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Nine Boughs

In the Northeast, south of the Halta and Linowan nations, there is a small nation known as Nine Boughs. The nation is small, with a population of around 1500 people, and all of them live within a section of the Jomunat Woods. The people named their town for the great tree in the centre of the town, a great gnarled oak tree that towers thirty feet tall and spreads its branches in all directions. It is always leafy, even in the depths of winter, and the weather around it grows progressively more pleasant as one approaches it. At the base of the tree sits a small stone, marked by knotwork and held loosely within the tree’s grasp; by ancient tradition, no one tries to remove it.

The tree is the last work of a mighty Dragon-Blooded manse engineer of the Shogunate, Kalin Haluya. Haluya created the region as a private retreat, a grove to which she could withdraw for quiet contemplation. When she died, the servants that she had appointed to tend to the tree’s needs remained, and a small town gradually grew up around it. Eventually, the origin of the manse was forgotten, and only the town’s beliefs in their tree-god remained. The manse remains unattuned at the present time, but it is only a matter of time before some travelling Exalt happens upon this idyllic place.

The tree itself is the Manse, although the bulk of its powers spread far beyond it. In order to recover Essence, the owner must rest in the actual boughs of the tree – an uncomfortable proposition, but a possible one. The tree will subtly move to shelter such a rester from the sun and wind.

Game Effects

Level 4 Wood-Aspected Manse
Drawbacks: Hearthstone 4, Maitenance 2 (Gardening), Habitability 2 (It’s a tree.)

Powers:

Semi-Sentient (4 pts): The tree at the centre of the manse is fully aware of the area around it, and continues to fulfill its natural motivation to guard and provide for those who live within its region. It can command any of the manse’s capabilities, and react to problems; however, it has no way to directly communicate with the people, using vague capabilities instead. The Manse-Tree has the following statistics: Perception 5, Intelligence 4, Wits 4, Charisma 4, Manipulation 3 – Awareness 5, Integrity 5, Investigation 5, Survival 5. (Note: Semi-sentient is a less powerful version of Sentient which does not provide experience point growth; the manse can mimic intellect but is not truly sentient.)

Zone of Influence (3 pts): The manse’s abilities stretch through the tree’s roots, all the way to the edge of the town and beyond. The manse can use its powers up to 1600 yards from the tree itself.

Puzzle Maze (3 pts): The area around the manse is filled with trees, brambles, streams and rivers, and other confusing and difficult passages. Successfully navigating the maze of hedges and brambles around the manse requires characters to succeed at Intelligence + Survival rolls, difficulty 4. Characters must spend time wandering the maze to understand its shifting nature, and cannot roll more dice before Charms than the number of areas of the forest that they’ve spent at least one full scene in. The tree can turn this power on or off at will, and welcomes those who seem friendly.

Wood Dragon’s Will (3 pts): In times of need, the entire region around the manse becomes a host of defenders. The manse can animate plants, take control of animals, and generally make life miserable for those trying to attack.

Provider (2 pts): The tree’s roots spread through the soil, and its fruits are plentiful and nourishing. The fruits from Nine Boughs can feed up to 600 people consistantly, and purify the stream running from its base. The locals use this food to greatly reduce their own needs, sharing it evenly amongst the town.

Zone of Comfort (1 pt): The region around the tree is generally pleasant and comfortable to live in. When storms rage, they land as mild showers. Fierce winds are merely light, and devastating tornadoes never land within the area. The temperature never drops far below freezing or rises far above 25 degrees Celsius, and biting insects simply do not swarm. The tree can selectively remove this protection, and does so to express displeasure (though only to mild degrees, unless an invasion force is surrounding the manse.)

Nine Boughs has no Hearthstone.