Topic: Exalted freeform (closed to new interest)

[AndyZ]

If I decide to go that route, I'd be willing to consider a tie-in ^_^ More likely I'd use that concept as a stepping stone in order to write my own concept, though, rather than just taking over your NPC.

[HairyHeretic]

Yeah, no worries :)

[Guancyto]

Interesting submissions so far!

It looks like several of the concepts are assuming we'll be in some sort of urban area (which is a fair assumption to make, mind you) so it's looking like we'll start out in either Wu-Jian (the gateway to the West, a sprawling island metropolis, premier trade hub; the rich parts are dominated by the Realm but it's too big and chaotic to be controlled entirely), or in Nexus (which most Exalted players are familiar with, but for the uninitiated, it's basically the same thing but in the East, plus there's the Totally-Not-Lady-of-Pain which keeps it a neutral city of adventure).

Which would everyone prefer?

[AndyZ]

Never heard of Wu-Jian before, but reading through, they definitely seem pretty similar.  I admit I had Nexus in mind when i wrote up Azure Grace, but the concept could just as easily work for Wu-Jian.

If I went with an Abyssal concept, though, the difference would be important.  Nexus doesn't allow as much open fighting in the streets, and it looks like the Realm has a pretty tight hold on Wu-Jian except for the slums.  Azure Grace works very well in either scenario.

If we went Wu-Jian, I could see interest in a Dusk who is trying to Redeem but has been more or less set up by his/her Deathlord that it's not easy for an Abyssal to hide, and killing lots and lots of people coming after him/her only works to the benefit of Death.  But that also depends on what the other characters are playing.

[HairyHeretic]

Wei would heartily vote for Nexus, mostly because there are all kinds of people looking for his head in Wu Jian (attachment to body optional). Plus there was that ... misunderstanding ... with the Lintha.

Besides which, I think there are a lot more prospects for both random adventure and base building going out from Nexus.

[AndyZ]

So out of all the characters you posted, you're definitely sticking with Wei?

[ShadowFox89]

 Wu-Jen would probably fit Gabrielle best, it's infestation.... I mean, it's large amount of dynasts means she can probably find her target(s) easier than in Nexus, and no Emissary to interfere.

[HairyHeretic]

So out of all the characters you posted, you're definitely sticking with Wei?

Favoring him. I can change to another if need be.

[Premier]

I’d vote for Wu-Jen just for something new. Nexus is a bit done to death for me, my atagoniats will follow me wherever so it’s not tied to a specific city

[HairyHeretic]

Wu Jian could be interesting, but the problem is the West is pretty scarcely populated, both in terms of people and places, compared to other regions. Wu Jian sounds almost like a 40k hive city crossed with the walled city of Kowloon. Outside the city, it's hundreds, if not thousands, of miles to anywhere else.

If it's a matter of going somewhere new, I'd pick the Dreaming Sea region over Wu Jian.

[AndyZ]

I guess the big question there is whether we want to spend a lot of time travelling and leaving the home city.

Granted, if we do, it's just as easy to speed up the game in Narrative Time anyway.

Azure works best staying in a city, but her concept is still in the "little picture" stage.

[Re Z L]

It should be pretty obvious what my choice will be.

Wu Jian gets my vote

[Guancyto]

If I went with an Abyssal concept, though, the difference would be important.  Nexus doesn't allow as much open fighting in the streets, and it looks like the Realm has a pretty tight hold on Wu-Jian except for the slums.  Azure Grace works very well in either scenario.

If we went Wu-Jian, I could see interest in a Dusk who is trying to Redeem but has been more or less set up by his/her Deathlord that it's not easy for an Abyssal to hide, and killing lots and lots of people coming after him/her only works to the benefit of Death.  But that also depends on what the other characters are playing.

Oh! Forgot to address this, wanted to. Abyssals in 3e are... different. The whole 'redeem into a Solar or be doomed to destroy the world forever' aspect is completely gone. They're a little more like Heaven's Reach Abyssals, dark heroes with gothic romance themes and horrifying powers. They are apprenticed to Deathlords and generally aren't particularly nice, but not Literally The Most Evil Thing In Existence any more.

[Re Z L]

Still, a sole Abyssal recognizing that they've become some kind of monster and seeking some kind of redemption is still a fitting trope

The metaphysics of Exalted Shards changing flavor from Abyssal to Solar doesn't seem present anymore, but that's a different sort of redemption in my opinion


PS:  If anyone needs any pictures or names or whatever, here's a little list of resource links:  https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=259688.msg12837763#msg12837763

[Premier]

I just nabbed my pic actually!

