Exalted 3rd ed. [Interest Check]

[Muse]

  Oh, do supernal abilites have to be caste?  I thought they could be favored.  :)  Shows what i know. 

[Pumpkin Seeds]

I'm so going to have to be walked thru character creation.

[AndyZ]

Hellrazoromega, how many people are you planning on taking for this?

[Zaer Darkwail]

He has talked so far 6.

[Pumpkin Seeds]

Few more and we can have two circles.

[Re Z L]

I think I'm actually leaning more towards a Dawn Caste now. Still going the Apex Predator/Hunter route: focusing on Survival, Archery, Awareness, and maybe some War. I'm thinking of taking a pair of familiars -- leaning towards some kind of giant wolf and some kind of hyper-intelligence/aware raven. Still throwing ideas around.

Once I committed to Familiars -- I realized Stealth was kind of not an option, and then I didn't really have anything within Night worth taking. Should be distinct from the other Dawn though, if we even both get in.

EDIT: Apparently Zenith is the only Caste that can take Survival Supernal -- so... hammering out that decision first before proceeding... This was supposed to be a more informative post when I started...

Yea you could take that concept a number of different ways...  Dawn with a Supernal combat stat to be the ultimate combat predator...  Zenith with Survival to be something of a Pack Master (survival has a LOT of pretty cool familiar charms)...  Night for a stalking in the shadows and hunting down big prey...  etc.

  Oh, do supernal abilites have to be caste?  I thought they could be favored.  :)  Shows what i know. 

Yup, Supernal (by default) has to be chosen from one of your Caste abilities, though each Caste has a slew to choose from (example:  Dawn's get Archery, Awareness, Brawl (and Martial Arts), Dodge, Melee, Resistance, Thrown, and War).

[AndyZ]

Re Z L, would you object to another Night if I went for an Assassin type?

[Re Z L]

Re Z L, would you object to another Night if I went for an Assassin type?

Wouldn't bother me at all   :-)

[Pumpkin Seeds]

Crap..Brawl isn't a Zenith caste ability.

Tempted to take Resistance as her supernatural ability.

[Zaer Darkwail]

Crap..Brawl isn't a Zenith caste ability.

So can't be supernal brawler/martial artist :P. But athletics has some surprising good combat options (able surprise foe with fancy footwork like my char can do along with some other acrobatic tricks). But as mentioned do not always think that Zenith = religious martial artist. Same can be applied to any caste from solars (so religious dawn can fill said role).

[Pumpkin Seeds]

I didn't even think of Athletics.  Wow, so I gotta pick between the two.

As for Dawn I am reluctant to take that one simply because I'm not interested in just the combat stuff they offer.  I just don't see this character doing much else besides martial arts for fighting, but see her doing a great deal with Athletics, Resistance, Integrity and maybe Presence.  I can certainly see her gathering together martial artists and maybe trying to instruct mortals, Terrestial Exalted and such toward Enlightenment with their martial arts.  If this game went to a larger scale she would probably write a counter to the Immaculate Order and their texts.

[Zaer Darkwail]

Well, you may have few essence tier 1 martial arts charms (both from Brawl and actual martial art) for starter but focus more on other aspects being Zenith (preacher type should get performance as there is oratory section in there) and you could favor linquistic (as linquistic handles all writing work but gives no languages unless taking a 1 merit dot per language). If aim for truly female monk (physical perfection/prowess) then focus to brawl/martial art, resistance and athletics is definately needed. Performance is for convince people enmass while presence is more individual scaled convincing.

Check the essence 2 and 3 charms for the athletics, resistance and performance. Then choose which one to be your supernal (your legendary) skill.

[HairyHeretic]

Am I the only one taking a sort of non combat focus?

[Re Z L]

Am I the only one taking a sort of non combat focus?

I'll probably have only a handful of combat charms for a while, Larceny/Awareness being pretty primary for me, with Lore/Socialize/Bureaucracy following

[Zaer Darkwail]

Am I the only one taking a sort of non combat focus?

Well, the chargen sort recommends even most diplomatic/non-combat solar has some basic skills to survive or fight to extend he can defeat regular bandits/mortals. So 2-3 dots for combat ability and charm or two for defense/offense.

