Revision as of 05:00, 7 August 2005

Zenith Performance Charms

The idea behind these was to get rituals and sacraments. Religion more than Faith. I got tired of just saying, "I do devotions." I wanted it to mean something, and for my circle to be able to get something out of the new religion I was developing in the new world. Like the Presence Charms, these were developed before some of the more important fatsplats came out, and for a specific campaign. As such, they need some heavy editing, but I'm not entirely sure the best way to word it.

Blessing of the High Sun

Cost: 3 Motes
Duration: 30 minutes
Type: Simple
Minimum Performance: 1
Minimum Essence: 3
Prerequisite Charms: None

The Exalt performs a noonday ritual in veneration of the Unconquered Sun. This ritual must begin within the priest’s personal essence pool in minutes on either side of the sun reaching its apex in the sky. At the conclusion of the ritual, the Unconquered Sun smiles upon his champions, granting all Solar or Abyssal Exalted present and reverent during the ritual a number of motes equal to their permanent Essence rating. If the essence pools of the pious are full, the motes are still available to them, and stored in visible form in their anima, though should they adopt an attitude of pride in their piety, they will lose double this amount and suffer a level of inescapable aggravated damage. Furthermore, when this charm is used by a Zenith caste priest, all Exalted of any type that took part in the ritual will gain the priest’s Essence in motes. Should a deathknight be granted the essence of Creation through this charm, she will not suffer the effects of existing in Creation for the duration of the ritual. At the end, however, the motes will immediately annihilate with an equal amount of Abyssal essence, and be applied as points of Resonance. The Abyssal will be unable to reduce the effects of existing in Creation until they lose all points of Resonance gained in this way.

Orison of Dawn’s Promise

Cost: 7 motes, 1 Willpower
Duration: Sunrise
Type: Simple
Minimum Performance: 2
Minimum Essence: 3
Prerequisite Charms: Blessing of the High Sun

The acting priest performs a morning prayer to the Unconquered Sun asking for guidance and aid throughout the coming day. The ritual must begin while the sun is still rising. All Exalted partaking in this ritual gain 1 point of temporary Willpower. In the case of Zenith caste priests using this charm, Solars may additionally roll their Conviction and gain a point for each success, while Abyssals lose points of Willpower equal to the priest’s Conviction at the end of the ritual.

Benediction of Returning Light

Cost: 10 motes
Duration: Sunset
Type: Simple
Minimum Performance: 3
Minimum Essence: 3
Prerequisite Charms: Orison of Dawn’s Promise

Through use of this charm, the character asks the Unconquered Sun for a refreshing sleep and protection through the night. The ritual must be conducted while the sun is setting. Any Abyssal Exalted present for the benediction will be strangely at peace until they next attempt to sleep, at which point they will be perpetually awakened and tormented by horrific nightmares of the Malfeans. Depending on how sleep deprived the deathknight is, they may experience waking dreams. All other Exalted will gain bonus dice equal to their Essence score for any Awareness rolls to detect anything out of the ordinary while sleeping. A Zenith conducting this ritual doubles the natural healing rate of any Solars that participate.

Essence Walk Prana

Cost: 10 motes, 1 Willpower
Duration: Varies
Type: Simple
Minimum Performance: 4
Minimum Essence: 4
Prerequisite Charms: Blessing of the High Sun, Orison of Dawn’s Promise, Benediction of Returning Light

The Exalt enters a deep meditative state, and exhales his Essence into the Umbra. This is the literal Essence of his Exaltation, and as such, can be captured by a Monstrance of Celestial Portion. The Essence projection is invulnerable except to the five magical materials, sorcery, and necromancy and is incapable of physically affecting anything except through the use of charms or sorcery. Damage dealt to the Essence projection is registered upon its body, and no wound penalties will be felt until it leaves the trance. It can, however, converse with other beings, move about, and make observations that it can recall later. The Essence projection also remains aware of its body’s surroundings, and may activate passive charms, such as Element Resisting Prana or Adamant Skin Technique from a distance. If the Essence does not return to the body, the body will eventually die of thirst or hunger except through the activation of charms. Should the Essence desire to return to its body quickly, it may abandon coherent form and spend a number of motes up to its permanent Essence rating, doubling its movement rate with each mote.

Soul Memory Meditation

Cost: 10 motes, 1 Willpower, 1 Experience Point
Duration: One scene
Type: Simple
Minimum Performance: 5
Minimum Essence: 5
Prerequisite Charms: Essence Walk Prana

The Exalt falls into a self-inquisitive trance, communing with the Essence of his exaltation. Memories of his past lives flood his consciousness, leaving him awash in the former glory of the first age. When the tide of reminiscence recedes, he is left with the clear and useful memory of something from the first age, be it an artifact, a contact, or simply knowledge about the way the world was and is. Roll Essence. Every success on this roll corresponds to a dot of artifact, contact, or other appropriate advantage. These memories are in sufficient detail to reconstruct an artifact, make an educated guess at the whereabouts of a contact, or convey such information to somebody else. Additional Willpower may be spent to augment this roll.

Provision of the Sun

Cost: 15 motes, 2 Willpower
Duration: One day
Type: Simple
Minimum Performance: 6
Minimum Essence: 6
Prerequisite Charms: Soul Memory Mediation

The Exalt draws upon his past experiences and couples them with the necessity of the moment. He is able to spontaneously manifest artifacts of pure essence with a thought. These artifacts behave exactly as their real counterparts, and require no commitment of essence to receive the benefits of being attuned to them. Roll Essence. The number of successes equals the rating of artifact that can be manifested.

Comments

Essence Walk Prana was an aim as some Astral Projection fu... Since the game started before the Lunar book, the ST pulled some Werewolf stuff for the Lunars, including sidestepping... Dunno much about it, haven't played much Werewolf. Not sure the best way to mechanize the concept here. - Tardach