Latest revision as of 20:50, 8 June 2010

Ikselam's Wood Hearthstones

Wood represents life, nurture, and healing.

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Level 1

Blubber Stone

Manse •
Trigger: None.

This white, egg-shaped stone has the greasy sheen of a lump of suet, and feels slick to the touch. When attuned, it causes the bearer to build up fat at an accelerated rate. Her Appearance score is reduced by one (to a minimum of 1) due to her increased portliness, but she receives three bonus dice to resist cold, and can survive for up to one full week without food before she starts feeling the effects of starvation (although she does feel hunger as normal). If she does not eat for more than a week, she loses all benefits and penalties associated with the Blubber Stone, unless she was under the effects of some other magical power which alleviates hunger. It takes one week of regular eating for the stone's effects to resume.

Breadstone

Manse •
Trigger: Biting into the stone.

This oblong, golden-brown hearthstone looks very much like a hard roll. When attuned, it actually becomes edible; if the bearer bites off a portion of the stone, she will find that it is apparently composed of tasty, nourishing bread. The stone quickly regenerates any parts of itself that are eaten, so it is eminently possible to glean a full meal from it. Unfortunately, it is impossible to break off pieces of a Breadstone except by biting it, and any piece which is spat out swiftly evaporates. Anyone not attuned to the Breadstone will find it rock-hard and inedible.

It is possible, but foolish, to consume the entire stone. In such a case, the stone will regenerate inside the eater's stomach, causing severe discomfort at best and serious medical complications at worst.

Breadstones frequently form in batches of three or more.

Budding Gem

Manse •
Trigger: None.

This globular gemstone is a deep, translucent green. When attuned, it begins to sprout small buds, resembling miniature copies of itself. These bud-beads grow to the size of marbles before dropping off. Each "adult" bud contains a single mote of Essence. Any being capable of channelling Essence can easily draw the mote out, using it to replenish her Essence pool; Wood-Aspect Dragon-Blooded receive two motes per bead, instead of one. Doing so consumes the character's dice action for the turn, but a character may draw upon up to (her permanent Essence score) beads at the same time.

The Budding Gem produces one bud every week. When a bud is drained of Essence, it forms a small bubble in its center, but it is otherwise unchanged. Although the beads sparkle prettily, they have no intrinsic value; they are, for all intents and purposes, nothing more than colored glass.

Gem of Creeping Ivy

Manse •
Trigger: Concentration (Simple).

This translucent green stone is similar in shape to an ivy leaf. It allows the wearer to place his hand on any stone surface and cause ivy or similar climbing vines to rapidly spread across it. The vines grow at a rate of approximately one yard per minute; the gem's wearer determines the rough direction in which they spread. The ivy is quite sturdy, and reduces the difficulty of scaling walls and other such obstructions by one. The vines will sprout in any environment, but will wither and crumble to dust in a matter of minutes if they couldn't normally survive there. In more friendly environments, the ivy will behave just like normal ivy.

Gem of One Thousand Heavenly Perfumes

Manse • 
Trigger: None.

This oblong stone is colored a translucent lavender, and exudes a mild perfume. When attuned, it causes the bearer's sweat to take on a delightful herbal scent, ensuring that he always smells pleasant. Mechanically, this adds one die to any social roll having to do with first impressions or friendly interaction. It also confounds any powers which rely on scent to determine the character's mood or emotions unless the observer makes an Intelligence + Awareness roll at difficulty 3.

Maggot Gem

 Manse •
 Trigger: Suffering lethal wounds.

This slimy, pallid stone looks much like a fat, pulsating grub with no head or legs. When attuned, it guarantees the sterility of its bearer's wounds in a most revolting manner. Any of the character's wounds which become infected quickly begin swarming with maggots. Just like the maggots used by certain surgeons, these larvae devour dead and diseased tissue, leaving healthy flesh intact. They remain in the wound until it heals; they can be removed, but more will quickly appear to replace them.