[HairyHeretic]

To start with I'd only be thinking maybe martial arts (no weapons to hide in a social setting), and mainly for defense. I'm not sure how heavily the Twilight will be looking into Lore / Occult, but I'm good with providing the support and let other people worry about making with the boot to head :)

[Re Z L]

Work-in-Progress

Tigerseye Nightshade Blossom
The Alleyway Priestess of Coin and Crook

Profile

Gender:  Female
Sexual Orientation:  Pansexual

Age:  28
Height:  5' 8"
Weight:  120 lbs.

Eye Color:  Orange (a scar has drained much of the color from her right eye leaving it mostly white)
Hair Color:  Wheat-Blonde, bordering gray
Skin Color:  Lightly bronzed

Exalt Type:  Solar
Caste:  Night
Anima Banner:  A ghostly-white tiger with stripes of pale gold and eyes of midnight violet stalks around her in the periphery while a glowing darkness of violet swirled with vague shapes of pale gold flickers soundlessly around her in the likeness of a raging bonfire.

Description

A muscled, bronze-skinned woman of unremarkable height with hair reminiscent of the color of a field of wheat beneath the noon-day sun.  With an easy smile she disarms the trepidation her series of scars often brings out in others, while the narrowed eyes of a glare and the twist of her lips into a tooth-baring frown can just as easily bring it back.  The scars extend well into her scalp though she usually keeps her hair unkempt in such a way to conceal it.  Additionally hooded coats are often a favorite when she travels to-and-fro.

Background

It takes a certain type of soil to grow a tenacious flower which can rise above the choking weeds.  The children that happen to find themselves in Champoor, the city of night, are the seedlings of such blossoms though most are choked by the thistle.

Two sisters growing up in Champoor would eventually realize the necessity of protection within the city of night, especially when the elder sister that had taken it upon herself to protect the other.  So, at the behest of the elder girl, they had joined a small but established--if notorious--gang of criminals that worked in the city.  It did well to keep them protected from the other denizens of the lawless city and helped them both learn useful skills along the way.  The elder sibling was flung into criminal activity at the onset and had some of the nimblest fingers on the streets, nary an unwary visitor to Champoor wouldn't have a coin or two lost to the orange-eyed girl.  The other girl was relegated to more reputable--or at least morally neutral--pursuits such as keeping the books for who owed the gang what.  This was mostly the eldest sister's doing who still wished to keep her away from the life that she was living for the both of them.

While difficult to call such a life routine, the daily lives of the girls settled into a relatively "normal" slump.  Oh enemies were made, deals were struck, and friends were won and lost over the course of the years; but they had each other and the had their family of a gang.  The eldest, having long since earned the name Tigerseye Nightshade Blossom for the orange of her eyes and the venom in her words, knew that ultimately she wanted more.  Not for herself of course, she had long since given herself over to the idea of an endless life of crime trapped in the little port city of Champoor--but she had higher aspirations for her sister.  She eventually devised a plan.

It was a long-con that would inevitably involve blackmail, thievery, and a healthy dose of backstabbing.  None of these were things she wasn't familiar with, but the scope of the plot would test her limits.  Kamthahar was the ultimate target, but first she needed an "in".  Just like the gang she was in a number of other unsavory groups kept important records of who owed who what and how much.  That was going to be the only way to collect the information she needed, but she had to cover her tracks in a way that would overshadow the theft.  So she instigated a war between the gang she was in and her target of choice.  It wasn't easy, but when a bout left her with a length of scars across her scalp and face, blood covering her like some kind of half-mask, it made it easy enough for the leader of her gang to want to retaliate.  The war was still mild at best, and they were hardly uncommon so the city took little notice, but the two gangs were well distracted.

The next step was evidence.  Kamthahar, being as close as it was, wasn't an uncommon visitor to the city there were just certain things one needed to be in Champoor to either indulge in or procure without the prying eyes of the Dragon-Blooded Gods of that little empire.  And when a notable Patrician makes an almost routine visit it leads to certain conclusions.  The lead she gained was enough, and after some snooping of her own it became obvious to her that she had found her target.  If she'd taken the time to notice it would have almost seemed as if her steps were being guided, and her fingers finding their marks almost a little easier than normal.  With the information gathered it was only a matter of time.