Piccy

If we're going for a very mixed circle we likely need a common aim. Even if it's as simple as "Uncover the secrets of the city", "Wrest power from the Realm" or just "Punch evil in dick"

[HairyHeretic]

Well, if we're looking to build a power structure of our own, taking over Wu Jian would be a major plot. We could build up to that though, building up goodwill with the regular folk, fighting monsters and renegade gods, saving children from evil cults, that sort of thing.

Going beyond that, I have a couple of personal plots that could easily expand out. One of Wei's followers is actually Seafolk, and has been searching for allies to save her home of Oceanmouth (about a thousand miles from Wu Jian, where the Great Western Ocean meets the White Sea). She hasn't revealed herself to Wei, since she has a thousand years of anti-solar propaganda to overcome, but once she believes she could trust him, and that he'd help, she'd open up.

Helping save a Seafolk community could then lead to further First Age goodies ... knowledge of the lost sunken city of Luthe, and a rough location of where to find it perhaps.

There's also the possibly of high level shenanigans with Realm, the Lintha and the local Deathlord.

[Re Z L]

Wu-Jian is good because it's also the major hub for (almost) any travel between the Blessed Isle and the West

Denzik City Ship probably comes by from time to time too

Internally the island is just about overpopulated, with lots of not-very-nice people taking advantage of non-natives, slums, gangs, guilds aplenty.  Then there's journeying outside the normal city into the Dragon-Blooded areas that are walled off for rescues or thievery or all other kinds of nonsense.

[AndyZ]

Re Z L, are you still looking at Night Caste also?

[Re Z L]

Yup, that is my plan right now

[AndyZ]

Okay, I'll probably drop Azure Grace then.  We don't really need three.

Not really sure what I'll play in her place, but I'll figure something out.

[HairyHeretic]

As long as there's not a huge crossover in concepts, I don't think having multiple of the same caste is a massive issue. Wei is a gambler and a con man, but not much of a fighter (comparatively speaking). If you've read the Lies of Locke Lamora books, he'd fit nicely in there.

[AndyZ]

I might be worrying too much, but I've had games where the characters end up too similar and there just isn't as much for folks to do.

Besides, there are lots of options right now ^_^

Oh! Forgot to address this, wanted to. Abyssals in 3e are... different. The whole 'redeem into a Solar or be doomed to destroy the world forever' aspect is completely gone. They're a little more like Heaven's Reach Abyssals, dark heroes with gothic romance themes and horrifying powers. They are apprenticed to Deathlords and generally aren't particularly nice, but not Literally The Most Evil Thing In Existence any more.

Is there a specific spot that goes into detail here?  I saw the one page in the book and they didn't seem to be all that different from their 2e counterparts.

[HairyHeretic]

The only stuff I've seen on Abyssals is in the core book. I don't think we have much else to go on atm.

[Re Z L]

There was also a little primer on the direction they were planning to go with Abyssals (and infernals)

From what I see the emphasis is more on Abyssals being miniature Deathlords--the Deathlords using them as Apprentices, and putting them on slightly more equal footing.  Something like Palpatine to Vader.

They've also made the intent known that they want to move away from having a large number of Mirror charms, and to make Abyssals much less dependant on the murder-death-kill motif in their charms (in 2E you may recall that EVERY charm tree had some means to kill people in it).

All the old tropes for them are still there as far as I can tell, including renegades who work for their own whims or directly against the wishes of the Deathlords.

The Core Book seems to support all of that still, but who knows how things will shake out when the book is finally released.


More importantly, I think, what I don't see is the idea of Exalted "Shards" so much.  It's been a little while since I've read through the book deeply, but I don't remember there being much of that present.  What that means (to me) is that Abyssals might not be Solars at all--related certainly but not the same.  The consequence of that is that I don't believe that there would ever (normally) be a method to turn an Abyssal into a Solar.  Of course doing the impossible among other things is still a core Exalted thing, but that's still up to the ST.

I still think it's entirely possible that an Abyssal would realize that they've become some kind of monster at some point and search for redemption--whatever that might mean to them.  Be it through trying to use their dark powers to help people (perhaps not in the best ways), or to find a way to fix the mistakes that they've made.

[Premier]

I'm planning to go on a bit of a redemption arc for my Sidereal, so the Abyssals ain't got a monopoly on it!

Possibly. It's also possible she instead decides she just needs to power through and the ends will justify the means, which is probably the darker end to her arc.