Mechanically, the character's wounds never become infected (although he still rolls for infection; the maggots only appear if he fails). Until the wounds heal, he suffers a dice penalty on any social roll which would, in the Storyteller's judgment, be negatively impacted by looking disgusting. The penalty is equal to the the penalty inflicted by his worst wound, plus one; it is unaffected by powers which negate wound penalties. (For example, a character who was injured at the -0 level would take a 1-die penalty, while one who had wounds at the -2 level would lose 3 dice from social rolls.)

Vintner's Gem

Manse •
Trigger: Crushing grapes.

These round, transparent hearthstones come in a variety of amber and burgundy hues; some appear to have bubbles suspended in them. When attuned, it allows its bearer to skip the fermentation process when making wine. Whenever he crushes grapes, their juice will be immediately transformed into well-aged wine.

This power only functions on ripe grapes which the character himself crushes. The type of wine produced is independent of the type of grapes used; it will always be the type which the hearthstone resembles.

A related family of stones, called Brewer's Gems, are known to exist, but see much less use. They require the bearer to eat the appropriate grain ingredients, after which he urinates the corresponding type of beer or liquor. The unpopularity of Brewer's Gems is partially due to the unappealing nature of this mechanism, but also due to the fact that it is significantly easier and more efficient to stamp on big tubs full of grapes than it is to piss all day.

Level 2

Blood Reservoir Jewel</b>

<b>Manse ••
Trigger: Varies. 

This lenticular gem is a deep carmine color, like arterial blood. In fact, it -is- full of blood, which is magically transferred to the bearer when he needs it. The volume of blood inside the stone is approximately the same as what is in its owner's body; as a result, he can bleed twice as much without dying. Mechanically, the gem holds as many health levels of blood as the character has normal health levels. For example, a character who has seven health levels would find that he can lose seven health levels' worth of blood without experiencing any ill effects.

In addition, the stone can inject all of its blood into the bearer at once, completely replacing his. This requires intense concentration, and is extremely painful; the character will be completely incapacitated for three turns as blood spews from his nose, mouth, and even the pores of his skin, forced out to make room for the new blood. Besides creating an enormous mess, this immediately halts the effects of any nonmagical poison or infection. Use of this power completely drains the gem, which must be full to capacity in order for it to function.

As the gem is used, it becomes paler and paler, eventually fading to a pale transparent yellow when it has run completely dry. The blood replenishes itself at a rate of one health level per day.

Gem of the Preening Peacock

Manse ••
Trigger: Striking a pose.

This iridescent green lens bears a prominent marking which resembles the "eye" of a peacock feather. When attuned, it allows its bearer to magically become the center of attention, simply by striking a dramatic pose. Mechanically, he makes an Appearance + Performance roll, consuming his dice action for the turn. Everyone who is close enough to see his face (whether or not they're actually looking at him when the power activates) will pay attention to him for a number of turns equal to the number of successes on his roll. Whether this is a blessing or a curse depends on what actions he takes subsequent to using the stone's power; simply drawing everyone's attention does not guarantee a positive response.

This power can be used once per scene. It is not powerful enough to seriously distract people who are engaged in strenuous or important activities (such as combat, high-stakes gambling, snuggling with a lover, and so forth), although they will immediately become aware of the character's presence. Again, whether this is a good or bad thing depends on the character's actions.

Gem of the Prickly Cactus

Manse ••
Trigger: None.

This dusty green stone resembles a small, rootless barrel cactus, complete with short spines. When attuned, it imbues its bearer with the qualities of the plant it resembles. The character may go for up to three days without drinking before feeling any ill effects. He also gains the ability to sprout a multitude of tiny spines whenever he chooses. These spines replace all hair on his body; when the power is activated, all of his hair will fall out. Over the course of the next five days, it will be replaced by short spines. These spines are the same color as his hair, and are virtually indistinguishable from normal hairs, although they grow no longer than an eighth of an inch (0.3cm). They aren't large enough to inflict actual damage, but they are very irritating to anyone who is stuck by them; anyone who grapples the character when he is unarmored, or otherwise comes into contact with his bare skin, suffers a -1 penalty to all dice pools for the remainder of the scene due to irritation caused by the minuscule spines embedded in his flesh.