Eventually the Patrician returned, unable to resist the allure any longer.  Tiger knew well in advance that he was on his way and prepared her little trap.  Even now the rush of essence tingled in her fingertips, a sense of power and purpose.  In the guise of one of his favorite prostitutes she managed to sneak in through the rented chambers and visit the Patrician in private, carrying with her the evidence she had gathered.  Everything seemed to have been going so well until she confronted the Patrician.  He had laughed--laughed!--at her and all the work she had done to make a better life for her sister.  A righteous indignation boiled in her soul as she attempted to find the words to make him do what she wanted...and then Darkness erupted.

The Patrician's face turned from one of amusement to one of shock within the space of a heartbeat.  It was then that she found the words, and she had a long discussion with the Patrician about the part that he was going to play in her scheme.  In exchange for not exposing how the Patrician was extorting money from his masters and using it to fund his little excursions to dabble in affairs that even the perverted faith of the Immaculate Order within Kamthahar would find objectionable he would buy her sister as a slave and take her to his master back in Kamthahar.  And with the 'easy' part of the scheme laid to rest it was time to partake of the difficult part.

Hate was the final, requisite piece of the puzzle.  She abandoned the gang, and made the arrangements to take her own sister to the Patrician for the faux deal of selling her off.  Tiger played at using the money to get away from Champoor, which wasn't really true, but she didn't want her sister to come looking for her because Tiger knew, ultimately, that trouble would probably follow her for the rest of her life.  With the deal done there was little delay before the Patrician left Champoor, and little delay for Tiger to follow them and spend a little time lurking in Kamthahar.  Using her new found talents she managed to manipulate events to place her sister in a safe and somewhat profitable position--and easily noticed by any of the various Dragon-Blooded nobility that would hopefully become taken by her skill and looks enough to try and wed her.  With those months, and nearly years, settled she eventually returned to Champoor to make a name for herself, eventually becoming well versed in "finding" things and selling them to people.

Of course her former gang still existed and there was plenty of bad blood between them.  What would ultimately become of her sister as well, would she harbor a grudge and maybe come after her, or just close that dark chapter of her past and move on with a new life?  Or the Patrician, surely he wouldn't take kindly to being played, and even a Patrician has some clout in Kamthahar to perhaps direct the Wyld Hunt in her direction surreptitiously...

Character Sheet

WIP

		Attributes
Strength	•••••	Charisma	•••••	Intelligence	•••••
Dexterity	•••••	Manipulation	•••••	Wits	•••••
Stamina	•••••	Appearance	•••••	Perception	•••••

Abilities Supernal Larceny ••••• Caste Awareness ••••• Dodge ••••• Investigation ••••• Stealth ••••• Favored Brawl ••••• Bureaucracy ••••• Linguistics ••••• Lore ••••• Socialize ••••• Archery ••••• Athletics ••••• Craft ••••• Integrity ••••• Medicine ••••• Melee ••••• Occult ••••• Performance ••••• Presence ••••• Resistance ••••• Ride ••••• Sail ••••• Survival ••••• Thrown ••••• War •••••

Specialties Awareness Touch Larceny Pickpocket Lore History Stealth Crowds

Merits Ambidextrous ••••• Language ••••• Artifact •••••

CHARMS

Excellencies

• Larceny
• Awareness
• Dodge
• Investigation
• Stealth
• Brawl
• Bureaucracy
• Linguistics
• Lore
• Socialize
• Athletics
• Sail

Athletics

• Monkey Leap Technique
• Graceful Crane Stance

Awareness

• Keen Hearing and Touch Technique
• Sensory Acuity Prana
• Surprise Anticipation Method

Brawl

• Ferocious Jab

Bureaucracy

• Frugal Merchant Method

Dodge

• Reed in the Wind

Larceny

• Magpie's Invisible Talon
• Stealing From Plain Sight
• Flawless Pickpocketing Technique
• Seasoned Criminal Method

Lore

• Harmonious Academic Methodology

Sail

• Salty Dog Method

Socialize

• Mastery of Small Manners

Stealth

• Easily-Overlooked Presence Method

Bonus Points

• Manipulation 3 -> 4 (3 points)
• Larceny 2 -> 5 (3 points)
• Stealth 1 -> 3 (2 points)
• Lore 2 -> 3 (1 point)
• Socialize 1 -> 3 (2 points)
• Charm:  Brawl, Ferocious Jab (4 points)

XP/Solar XP 000/000 -?? ???; +? ???

