Latest revision as of 01:14, 6 April 2010

Abyssal Medicine Charms

by CorlanDashiva

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These charms were written by a player of mine, who wants to play an Abyssal heading towards being a Tzimisce. I've tidied them up and changed a few things, and thought I'd post them here for comments, criticism and the like. They go hand in hand with the Craft: Necrosurgery charms here

Anaesthetic Blow</b>

<b>Cost: 5 motes\\
Duration: 1 scene\\
Type: Simple\\
Min. Medicine: 1\\
Min. Essence: 1\\
Prereqs: none

This charm calls upon the chill unfeeling nature of Oblivion and instills a small amount of it into the target, whom the charm user must be touching. For the rest of the scene the target suffers no wound penalties and does not feel pain. This can allow for the use of Surgery and necrosurgery charms on sleeping people without their awareness. Use of this charm will cause charms such as Surprise Anticipation Method to activate, and anyone with high awareness or perception should be given a roll to hear the approach of the Abyssal, unless additional precautions are taken.\\

Masque of Life</b>

<b>Cost: 5 motes, 1 WP\\
Duration: 1 minute per success\\
Type: Simple\\
Min. Medicine: 2\\
Min. Essence: 1\\
Prereqs: Anaesthetic Blow

This charm animates a corpse and gives it some semblance of the life it once had. The Abyssal must roll Intelligence + Medicine. Each success gives one minute of control of the corpse. This charm can only be used on a corpse no more than 1 day dead. You gain none of the target's memories, and the target cannot act independantly of the Abyssal. The Abyssal can cause the corpse to act by concentration (taking away all chance of acting for the round - all the Abyssal is capable of is walking slowly and simple conversation), and if he ceases concentration the corpse will simply stand there. The animated corpse use's the Physical dicepools it had in life at -1 for the duration of the charm, but will use the Abyssals mental/social characteristics for mental/social rols (also at a -1 penalty). \\

Living Surgery Technique</b>

<b>Cost: 1 motes per dice\\
Duration: instant\\
Type: Reflexive\\
Min. Medicine: 3\\
Min. Essence: 2\\
Prereqs: Masque of Life, Crafting the Living Form here

Living Surgery Technique allows the Abyssal to use his knowledge of the body and the dead to aim his strikes better. The Abyssal can buy extra damage dice on any attack roll up to the limit of his Medicine. This also makes this attack deal Lethal damage.\\

The Meeting of Life and Death</b>

<b>Cost: 5 motes + 1 health level\\
Duration: Scene\\
Type: Simple\\
Min. Medicine: 3\\
Min. Essence: 2\\
Prereqs: Masque of Life

By understanding the dead and the living, the Abyssal is able to call forth the energy that animates the undead and channel it through his or her being, resulting in bone and flesh reshaping itself temporarily. When this charm is purchased, the Abyssal must decide on the statistics of the alternate form. They have a number of points equal to their Int + medicine to allocate according to the chart for Alter the Restless Dead. Once chosen this point allocation cannot be changed, but if they later gain a point of medicine or Int then they may add a point to their alternate form. Additionally, this charm can be purchased multiple times, with each purchase giving a different alternate form.

This charm is not compatible with armour and cannot be used when any martial arts form-type charm is active. This charm does not stack with itself.

Bringing Forth the Beast </b>

<b>Cost: 5 motes + 1 health level\\
Duration: Scene\\
Type: Supplemental\\
Min. Medicine: 4\\
Min. Essence: 3\\
Prereqs: The Meeting of Life and Death

This charm allows an Abyssal to channel the energy of undeath through another, warping their form as with The Meeting of Life and Death, but not necessarily in such a pleasant way. This charm can be activated to supplement any unarmed attack (which must be declared before the attack roll is made), but if the attack misses then the motes spent to power this charm are wasted.

On a succesful hit, the attack does no damage. Instead, the Abyssal rolls his Intelligence + Medicine against a difficulty of the targets Essence. If he succeeds then he can spend his excess successes on altering the target in much the same was as with Alter the Restless Dead, except that he can use successes to take away as well as give the benefits. No trait can be lowered below 1, and you can only take away things that the target has. For example you could not take 2 -4 health levels from a target that had only 1, you would only take away that one.

The target can spend willpower points to counter these excess successes on a 1 for 1 basis.

Comments

Anaesthetic Blow: "This can allow for the use of Surgery and necrosurgery charms on sleeping people without their awareness." - So if the Abyssal can creep up on a sleeping Exalt they can perform necrosurgery on the exalt without them awakening? Maybe have a limitation dependent on Willpower... If the target's Willpower is between Abyssals Essence and Essence x 2 then they get a Wits + Alertness roll to notice and resist, if 2 x Essence or above they automatically resist. Targets with Willpower lower than the Abyssals Essence cannot resist. And finally, if the target is willing then the charm succeeds automatically, with no resistance roll being made. - Garden

Actually, if a combat monster Exalt snuck up on someone they could probably kill them with a single attack, why should the Necrosurgeon not be able to do unpleasant things to them in a similar vein? Changed the charm slightly to say that things like SAM will trigger, and if the target has high Perception or Awareness they should get a roll to hear the Abyssal sneaking up. The definition of high should be left to the ST of the particular game. Personally, if it's a normal mortal then it'll work, no questions. If there are NPCs I need to protect from this sort of thing, then they'lll get rolls - CorlanDashiva

Living Surgery: damage dice buyer up to a max of Essence would be more Abyssally? - Garden

Changed it to a damage dice buyer, but made the limit Medicine, I think it makes sense for what the charm actually does - CorlanDashiva