At any time, the character may choose to shed his spines and regrow his hair. It takes one day for the spines to fall out, after which his hair regrows at its normal pace. Tattooed Lunars can't use this gem's power.

Stone of Forest Speech

Manse ••
Trigger: Speaking to plants.

This cylindrical hearthstone resembles a piece of petrified wood, its cross-section displaying what appear to be growth rings. The person attuned to it gains the ability to speak with and understand plants. Most small plants, such as grasses and shrubs, are fairly stupid and cannot understand or convey any but the simplest concepts. Trees are typically much more intelligent, and capable of much more coherent and interesting conversation. This power does not guarantee that the plants will like the character or wish to talk to her, or grant them the ability to do things they normally couldn't (such as move).

A close cousin of this hearthstone, the Stone of Wild Speech, allows communication with animals, with the same limitations and caveats. Stones of Wild Speech resemble yellow cat's eyes.

Stone of the Living Sheath</b>

<b>Manse ••
Trigger: Concentration (dice action requiring no roll). 

This egg-shaped hearthstone is warm and soft to the touch, with a surface resembling human skin. When attuned, it allows the artifact in which it is set to sink undetectably into its owner's flesh.

The stored artifact doesn't actually have to be smaller than the user in order to stay sheathed inside her; as long as she can find some part of her body which is of comparable size to the artifact's in at least two dimensions, it can fit. For example, a daiklave could easily be stored in a character's forearm, as long as its blade is not much wider or thicker than the limb. This even extends to form-fitting armor, though the Storyteller has final say which artifacts are storeable and which are not. While sheathed, artifacts exist in an amorphous, liquid state, which renders them unable to perform any of their regular functions except holding hearthstones. Hearthstones socketed in a sheathed weapon do no provide any benefits besides increased mote regeneration.

Sheathing or removing an artifact counts as a dice action requiring no roll. In order to sheathe an artifact, it must touch bare skin; when it is removed, it emerges from the character's skin, and may tear through clothing covering the area if not small enough to fit under it.

Stone of Rejuvenating Passion

Manse ••
Trigger: Consensual sex.

This fat, teardrop-shaped red stone has a slight dimple on its rounded end, and seems to throb rhythmically. When attuned, it allows its bearer to tap into the potent life energies generated by physical intimacy. Over the course of an hour of sexual activity with a willing partner, the character heals a number of bashing health levels equal to his Compassion; in turn, he heals a number equal to hers. In the case of multiple partners, all participants heal damage equal to the average of their Compassion scores.

The stone cannot heal lethal wounds, but it can ameliorate them. If the character is suffering lethal damage, that damage is converted to bashing at the rate of one level per two dots of her partner's Compassion (and vice versa). The stone always converts lethal damage before healing bashing damage, but Compassion is never wasted; if, for example, the character's only injury is a single lethal wound, and her partner has Compassion 3, she will be completely healed after one hour of lovemaking (two dots convert the wound to bashing, and the third erases it).

Wood-Aspected Dragon-Blooded, spirits, and God-Blooded count as having an extra point of Compassion for the purposes of this Stone. Abyssal Exalted count as having one less; they also accrue a point of Resonance for every level of damage healed by the stone, in addition to any Resonance they incur for having sex in the first place.

[#Wombstone] Wombstone

Manse ••
Trigger: Pregnancy.

This globular stone is a transparent pinkish color, and is soft to the touch. When attuned, it functions as a most curious form of birth control. Whenever the bearer might become pregnant, a second hearthstone forms in the stone's Manse; the new stone contains a tiny fetus, which gestates at normal speed. The new stone expands to keep up with the fetus' growth, eventually hatching into a healthy, normal baby. Children borne by this stone are always Inheritance 1 Elemental-blooded, aspected toward Wood, regardless of their parentage.