Other Information

[hellrazoromega]

I'm so going to have to be walked thru character creation.

We stand ready to help.

Hellrazoromega, how many people are you planning on taking for this?

I was thinking about seven but since the idea has come up, at eight I could do two circles for four who were allied in their first life.

  Oh, do supernal abilites have to be caste?  I thought they could be favored.  :)  Shows what i know.

Yeah, the book says Caste only. This does not mean you can't have a renowned Night Caste Archer even if they don't have Supenal MA. Just a Dawn has a chance to be better. The idea is to prevent the issue with other editions where with some favored choices one Caste could outdo the Caste that was supposed to be the master of "x" ability.

[Lockepick]

Am I the only one taking a sort of non combat focus?

Eh, Combat in Exalted is inevitable. I don't think you need to focus ENTIRELY on combat -- but it would be unwise to not have SOMETHING you can do during combat. If not, in a table top game, you basically just watch for an hour. In a play by post game? That might be weeks...

@Everybody Else: I did like the Survival stuff that focused on Familiars -- also Survival seems to go RIGHT into Essence 2+ right away, where Awareness and Archery have a LOT of Essence 1 Charms. Likely going Zenith! Jotting out my sheet now.

[Lockepick]

Chosen of the Maw
AKA 'Maw'
Zenith Caste

Description

WIP: Slender, tanned. Black/red paint and tattoos. Orichalcum Bow.

Sheet

Name: 'Chosen of the Maw' or 'Maw'

Caste: Zenith

Concept: Apex Predator / Sacred Hunter

Anima: A large set of spectral, golden, bestial teeth

Limit Trigger: Seeing innocents suffering and being unable/unwilling to help.

Supernal Ability: Survival

Attributes

Strength:	3	Charisma:	3	Intelligence:	2
Dexterity:	5	Manipulation:	2	Wits:	3
Stamina:	3	Appearance:	2	Perception:	4

Abilities

fArchery:        5 Brawl:        0  Melee:    0  Thrown:    0  cWar:    1

Craft:        0 Investigation:        3  Lore:    0  Medicine:    0  Occult:    0

cAthletics:        3 fAwareness:        5  fDodge:    5  Larceny:    0  fStealth:    3

---

cIntegrity:        3 Performance:      0  Presence:    0  cResistance:    1  cSurvival:    3

Bureaucracy:        0 Linguistics:        0  fRide:    2  Sail:    0  Socialize:    0

Specialties:        # Archery      Powerbows  Survival      Tracking  Awareness        Sight  Stealth      Wilderness

Essence, Willpower, Limit

Essence:	1
Willpower:	(5)5
Limit Track:	(0)10
Personal:	13 / 13
Peripheral:	28 / 33
Committed:	5

Health -0 ( ) -1 ( )( ) -2 ( )( ) -4 ( ) inc ( )  Dying ( )( )( )

Charms:
Excellencies: Athletics, Archery, Awareness, Dodge, Integrity, Resistance, Ride, Stealth, Survival, War

Archery

Wise Arrow

Wise Arrow - 1m / Supplemental / Instant / KW: Uniform
- Reduce defense bonus of Heavy or Light cover by 1; If no cover, reduce Defense by 1.
- May take an Aim to attack behind Full Cover, target gaining +3 Defense.

Sight Without Eyes

Sight Without Eyes - 1m / Reflexive / One Tick
- Ignore penalties from visual conditions (up to pitch darkness).
- At Essence 3: Allows sight of silhouettes through Full Cover.

Blood Without Balance

Blood Without Balance - 3m / Reflexive / Instant / KW: Decisive Only
- If benefiting from Distract Gambit would allow immediate Decisive attack, can fire from up to Long without an Aim.
- If Initiative is under seven, base damage gains E dice.   

