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Righteous Hawk Style

This is a style based on quick movements and blindingly fast attacks. Form weapons are daggers and tiger’s claws (Eagle’s Claws). This martial art is incompatible with armor.

Background

Righteous Hawk Style was originally created by a First Age solar for use by his mate, a Hawk totem Lunar. It puts the emphasis on quick strikes, perception, bravery, and great speed.

Charms

Hawk’s Accurate Eye</b>

<b>Cost: 1 mote/die
Duration: Instant
Type: Simple
Min MA: 2
Min Essence: 1
Prereqs: none

The hawk’s vision from above is flawless. He sees all things under his purview. This charm allows the Exalt to spend one mote and gain one die for awareness checks based on sight and double their range of sight.

Safety of Flight</b>

<b>Cost: 5 motes
Duration: Instant
Type: Reflexive
Min MA: 2
Min Essence: 2
Prereqs: Hawk’s Accurate Eye

The Hawk’s graceful flight allows it to seem to dodge attacks effortlessly. Upon someone attacking the Exalt activation of this charm allows a reflexive dodge (Dodge + MA) by jumping high into the air. If the Dodge is successful then the exalt can land up to a number of yards equal to his athletics score away from his attacker. If it isn’t successful the exalt must resist knockdown with a difficulty of the number of successes he was beaten by.

Raptor’s Rapid Strike</b>

<b>Cost: 5 motes
Duration: Instant
Type: Supplemental
Min MA:</bp> 3
<b>Min Essence: 2
Prereqs: Safety of Flight

The Hawk’s rapid descent from the sky is a horrible thing to behold. Launching themselves skyward to impossible heights, the Exalt let’s out a mighty kiap as he streaks toward his target with blinding speed weapons outstretched. This strike adds his MA to the damage pool of the strike and allows him to be able to attack anyone within athletics + MA in yards.

Hawk Form</b>

<b>Cost: 8 motes, 1 willpower
Duration: scene
Type: Simple
Min MA: 3
Min Essence: 3
Prereqs: Raptor’s Rapid Strike

The Exalt crouches down and leaps into the air and glides through the air like a drifting hawk and striking with extreme speed. Add MA to athletics to increase jumping distance, add MA to difficulty to hit, add MA to damage, and add MA to sight based awareness checks.

Hawk’s Retribution Strike</b>

<b>Cost: 7 motes
Duration: Instant
Type: Reflexive
Min MA: 4
Min Essence:3
Prereqs: Hawk’s Form

The Exalt activates this charm when someone attacks them and after the attacker finishes their assault the Exalt pushes off into the air to strike with unnerving speed at the foe which originally assaulted him. This charm is a reflexive counterattack which adds MA to both attack and damage.

Hiding in the Sun</b>

<b>Cost: 9 Motes, 1 willpower
Duration: Special
Type: Reflexive
Min MA: 4
Min Essence: 4
Prereqs: Hawk’s Retributive Strike

A favorite trick of bird’s of prey is to hide in the sun and strike when their opponent is not looking or occupied with something else. This charm allows the user to leap into the air and wait placed in a spot between his chosen target and the sun and remain there until it is the most opportune time to strike. Once in the air the Exalt may wait a number of turns equal to essence score before making his attack. Each turn spent like this adds his MA to attack and damage and the damage is lethal.

Talon meets the eye</b>

<b>Cost: 4 Motes
Duration: Instant
Type: Supplemental
Min MA: 4
Min Essence: 3
Prereqs: Hawk’s Form

A trick use by most raptors is disabling their opponents without really killing them. This charm allows the Exalt to, instead of damaging his foes body, damage his foes senses. For every box of damage the Exalt would have done he now adds a -1 die penalty to all actions instead of damage.

Raptor’s Crippling Blow</b>

<b>Cost: 9 motes
Duration: Instant
Type: Simple
Min MA: 4
Min Essence: 4
Prereqs: Talon Meets the Eye

A raptor will most likely aim for a crippling strike the first time instead of tiring a prey like most predators. This charm simulates a strike to a leg or even spine to prevent a target from moving. Make a standard MA attack roll figure damage after soak this value (damage calculated after soak) is the number of turns your target cannot move or use their legs and the target still takes damage. The target cannot move under their own power unless they declare that they are going prone and crawling out of combat. All actions taken while under the effects of this charm are at a die penalty of the Exalt’s MA rating.

Brilliant Strike of the Flying Raptor</b>

<b>Cost: 10 motes, 1 willpower
Duration: Instant
Type: Simple
Min MA: 5
Min Essence:4
Prereqs: Raptor’s Crippling Blow and Hawk’s Retributive Strike

Nothing is more deadly to prey then an enraged hawk on the prowl. His strikes are more often than not completely by surprise and the first strike ends the conflict. Using this charm the Exalt leaps high into the air screams out the cry of a hawk and plummets downward at over 50 miles per hour, his weapons (or hands or feet) get enhanced with essence giving them a harder cutting edge, and at the point of impact he lets out a mighty kiap and sends a shockwave of lethal essence cascading through the opponent’s body. This is a perfect attack but roll attack normally for purposes of damage. Also add your MA to attack and damage.

