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Descending Fire Style

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Background

You understand nothing of conflict until you understand fire. Without understanding, your fire either burns out of control, or dies out. Truly, he who understands his fire is invincible.

Training

Zen is the best word to describe Descending Fire Style training. Students learn to infer the techniques from simple tasks their masters assign them day in and day out, or they give up in disgust. Early on, simple tasks include carrying firewood and water, cooking dinner, washing floors, sweeping ashes... etc. Later, students learn to roast single grains of rice. They are required to perform calligraphy with burning sticks. The tasks then become even more esoteric, but by this time the students have learned not to question when their masters tell them to catch a particular burning cinder from the air on one finger without snuffing it out.

Students realize their knowledge the first time they are required to fight. The charm abilities of this style have become instinctive once learned, and when forced to use them students of this style automatically understand what they are able to do. Masters only allow students to perform combat drills once a real life-or-death situation has arisen outside of training, believing this is a necessary step to understand the fire of battle as it really is.

Weapons and Armor

Weapons and armor are not an issue for this style. None of the techniques depend on them, nor are they hindered by them, save for those charms with the Touch keyword.

Complementary Abilities

Students of this style develop a minimum Athletics of •• through their early training. Later training often develops other abilities, including Linguistics, Lore, Resistance, Awareness, and Investigation. However, none of these are technically requirements, merely products of the way and philosophy of the masters who teach the style.

Charms

First Spark

Cost: 1m or 4m
Minimums: Essence 3, MA 4
Type: Reflexive (step 1, step 2, or step 8)
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: None

A fire begins with a spark. This charm may be activated in one of three situations: when declaring an attack, when declaring the use of Parry DV against an attack, or when soaking damage from an attack which will inflict at least 1 die of damage after soak. This first activation counts as a charm use and costs 1m; the 4m cost is paid later, and does not count as a charm use.

• If activated when declaring an attack, the First Spark is delivered if the attack is either parried completely (but not Perfectly) or if it hits.
• If activated when declaring a Parry, the First Spark is delivered if the attack is fully parried, or if the third activation option becomes valid.
• If activated when soaking an attack which will roll at least 1 die of damage after soak, the First Spark is automatically delivered.

Once the First Spark has been delivered somehow, a variety of effects become available to the Descending Fire student. The most basic of these effects is built into this charm: any time the student is about to resolve a successful attack against an opponent who carries a First Spark, she may spend 4m reflexively to double the number of damage dice to be rolled after soak. This uses up the First Spark, and so another one must be delivered to use its advantages again.

An opponent may only be the subject of a single First Spark. The First Spark lasts for a number of ticks equal to [Essence + Willpower + Martial Arts]. Any Descending Fire stylist may take advantage of the First Spark delivered by any other artist of the same style.

Fire Burns Out Fire

Cost: None
Minimums: Essence 3, MA 5
Type: Permanent
Keywords: None
Duration: Permanent
Prerequisite Charms: First Spark

If a fire meets another fire, both stop, quickly running out of fuel. This understanding allows a student of Descending Fire to use up a First Spark carried by an opponent to block an attack. For 3m1w, roll Dexterity + Martial Arts at a difficulty of the opponent's Essence. If this roll is successful, the attack is parried fully. This may not stop unblockable attacks.

Descending Fire Form

Cost: 6m
Minimums: Essence 3, MA 5
Type: Simple (Speed 8, DV -0)
Keywords: Form-Type
Duration: Scene
Prerequisite Charms: Fire Burns Out Fire

With a passive stance and relaxed attitude, the student of Descending Fire comes to understand the fires raging within himself and his opponent, and stand apart from them. The Descending Fire student may activate this Form instead of taking a Join Battle action. If he does so, his successes on Join Battle are considered to be (Wits + Awareness + Essence + Martial Arts) for the purpose of determining the Speed of the Join Battle actions of others. This also becomes the Reaction Count for those joining the battle later, whether the martial artist joined battle using this Form or not.

For the remainder of the scene, the student of Descending Fire Form imposes an internal penalty of his Essence on all attacks, parries, and contested clinch rolls against him. If the opponent is afflicted with a First Spark, the student may use it up to convert this to an external penalty for one roll. Finally, the charm First Spark may be activated as an innate ability rather than a charm during this Form.

Scattering Sparks

Cost: 1m
Minimums: Essence 3, MA 5
Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Descending Fire Form

As a single spark begins one fire, it may explode into a shower of many more sparks. This charm is activated when ending a clinch with a throw, if the victim of the throw is affected by a First Spark. Make a Martial Arts attack roll against another valid target, with a -2 internal penalty; if successful, or if the attack is fully but not perfectly parried, afflict that target with a First Spark as well. If the attack hits, treat the damage as [Strength + 3]B.

Crushing Gathered Embers

Cost: 3m1w
Minimums: Essence 3, MA 5
Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Crippling
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Descending Fire Form

When the remains of a fire are gathered in one place, it can be snuffed out easily. This charm supplements a clinch Crush action. In addition to dealing its damage, the supplemented Crush forces the opponent to roll Stamina + Resistance at a difficulty equal to the number of health levels dealt. If the roll succeeds, increase the opponent's Wound Penalty by 1. If the roll fails, reduce the opponent's movement speed to 1 yard per tick, he may not Dash, and reduce his physical dice pools to his Essence if they were higher. This is a Crippling effect. The effects wear off when the damage inflicted by the supplemented Crush action is healed.

Burn Through Obstacles

Cost: 5m1w
Minimums: Essence 4, MA 5
Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Scattering Sparks

Against a hot enough fire, nothing can stand. This charm supplements an attack against an opponent afflicted with a First Spark, using up the Spark. The attack becomes either unparryable or unsoakable, at the choice of the Exalt using it. The attacking limb or weapon turns into pure flame where it bypasses a physical barrier to strike true.

Stealing Fire's Heat

Cost: 4m
Minimums: Essence 4, MA 5
Type: Simple
Keywords: Combo-OK, Touch
Duration: Scene
Prerequisite Charms: Crushing Gathered Embers

When the body's fire is understood, an understanding of what chakras produce it follows naturally. Roll Dexterity + Martial Arts, with an external penalty of the opponent's DV of choice plus his Essence trait. This is an attack, but it deals no damage. Instead, for each success, remove Essence motes from the opponent's peripheral Essence pool. If not enough motes remain in that pool, remove the remainder from his personal pool. If not enough motes remain in the personal pool, remove all motes and one point of temporary Willpower. If the opponent is also out of temporary Willpower, he must roll Stamina + Resistance at a difficulty of the attacker's Essence. On a success, double his wound penalties. On a failure, he falls unconscious.

If the opponent was also afflicted by a First Spark, the attacker may pay 1w and use up the Spark to transfer any motes and/or Willpower drained from the opponent to herself.

Spark-Incited Blaze

Cost: None
Minimums: Essence 5, MA 5
Type: Permanent
Keywords: None
Duration: Permanent
Prerequisite Charms: Burn Through Obstacles, Stealing Fire's Heat

Fire continues to burn so long as there is fuel. When a charm of this style would use up a First Spark afflicting an opponent, this Exalt may now pay 1m reflexively instead, and leave the Spark in effect.