Trance of Unhesitating Speed

Trance of Unhesitating Speed - 4m + 1wp / Simple / Instant/ KW: Decisive Only
- Can spread Initiative between multiple Decisive attacks, but Initiative must be spread evenly, and a minimum of three. Max is determined by ammo or Dexterity.
- Each 10 rolled on the attack roll adds +1 to the base damage.

Awareness

Sensory Acuity Prana

Sensory Acuity Prana - 5m / Reflexive / One Scene
- Enhances all five senses, can't be overloaded. Gain 'Double 9s' on all Awareness rolls.

Surprise Anticipation Method

Surprise Anticipation Method - -- / Reflexive / Instant
- All senses function even while asleep/incapacitated, threats automatically reviving and allowing Awareness charms for defense.
- For all Awareness rolls, regain 1m per 9 rolled and 2m per 10 rolled only to pay for Awareness Charms.

Keen Sight Technique

Keen Sight Techniquie - 3m or 6m + 1wp / Simple / One Scene or Indefinite
- Solar's visual range is increased: can see tiny details at 100 yards, quickly count masses of troops, and notice threats well in advance.
- Auto success on all Difficulty 2 or 3 Sight Based actions without a roll.
- Gain +2 dice to notice hidden/secrets/threats.
- Reduce difficulty of visual hindrances by -1
- Special Activation Rules: 3m = 1 Scene; 6m +1 wp = Lasts Indefinitely   

Unswerving Eye Method

Unswerving Eye Method - 3m / Reflexive / Instant
- Effects any action attempting to hide/cheat/trick the Exalted: turn E of their 'Double Successes' into single successes.
- Allows Awareness to counter 'Perfect' effects.   

Keen Taste and Smell Technique

Keen Taste and Smell Technique - 3m or 6m + 1wp / Simple / One Scene or Indefinite
-  Recognize targets by scent, gain +2 Successes to survival for tracking or tracking a known scent.
- Gain 'Scent Library' and 'Taste Library' that can add bonuses to Investigation/Survival/etc in the future.
- Special Activation Rules: 3m = 1 Scene; 6m +1 wp = Lasts Indefinitely   

Foe Scenting Method

Foe Scenting Method - 0m or 2m / Reflexive / Instant
- At 0m, before Awareness rolls, become aware of numbers/types of creatures. Potentially identifying them based on Scent Library.
- At 2m, know the direction/distance to each scent, also +1 success to Join Battle and Awareness to uncover scented targets.     

Survival

Hardship-Surviving Mendicant Spirit

Hardship-Surviving Mendicant Spirit - 5m / Reflexive / One Day
- Ignore all Environmental Penalties, regardless of how extreme. Does not effect Environmental Damage.
- Lower difficulty to forage and find shelter by 2, to a minimum of 1.     

Trackless Region Navigation

Trackless Region Navigation - 5m + 1wp / Reflexive / Indefinite
- Allows Solar and Group (up to E x 2) can travel 20 miles per day across normal wilderness or 10 miles per day across the harshest terrain.
- Automatically succeed on Survival rolls to find oasis/shelter.   

Unshakable Bloodhound Technique

Unshakable Bloodhound Technique - 4m / Supplemental / Instant
- On tracking rolls, reroll 5s and 6s until they no longer appear. Target's 1s act as 10s for the Solar.
- Allows tracking through 'Perfect' effects.     

Friendship with Animals Approach

Friendship with Animals Approach - 3m / Simple / Instant
- Deal with wild animals. Smaller animals and herbivores would be docile, and predators simply allow target to pass.
- Does not apply to sentient animals, familiars, animals trained to attack, or animals mentally effected.     