While the Wombstone is gestating, its bearer is infertile. In addition, if it becomes deattuned, or if either the original stone or the one containing the child is broken, the pregnancy aborts and the bearer must make a Stamina + Resistance check at difficulty 3 to avoid permanent sterility. Even if the roll succeeds, the bearer will be seriously ill for a full month, suffering intestinal bleeding and racking abdominal pains which inflict a 2-die penalty on all actions.

This hearthstone functions for both men and women. In the case of women, it becomes pregnant in the place of the bearer; in the case of men, it becomes pregnant in place of the person being impregnated. Use of the stone can actually cause homosexual intercourse (between either sex) to result in pregnancy; it also allows sterile indviduals to have children.

Mundane contraceptive methods do not affect the Wombstone's functionality; only magic can reduce the risk of unwanted pregnancy when using it.

Level 3

Aloe Stone

Manse •••
Trigger: Cutting the stone and squeezing it.

This egg-shaped stone's leathery surface is mottled green and white, like the skin of its namesake. When attuned, it becomes noticeably softer to the touch; if a cut is made in its surface, it will ooze a clear gel which carries potent medicinal benefits. Mechanically, bashing wounds treated with the salve heal at five times the normal rate; lethal wounds' healing rate is accelerated to twice normal. Each health level of damage must be treated separately. In addition, any rolls to fight infection receive a single automatic success.

The salve retains its curative powers indefinitely, and may be stored for future use. The Aloe Stone is capable of producing enough salve in a single day to treat a total of seven levels of damage.

Deft Healer's Stone

Manse •••
Trigger: Concentration (Reflexive).

This yellow stone is shaped like a four-pointed star. By concentrating, its wearer can see the Essence flows through a living body, and how to bring them into harmonious alignment. Mechanically, this adds four dice to any Medicine rolls related to acupuncture, massage, or the like. It can also be used for harmful purposes; a fighter using this power can add one point to the raw damage of any unarmed attack she makes, since she can see where to strike in order to most effectively injure her opponent's body.

Surgeon's Stone

Manse •••
Trigger: Touch.

This disc-shaped beige stone bears a five-pointed indentation reminiscent of a human handprint. When attuned, it causes flesh to part like water around the bearer's hands. Mechanically, this adds three dice to any Medicine rolls involving surgery, and allows the character to perform surgery without equipment. It can also be used to harm rather than heal; any unarmed strikes which the character makes do lethal instead of bashing damage, as he reaches through skin to directly twist and rend the flesh and bone beneath.

Level 4

Gemstone of the Mother Bear

Manse ••••
Trigger: Seeing a loved one in danger.

This dark brown gem feels furry, even though its surface appears glossy and smooth. When attuned, it allows its bearer to fight to protect his friends as ferociously as a mother bear defending her cubs. When he sees a loved one in danger, the character adds his Compassion in dice to all combat pools, and reduces all his wound penalties by two, as long as he is actively fighting to protect her.

If his friend is killed or incapacitated, the character must make a Willpower roll at a difficulty of his own Compassion or fly into a berserk rage, mindlessly attacking the people who struck her down. While in this state, he takes no wound penalties whatsoever, cannot make ranged attacks from beyond point-blank range, and cannot retreat until all enemies have fallen. If he wishes to spare an enemy's life, he must spend a point of Willpower.

Orb of Animal Magnetism

Manse ••••
Trigger: Concentration (reflexive).

This polished sphere is filled with dark, swirling colors, and vibrates almost imperceptibly. When attuned, it imbues the wearer with a dangerous, feral allure. He receives a three-die bonus to any rolls involving seduction or other sexually-charged interaction; skin-to-skin contact with the target raises this bonus to six dice. He also finds that he can literally smell arousal; he will automatically sense if someone is attracted to him, unless that person's scent is somehow being completely suppressed.

