Chaos. Further, every time this charm is used everyone in the area except the martial artist must immediately roll against wyld mutation and wyld addiction. This effect lasts beyond the scene, the wyld retreating at a rate of 1 yard per hour.


The martial artist takes advantage of the sudden surge of un-reality, allowing his soul to ride the waves of chaos and diffuse across the affected area. The martial artist can perceive everything in the area as though he were in every location within it. He can also launch attacks on anyone within the area, regardless of distance—as the martial artist reshapes the landscape to carry his attacks. Further, the martial artist can reflexively use the “Defend Other” action to defend anyone in the area, all charms of this style with the Touch keyword lose that keyword, and affects that happen when the target is out of willpower instead happen when the target has less than (Craft[Gossamer])/2 willpower remaining.


Finally, unwanted shaping effects levied against the martial artist while inside this area is diffused harmlessly into the surroundings. Unwanted shaping effects levied against the area provoke a charm roll-off as the martial artist struggles to maintain his hold.


Fantasy


Cost: –(+10m, +1wp, +4g); Mins: Martial Arts 7, Essence 7; Type: Simple


Keywords: Obvious, Shaping, Compulsion


Duration: Permanent


Prerequisite Charms: Chimerical Ascension


she saw that her lover stood waiting,


The martial artist himself does not know whether his dreams are real, but truth be told, isn’t quite sure anything is more real when his eyes are open. Yet one thing remains, he is the star and reality his adoring fan. He pauses and the whole world stands still, he speaks and nations become enthralled, he moves and the foundations of the world tremble—if only in his mind. This charm modifies Quicksilver Hand of Dreams form, adding a 10m 1wp, 5g surcharge and adding (Craft[Gossamer]) x10 yards to the range.


Before applying any other effects of the charm, the martial artist decides what role he would like to everyone inside the area to play in the story and rolls Wits + Martial Arts against everyone’s DMDV. He gains an external penalty of -1 to -3 based on how unlikely the role cast for everyone is (the Staunch Dynast is unlikely to relinquish his vows and help the Anathema) while he gains +1 to +3 bonus successes for particularly interesting or fitting roles, at the ST’s description. This is a Compulsion effect, not a Shaping effect, and costs 3wp to overcome. Extras cannot spend WP to overcome the effects and creatures of the Wyld suffer a -6 penalty to their MDVs. Characters who fail to resist play out their roles as assigned, but this charm implies no success or failure, and can’t stop someone from defending against attacks. Once the form-charm is ended, the characters return to their senses. This benefit of Fantasy can only be applied once per scene, regardless of failure.


Regardless of the martial artist’s success or failure in his new attempt at being director, the benefits of the form-charm are enhanced. The martial artist no longer doubles the number of bonus dice from stunts. Instead, the martial artist is considered to always be benefiting from a 3-die stunt on all actions. This special 3-die stunt cannot be modified by other charms and does not restore motes or WP, but it is in addition to the normal stunt awarded to any of the martial artist’s actions (which reaps rewards normally). Finally, the narrative flow of the world desires to bend to the martial artist's will. Everyone who fulfills the role assigned to them by the martial artist receives a +1 die bonus to their stunts while anyone who opposes the narrative does not gain any bonus dice from stunts (neither the bonus or penalty affect mote and willpower rewards). Subverting intent while going with the letter of the narrative is not only allowed, it's encouraged.


Editor's Note: Not sure on the last effect on this one.
 
Crow is nearly complete, save for the last tidbits of his Backstory, Appearance descriptive text, Resplendent Destiny/Astrology stuff, and his relevant Combat stats (DVs, etc). I hope to have all of this finished sometime this weekend.


EDIT: If I were interested in diving into the Five Immaculate Dragon Styles mid-game, how difficult would it be to acquire a Sifu willing to teach these?
 
Oh yeah the five immaculate styles, probably too many sifus to count who can teach the five immaculate dragon styles.
 
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