Spirit-Tied Pet

Spirit-Tied Pet - 10m + 1wp + 1xp / Simple / Instant
- Unbreakable Loyalty: Familiar gains Defining Tie to Master, and no influence of any kind can make them act against this Intimacy.
- Essence-Drawing Method: Solar can draw 5m from Familiar per day. If used on multiple Familiars in one scene, motes only last until SOlar's next turn.
- Power-Renewing Bond: Solar can gain 1wp from Familiar, also removes -1 of Crippling Penalties. 1/day regardless of number of Familiars.
- Sense-Riding Discipline: 'Possess' Familiar.
-- Currently Effecting: Habrok     

Familiar-Honing Instruction

Familiar-Honing Instruction - 4m / Simple / Instant / KW: Mute
- Solar rolls (Charisma + Survival), and adds successes as bonus dice to Familiar's action.

Merits:	11 Total
Familiar: Garmr	3
Familiar: Habrok	3
Artifact: "Hearthorn" Orichalcum Powerbow	3
Mentor: Habrok	3

Intimacies: The Sacred Hunt (Defining Intimacy, Principle) Garmr (Major Positive Intimacy, Tie) Habrok (Major Positive Intimacy, Tie) Provider of Heart's Blood (Major Positive Intimacy, Tie) Torture/Cruelty (Minor Negative Intimacy, Principle)

Combat

Join Battle:	8d+3	Evasion:	5	Parry:	3	Soak:	6(3+3)	Hardness:	0	Mobility Penalty:	-0
Resolve:	3	Guile:	1

---

Attack	Acc	Dmg/Overwhelming	Def	Range	Tags
Punch/Kick	+5	+10L/1O	+0	-	Bashing, Brawl, Grappling, Natural
Hearthorn	11+	+15L/4O	n/a	-1/+5/+3/+1/-1	Lethal, Archery (Long)

Bonus Point Ledger

Purchased...		##
Survival 3->5		3
Archery 3->5		3
Awareness 3->5		3
Mentor 1->3		2
Survival Charm		4

Familiar: Garmr

A mortal wolf fell in love with the Mother Wolf, goddess of the wolves. He brought her offerings of prey from across Creation, but finally won her favor in hunting a lesser god. Garmr was one of the litter from their union, cared for by the Mother Wolf until he was of age. The litter spread throughout Creation, Garmr settling in the West in his effort to find or start a pack of his own, but has yet to find a worthy mate. He met with Provider of Heart's Blood on one of his own hunts, the two working well together. When Maw was born, Garmr could sense greatness, and he was one of the boy's guides growing up into that potential. As time went on, the definition of 'pack' began to transcend the traditional, mortal definition...

Garmr has grown into a massive direwolf, standing taller than most horses. He's almost too large to fit through most doorways, having to squeeze through, even if he's likely to crowd any common residential once he got in there. His fur is black all over, except for golden streaks across his muzzle and paws. He's incapable of speech, but his face is expressive of deeper understanding.

Mechanics

Essence: 1; Willpower: 7 / 7; Join Battle: 10d (Base Initiative 5)
Health Levels: -0x5/-1x5/-2x7/-4x7/Incap
Speed Bonus: +2
Actions: Feat of Strength: 12d (Strength 7 Feats, Incredible Might); Hide in Dense Forest/Swamps: 8d; Intimidation: 10d; Resist Poison/Disease: 10d; Senses: 5d (Relentless Pursuit); Tracking 8d (Relentless Pursuit); Resolve 3, Guile 1

Combat:
Attack (Bite): 11 dice / Damage: 16/5 (Piercing: Costs 1i and Defense -1 to ignores 4 soak on Withering)
Attack (Slam): 12 dice / Damage: 14/4 (Smashing: Costs 2i and Defense -1 to knock target back one band and prone)
Attack (Claw Take): 13 dice / Damage 12/3
Attack (Grapple): 8 dice (10 dice to control) Rolls are unopposed on targets smaller than a Tyrant Lizard (without magic allowing grapples on large targets)
Combat Movement: 7d
Evasion: 4; Parry: 6
Soak/Hardness: 15/5

Special Attacks:
Improved Trip: Can spend 1wp when knocking a target prone with Garmr's Smashing attack to reflexively make a Grapple attack that cannot be Parried. Garmr can only restrain the enemy, and cannot move without ending the clinch, but the stomped enemy takes 6 dice of Lethal that ignores hardness for each round Garmr holds it. Not compatible with Deadly Thrash.

Deadly Thrash: Can attempt a Decisive Bite and a Decisive Slam before Initiative resets. Gain +1i for each round of control forfeited after the reset.