The character's magically-enhanced charisma is so powerful that it is nearly palpable. Anyone within ten yards who is of the appropriate sexual alignment will find their composure threatened by the constant intrusion of lustful thoughts. Mechanically, any person who is normally attracted to individuals of the character's gender must make a Temperance check or suffer a 2-die penalty to all Intelligence and Wits pools (not including combat initiative) for the remainder of the scene. This check is made only once, when the character first comes into range; he need not actually be seen for his aura of animal magnetism to take effect.

Peerless Predator's Gem

Manse ••••
Trigger: Tasting a target's blood.

This irregular golden gem resembles a chunk of amber. When attuned, it grants its owner the bloody-minded focus of a stalking tiger. In order to activate the stone's powers, the character must taste the blood of her victim. Until the next new moon, or until she voluntarily breaks off pursuit of the target, he will be unable to avoid her pursuit. The character will be instinctively pulled toward his current location unless he is using magic to cover his trail; in such a case, she may make a tracking roll as normal. She also adds her Conviction in dice to all pools related to stalking, ambushing, or fighting her prey.

The Peerless Predator's Gem may only be used to stalk one victim at a time. If the character wishes to break off active pursuit before the new moon arrives, she must expend a point of Willpower. If her victim is helpless before her and she for some reason wishes to spare his life, she must expend a point of Willpower and forfeit all actions (including reflexive actions and actions granted by persistent effects) for the remainder of her turn.

Level 5

Entangled Roots Gem</b>

<b>Manse •••••
Trigger: None.

This hearthstone looks like a ball of densely-tangled roots. When attuned, it begins resonating strongly with all other sources of Wood-Aspected magic within a large area, providing its owner with useful information about them.

The gem detects the presence of Wood-Aspected hearthstones, elementals, Manses, Dragon-Blooded, and gods, as well as artifacts constructed primarily of green jade. The range at which a given object or being registers is equal to one hundred miles per dot of Essence (for living things) or background level (for artifacts, Manses, and hearthstones). The bearer of the Entangled Roots Gem receives a rough feeling of the thing's nature, and of what it is currently doing (or being used for), as well as a fairly precise notion of its position relative to him.

Gourd of Rebirth

Manse •••••
Trigger: Dying

This hearthstone looks like a very small, brightly-colored gourd. When attuned, it allows its bearer to cheat death in a most extraordinary way. If at any time he is reduced to below Incapacitated by lethal or aggravated wounds, his body immediately dissolves into a shower of dry leaves, and the Gourd quickly rots away. Over the course of the next month, the Gourd reforms at its Manse as normal. After that time, it grows steadily larger, until one week after it reformed, it splits open and disgorges the character, alive and well and with the Gourd of Rebirth held in his mouth. The rind and flesh of the giant gourd is that of a normal gourd; it is quite tasty, but will go bad if left out for too long.

When the character dies, he leaves behind all of his equipment, along with any nonliving prostheses. Upon rebirth, he is completely naked, but also completely whole and healthy; any non-congenital injury or disability -- even missing limbs or terminal illness -- is healed without trace. Even tattoos and scars are erased, although Wyld mutations are unaffected. At the discretion of the Storyteller, characters whose Flaws are negated as a result of this power may be forced to go into experience-point arrears until they have paid off the cost of the removed Flaws.

Tattooed Lunars cannot benefit from this gem's special power; their immunity to shapechanging renders the Gourd unable to break down and reconstruct their bodies.

Homunculus Egg

Manse •••••
Trigger: None.

This white, egg-shaped stone is slightly translucent; when strongly backlit, the shape of a tiny embryo can be seen inside it. When attuned, it quickly fissions into two identical stones, one of which remains in the attuned artifact. The other falls to the ground, where it swiftly grows to many times its original size before cracking open to reveal what appears to be an adult human. The entire process takes about five minutes.

The homunculus born of the stone is a fully-statted character, who is constructed as an Inheritance 3, Wood-Aspect Elemental-Blooded (see Player's Guide, chpt. 2). She must have at least Essence 2, favor at least three of the Wood-Aspected Abilities (Archery, Medicine, Performance, Ride, and Survival), and speak both Old Realm and the native language of the hearthstone's bearer; aside from that, her traits are determined by the Storyteller.