comments

Two things - The cost of the Safety of Flight seems a bit high to me, as 5m is way more than other types of dodge/def charms, and it has the possibility of knockback. Second, I'm really against the design of the ultimate charm, Brilliant Strike of the Flying Raptor, in so much as the text of the Style explicitly notes that this charm was intended to be or was used by a Lunar, and yet the ultimate is a perfect attack. Canonically, only Solars get 'perfection' as a concept, and while some splats have given other Exalts perfects, it's a rare situation indeed, and (in my opinion) done by an author that isn't creative enough to use the proper Exalt-type schtick, so just falls back on 'perfect' as the way to go. My hope and recommendation is that you not give Lunars a means of obtaining perfect attacks, simply because that's not their thing, and more importantly, this style would also give Siddies, and properly initiated DB's, access to perfect attacks as well. A bad situation to be in, as it leads down a very slippery slope. - GregLink

Aw, that's only your opinion :((((. Actually, doesn't Falling Blossom Style, a canon TMA, have a perfect attack charm? That kind of defeat Perfect=Solar, since even mortals can use Purity of Purpose Attack, doesn't it? - sssssz

I think we can make an exception for Purity of Purpose Attack, as it is a charm which allows you to gaurantee you hit somebody at the cost of your life. The perfection mechanic can easily be used for that narrative need, whereas here the perfection is the same level as the Solars (repeatable at mote cost). If you desperatly want perfects in CMAs or SMAs then you probably could, so long as you stick appropriate costs or restrictions on them. Unsoakable levels of Aggravated damage or once per year for instance. For this particular charm, I might suggest changing it to "may not be blocked or dodged without use of charms" all the time, and if it is used at Noon then it is a perfect attack. - Somori

*reads*
man what
- Moxiane

Hmm.

Hawk's Accurate Eye - It could use some slightly clearer wording, but I suppose that's really neither here nor there. I think you should also note that it is subject to the dice-adder cap for the Charm user. Also, I don't think it would be amiss to adjust the cost. Maybe make it 2 or 3 motes, and just add the Exalt's Martial Arts score to the rolls? It's my feeling that generally Martial Arts Charms, while capable of doing the jobs of other Charms, should be less effecient or less effective (in some cases, both).

Safety of Flight - I think this is okay. Full-pool reflexive defenses (which is what Dodge + Martial Arts would usually amount to - potentially more, in fact, depending on how the ST chooses to read it) are not a normal feature in Martial Arts. I don't think they're impossible for Martial Arts Charms, mind, but I don't think they should appear as Martial Arts Charms with such low prerequisites. I recommend lowering the cost to, say, 3 or 4 motes, and having the Charm simply add the character's Martial Arts score (or Essence rating) to a dodge roll, along with the leaping dodge effect you included. I would take out the knockdown/knockback. This change would make it still useable as a reflexive dodge, but more effective when used to enhance a preexisting dodge.

Raptor's Rapid Strike - Overcosted, but otherwise fine. Make it 3 motes, I think.

Hawk Form - Here I see potential for some real reworking, I'm afraid. It's very expensive - the highest cost for canon Forms is 6 motes, and I think that 4 to 6 motes is really where Forms, at least at the Terrestrial and Celestial levels, should stay. I think this needs a Martial Arts prerequisite of 4, rather than 3. Also, I think it provides too many bonuses. As a MA 4, Ess 3 Form costing 6 motes, I could see it adding MA in yards to all leaping distances, adding the character's Essence score to the base damage of attacks, and either adding Essence to sight-based Awareness checks or subtracting Essence in dice from close-combat attacks against the character.

Hawk's Retribution Stance - Rather expensive and expansive. Maybe play with some other counterattack mechanics - check out Snake Strikes the Heel and Angry Predator Frenzy Style for ideas.

Hiding in the Sun - Interesting. I think I kinda like it. All it needs, I think, is a note that it's still subject to the dice-adder cap, and maybe some notes about what happens if the character is damaged while "holding" his attack with this Charm. I'm not sure if the cost is too high or too low, though. If it's subject to the dice-adder cap, then I think it's overcosted, and should be dropped to, say, 5 motes and a Willpower. I do like this Charm, at least in principle. Some other possible mechanics you could apply to the character striking from this "hidden" position could include increased defense difficulties, making the attack unpercieved, or seriously hampering the target's defense.

Talon Meets the Eye - Seems fine. I like the name.

Raptor's Crippling Blow - Yowch and hrm. Lower the cost, I think - 4m1w would probably be alright. Make it cripple the target for a number of turns equal to the martial artist's MA score. Word it a little clearer - do you mean for the target to be unable to act, or simply unable to move (move in the combat sense - i.e., walk, run, jump, swim, etc.)? If it's the latter, which I think it is, I like that effect, but think the dice pool penalty to the character's actions should equal the Hawk Stylist's Essence score.

Brilliant Strike of the Flying Raptor - Kinda opens a can of worms. I have no problem with Celestial-level MAs developing perfect attacks, but a lot of people do. I think this Charm would be better-recieved if it was worded as "unblockable and undodgeable". I really don't see a big problem with this one, though. It is, after all, MA 5, Ess 4, and costs quite a bit.

-David.