Ferocious Bite: Decisive Bite versus an enemy with a lower Initiative rating adds +10 to the raw damage. Can only be used 1/battle unless reset by rebuilding from base Iniative to Initiative 15+. Not compatible with Deadly Thrash.

Furious Rampage: If attacking an enemy in Initiative Crash, add +3 automatic successes.

Iron Jaws: Garmr does not take Defense penalties from grappling enemies smaller than a Tyrant Lizard, and can reflexively take a drag action to move them whenever it moves. Being attacked only causes it to lose rounds of control over a clinch if the attack does damage.

Terrifying Wolf Howl (Latent): Garmr unleashes a hwol that can be heard for miles, rolling it's Intimidation pool against all enemies and adding a number of dice equal to its Initiative. Mortal bystanders and natural enemies automatically flee, as does any enemy whose Resole is overcome, unless they pay 1wp. If they spend 1wp, they lose 1i per success over their Resolve. This resets Garmr to base Initiative.

Prey-Devouring Maw (Latent): Decisive Bite attacks against a battle group automatically forces a rout check at Difficulty 3. If the attack depleted the group's Magnitude, add +3 to the difficulty of the Rout check.

Merits
Apex Predator: Garmr regains 1wp each time it Crashes or Incapacitates a non-trivial opponent. Also immune to any non-magical influence roll meant to intimidate, provoke fear, or play upon fear.

Incredible Might: Garmr applies 'Double 8s' on any Feat of Strength to life, carry, or crush something between its jaws.

Legendary Stamina: Garmr does not take Onslaught Penalties from opponents smaller than a Tyrant Lizard, unless magically-inflicted.
- Withering attacks made by targets smaller than a Tyrant Lizard can't drop Garmr below 1 Initiative unless they have a post-soak damage of 10d (though targets still gain Initiative).
- Decisive Attacks made by targets smaller than a Tyrant Lizard cannot deal more than (3 + Attacker's Strength) levels of damage from a single attack; not counting damage added from magical sources.

Relentless Pursuit: Gain 'Double 8s' on any Scent-Based Awareness roll, or rolls to track via Scent. Adds +5 automatic successes on any roll made to oppose an Enemy's Stealth roll using scent.

Thick Hide: Garmr does not subtract wound penalties from Defense. Attacks made from short range or further reduce their minimum damage by one unless they have Aimed. 

Familiar: Habrok

Habrok started as a lesser spirit of wisdom, a stationary and silent creature that simply observed and learned the knowledge that happened around it. Through force of will it grew and evolved to have a voice, serving as a messenger to share and spread information. He continued to grow in clout, eventually serving as an advisor and translator for the gods in Yu Shan playing the Games of Divinity. As they grew more corrupted, they strayed away from the wisdom that Habrok had devoted himself to. He 'retired' from service, eventually coming across Garmr and Provider of Heart's Blood. The two hunters ensured a comfortable and well-fed life for Habrok. It was Habrok who had the cryptic vision of Maw's greatness, and seeing him grow into that potential inspired Habrok to return back to his life of guidance and gathering of knowledge.

To mundane eyes, Habrok simply looks like a black raven with feathers that occasionally offer a silver sheen in the light. Those able to see Essence flows or spirits will sense the dual natured state of the bird. His silver eyes are always watching and curious, and he alternates between speaking casually to speaking in crude tongues and cryptic omens.

Mechanics

Essence: 1; Willpower: 5 / 5; Join Battle: 5d
Health Levels: -0/-1x2/-2x2/-4/Incap
Actions: Fly: 10 dice; Stealth: 7 dice; Tracking: 5 dice (Eagle Eye); Senses: 6 dice (Eagle Eye); Obscure Knowledge (Lore/Occult): 8 dice; Bureaucracy: 6 dice

Combat:
Attack (Peck): 10 dice / Damage: 10
Combat Movement: 8d
Evasion: 5; Parry: 1
Soak/Hardness: 5/0

Special Attacks:
Swooping Distract: Habrok can move down from up to Medium Range to make the Distract Gambit. Habrok can spend 1wp to ignore the Initiative cost and gain Double 10s on the Initiative roll.