The homunculus' appearance and gender vary depending on the Manse she is born from, but she always has a replica of the hearthstone embedded in her forehead. Her personality and traits also depend on her Manse; they may change slightly depending on who is attuned to her hearthstone, but retain some consistency. She has no conscious memory of her "past lives," but may experience vivid dreams of prior incarnations, similar to those had by Celestial Exalted.

The stone's bearer can force the homunculus to perform an action, or even slay her outright, with but a thought. He can also share her senses, and use her as an Essence reservoir, as per a level 5 Familiar.

If the homunculus dies, the hearthstone immediately goes inert and dissolves; it reforms as normal over the course of the next month. The converse is also true; if the hearthstone is destroyed, or becomes deattuned, the homunculus goes into a coma and dies. Dead homunculi quickly dissolve into puddles of foul-smelling goo, but are reborn the next time their hearthstones are attuned.

The homunculus produced by this hearthstone does not have a soul as such -- her "soul" is the Essence of the Manse itself -- and is therefore immune to soul-affecting powers. She does, however, have a true name, which only changes if her Manse undergoes dramatic reconfiguration. She also possesses free will, tempered by a strong compulsion to serve the person who carries her hearthstone and to protect her Manse, in that order. It is possible, but extremely rare, for mistreated homunculi to rebel against their masters.

Insidious Worm Stone

Manse •••••
Trigger: Entering another Manse, or being placed in an artifact with other hearthstones.

A tiny, coiled grub can be seen twisting restlessly in the center of this emerald-green hearthstone. When attuned, it gains the power to infect other hearthstones, siphoning power from their Manses and giving its bearer a degree of power over them.

Any time the Insidious Worm Stone is kept in a Manse not its own for more than one day, that Manse' hearthstone(s) will become infected. A tiny worm, identical to that inside the Insidious Worm Stone, will appear in the core of each stone. If the stone is transparent, this is noticeable with only casual inspection; less-transparent stones require a Perception + Occult or Craft(Jeweler) roll, with a difficulty ranging from 1 for slightly translucent stones up to 5 for completely opaque ones.

Hearthstones which are kept in the Insidious Worm Stone's Manse for more than a day will also become infected. Infected stones are contagious; although they cannot infect whole Manses, they will spread the infection to any hearthstone with which they share an artifact. Any stones which remain socketed into the same artifact as the Worm Stone, or a stone it has infected, for more than a day will become infected themselves.

Infected hearthstones retain their special powers, but act as though they are one level lower for purposes of Essence regeneration. For every three infected hearthstones, the Insidious Worm Stone increases its effective level by one, up to a maximum level of ten -- as the stone grows in power, the grub inside it swells noticeably, until it is so large it can barely be contained by its crystal shell. In addition, its bearer will be able to sense the relative location of all infected stones, and know when their powers are being used. As a Simple action, he may cause a worm to begin devouring an infected stone from within, destroying it.

Infected stones may only be cured by destroying them and allowing them to reform, by destroying the Worm Stone itself, or through the use of specialized sorcery (of the Terrestrial Circle). The Insidious Worm Stone infects all stones and Manses with which it comes into contact, even if they belong to its owner. If the Insidious Worm Stone is broken, the grub inside it promptly metamorphoses into a brightly-colored butterfly which flies unerringly toward the nearest place sacred to Gaia.

Jewel of Nature's Blinding Beauty

Manse •••••
Trigger: None.

This multifaceted gem is a deep forest green, and feels warm to the touch. When attuned, it causes its bearer to become radiantly lovely. The power doesn't actually alter the bearer's appearance in any way, but nevertheless will cause even the most homely of people to shine with healthy, vibrant beauty.

Mechanically, the character receives three bonus dice to any Appearance roll. In addition, those viewing her will be so moved by her beauty that they may find it hard to even think of harming her. The strength of this effect depends both on the character's Appearance score, and on how much of her body is exposed. If her face and body are completely obscured, as by armor and helm, the power does not function. If only her face is showing, any hostile action taken against her suffers a +1 difficulty penalty. If she is wearing light but modest clothing, offensive actions suffer a difficulty penalty equal to half her Appearance (round up). If she is wearing revealing or scanty clothing, the difficulty penalty is equal to her full Appearance. If she is completely unclothed, the difficulty penalty is equal to her full Appearance, and those wishing to act against her must first pass a Conviction check at a difficulty of half her Appearance (round down). This check is made every round.

If the character takes hostile action against anyone, that person halves (round down) all penalties inflicted by the Jewel of Nature's Blinding Beauty for the remainder of the scene, and need not roll Conviction to act against her if she is nude.

Characters with Appearance 0 receive no benefit from this stone's special power, and blind characters are not affected by it.

Jewel of Selfless Love

Manse •••••
Trigger: Consensual sex.

This emerald-green, ovoid gemstone's interior sparkles with hundreds of luminescent motes. When attuned, it allows the bearer to grant her lovers a portion of her own power. The character engages in sexual contact with a willing partner for a period of no less than one hour; at the end of this period, she may choose to grant him access to one or more of her Charms. The number of Charms granted may not exceed her permanent Essence score, and the recipient must meet all prerequisites. If he is a mortal, he also gains an Essence pool equal to half the character's. This pool is divided into personal and peripheral in the same ratio as hers, and expenditure of peripheral motes will cause him to exhibit an anima flare at the same rate, and of the same appearance, as hers. However, his Caste Mark (if any) will be little more than a blur, as will his iconic anima. He will retain access to the granted Charms for one full day. Each use of this power requires an hour; it is not possible to simultaneously imbue multiple partners.

If the character wishes, she can empower a lover in a more enduring fashion, permanently increasing one or more of his Traits. Only Attributes, Essence, and Willpower may be raised through this method. If the character's partner is mortal or God-Blooded, his Essence may not be raised above 3; in no case may any Trait be raised above the character's own rating in that Trait. In order to raise a Trait, the character must spend the entire night making love to her partner, and must expend the number of experience points it would take for him to increase his existing Trait to the desired level.

Use of this power can cause mortals to become God-Blooded. Once a character has invested 20 or more experience points in her lover, his soul has been indelibly touched, and he may begin to discover new powers within himself. Mechanically, he now counts as God-Blooded, as though he were a child of the jewel's bearer. He gains an Essence pool based on his "ancestry," as well as the appropriate heritage power, but receives no other immediate benefits. If for some reason his Inheritance needs to be determined, it is equal to half his lover's Essence (round down). Half-Castes produced in this manner always have the Flaw, Aura of Power, for which they receive no compensation; neither do they receive the extra Attribute points usually possessed by children of the Exalted.

Only one person at a time can benefit from the Jewel of Selfless Love's permanent power; if that person dies, the character immediately loses a point of permanent Willpower as that part of her soul which she invested dies with him. If she dies, he loses a point of permanent Essence; if this takes him to Essence 0, he dies. Any number of people may simultaneously benefit from its temporary power, and the character suffers no ill effects if they die; if she dies, they immediately lose all their granted powers. Neither power may be applied to ghosts or other nonliving beings.

Kudzu-Calling Orb</b>

<b>Manse •••••
Trigger: Concentration (Simple). 

This green sphere looks like it is made of many small vines and leaves, which are continually growing without actually increasing the size of the stone. When attuned, it grants the ability to call forth enormous masses of kudzu vines, which burst up from the ground and grow at incredible speed, tangling up everything in the area and even pulling down weak structures.

In order to activate the stone, the character needs to touch the ground and concentrate, sacrificing her dice action; vines immediately begin bursting up around her and spreading outward. For every turn she maintains the power, the kudzu spreads another ten yards, and thickens over the area it has already covered.