Merits
Spirit-Tied Pet (Magic): Maw has used the Charm 'Spirit-Tied Pet' to Habrok, gaining all the benefits therein.

Alighting Hunter's Ascent: If Habrok is adjacent to Maw, he gives Maw +1 automatic success to Join Battle, and can reflexively fly to Medium Range from the ground as part of the Join Battle roll.

Omnilinguist: Habrok can read, understand, and speak any language that is/was shared by a culture. This does not include any sort of coded or secret language.

See Essence: As per All-Encompassing Sorcerer's Sight, Habrok can see the flow and strings of essence, as well as Immaterial Spirits.

Background

WIP: Omen birth in a small Eastern tribe, taken in by the tribe's god 'Provider of Heart's Blood' and trained as a hunter alongside the god's two companions, Garmr and Habrok. Some mad Wyld Mutant was rampaging and heading right for the tribe's village, and Maw exalted when he nearly died trying to intercept it. He brought the heart back, and the tribe grew stronger from eating it, allowing Maw to leave to find greater prey for greater glory and strength.
WIP: Need a name for the tribe.
WIP: Detail concept of 'Sacred Hunt' -- something something gaining the strength and spirit from defeated targets, prey should be honored for their sacrifice in giving that strength.

[hellrazoromega]

I didn't even think of Athletics.  Wow, so I gotta pick between the two.

As for Dawn I am reluctant to take that one simply because I'm not interested in just the combat stuff they offer.  I just don't see this character doing much else besides martial arts for fighting, but see her doing a great deal with Athletics, Resistance, Integrity and maybe Presence.  I can certainly see her gathering together martial artists and maybe trying to instruct mortals, Terrestial Exalted and such toward Enlightenment with their martial arts.  If this game went to a larger scale she would probably write a counter to the Immaculate Order and their texts.

Well, all your Supernal ability does is treat your Essence as 5 only for meeting the prerequisites of that abilities Charms. So you are getting some more powerful Charms sooner. You can still be an awesome Zenith martial artist.


Giving the matter some thought I am leaning toward allowing Supernals to be favored but rather treating the Essense, in that case as 4 that way it does not negate the power and importance of Caste Supernal abilities.

[Re Z L]

Well, all your Supernal ability does is treat your Essence as 5 only for meeting the prerequisites of that abilities Charms. So you are getting some more powerful Charms sooner. You can still be an awesome Zenith martial artist.


Giving the matter some thought I am leaning toward allowing Supernals to be favored but rather treating the Essense, in that case as 4 that way it does not negate the power and importance of Caste Supernal abilities.

I remember there being a bit of commotion about it on the official forums some time ago...  Personally I would just leave it be.

What you're thinking of isn't too different from just letting people Supernal whatever they wanted, too.  Each ability only has 1 or 2 essence 5 charms, so the difference between allowing Ess 5 or just Ess 4 is minimal.

Just my two cents  :-)

[hellrazoromega]

I remember there being a bit of commotion about it on the official forums some time ago...  Personally I would just leave it be.

What you're thinking of isn't too different from just letting people Supernal whatever they wanted, too.  Each ability only has 1 or 2 essence 5 charms, so the difference between allowing Ess 5 or just Ess 4 is minimal.

Just my two cents  :-)

Indeed, after sleeping on it, we will leave Supernal as is. It occurred to me that Supernal only lets you count you Essence as 5 for Chams based on that ability but it does not negate the prerequisites you are likely to need to get there so it is likely to still take some time to buy those Charms (I'm sure there are some exceptions). A person can still build a heck of a character based on a non-Caste ability.

So since I think my question got missed( or I missed responses  :P ), what forum would folks like to see this game end up in BDSM, NC, etc.? Once I get a majority I'll start up threads. I am open to any of the above so long as people are aware that adult themes will be present, though of course that need not mean "sexy time." The nearest town to the place the PCs will be starting, Volivat, has an interesting social structure (at least based on my take on what is in the book) which could involve very adult themes.

[HairyHeretic]

Bon exotic would do me okay.

[Re Z L]

I'm not too particular about which board category it's in   :-)