Any character caught within the radius of the kudzu explosion must make a difficulty 1 dodge roll or become tangled up by the swiftly-growing plants, halving his movement rate and inflicting a (non-cumulative) two-die penalty on all physical actions. This dodge is not free; treat it as though the character were the target of a single attack on his initiative. Characters who cannot or will not dodge, or who botch their Dodge checks, are completely immobilized. Breaking free requires either a level 5 feat of strength, or the use of some kind of bladed weapon; both count as dice actions requiring no roll. Characters who are completely tangled up can't cut themselves free; they need to either break the vines with brute strength, or wait for someone else to cut them loose.

Structures covered by kudzu may be weakened or demolished outright by the weight of the vines. Treat any structure covered by kudzu as though it were the target of a feat of strength of a level equal to twice the number of turns the kudzu has covered it. This is applied every turn, but only while the Kudzu-Calling Orb is active.

When the gem's power is deactivated, the kudzu does not go away, although it may die off rapidly if conditions are inhospitable. The kudzu will only sprout from soil, not any other surface (though it may burst up from below cobblestones, floors, and so forth), and the character must actually be touching dirt for the power to work.

Seed of Riotous Life

Manse •••••
Trigger: Concentration (reflexive).

This hearthstone looks like a large, glossy sunflower seed, and seems to vibrate slightly. When attuned, it allows its bearer to cause any dead organic matter near her to almost instantaneously decompose, consumed in an almost literal explosion of vegetation, fungi, and tiny scavengers. It also causes viable seeds, spores, and eggs to immediately germinate or hatch, releasing a swarm of infant life.

All dead organic matter within 50 yards of the character suffers 4 levels of unsoakable lethal damage per turn as it is devoured and pulled apart by swiftly-growing molds, mushrooms, centipedes, worms, pillbugs, and all manner of other fungi and scavenging creatures. Once it has been rendered down to dirt (which typically takes no more than a few turns), flowering plants begin to sprout from it. This damage explicitly applies to all dead creatures, even those animated by ghosts or Necromancy.

Equipment made of once-living material (such as ironwood, leather, or bone) is also affected. Armor loses 2L/2B soak each turn (neither value can drop below zero); when both soak values reach zero, the armor has been totally disintegrated. Weapons lose 1 point from each statistic per turn (to a minimum of +0 or the stat's original value, whichever is lower); when all stats reach zero or below, the weapon is destroyed. Items which do not have a soak value or weapon stats, such as clothing, backpacks, food which is not very fresh, and so forth, take between one and three turns to disintegrate. The Storyteller has the final say on whether or not an item is affected, and how long it takes to be destroyed.

The Seed of Riotous Life's power does not affect magical items, or things which were once alive but have been transmuted into inorganic materials (such as stone or metal) or decomposed to soil. The power affects everything within its radius of effect, including the character and any belongings he may be carrying. It lasts for as long as the character wishes, but if he uses it for more turns than his Stamina, he will be fatigued and hungry when he deactivates it; the stone accelerates his metabolism, causing him to rapidly exhaust his reserves of energy. if he uses it for more turns than his Stamina + Resistance, he will fall unconscious for a scene when the effect ends, and awaken ravenous and fatigued.

Sterile creatures who spend at least three turns within the stone's zone of effect become fertile, but only for a single scene. Normally barren female creatures who are impregnated during this period are likely -- though not guaranteed -- to miscarry.

Comments

You got some weird shit here. Cool, but weird. Especially the Gem of the Prickly Cactus and the Blubber Gem... ew. Also, I initially misread the "Jewel of Selfless Love" as the "Jewel of Self-Love", which would surely be a jewel of another color, as it were.  :) - Quendalon

That would actually be a fun idea: a Narcisstone, which makes you immune to all seduction and such becuase you are so infatuated with yourself. \\ _Ikselam

I stole the Gem of One Thousand Heavenly Perfumes for a demon of mine, because it suited him just so damn much. :) - Moxiane

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