Revision as of 08:07, 5 April 2010

White Veiled Gardener Style

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Practitioners of White Veiled Gardener Style are set beyond the reach of their peers, divine beings who destroy others in accordance with plans they often themselves do not realise. They are masters at manipulating destiny with their actions, and by it grow ever more distant from the works of others, their own, and themselves.

Attacks with all martial arts weapons are considered unarmed attacks for the purposes of this Style.

Charm Pricing Bonanza

Considering my own incompetence when it comes to balancing Sidereal martial arts Charms (amongst others), I have left the ability prerequisites, essence prerequisites and activation costs of each Charm empty for anyone to fill in. No permission required, just put in the value you consider most appropriate. If someone has put it at a level you consider unbalanced, argue (or defend) your case in the Feedback section and I’ll amend it accordingly. Likewise, if the Charm mechanics themselves contain silliness, say so in the Feedback section also. Charmsketeers, away!

Pursuing the Unique Design

• Cost: 2 motes, 1 Willpower
• Duration: Instant
• Type: Reflexive
• Minimum Martial Arts: 5
• Minimum Essence: 4
• Prerequisite Charms: None

Student’s Sutra: The white veiled gardener lay amidst snowdrops

As a manipulator of fate, practitioners of the Style first learn to differentiate themselves from their works and materials. When this Charm is activated, all astrological effects are removed from the Exalt, unless they were crafted by an individual with an Essence higher than her own.

Observing the Joyous Devastation

• Cost: 8 motes, 1 Willpower
• Duration: One scene
• Type: Simple
• Minimum Martial Arts: 5
• Minimum Essence: 4
• Prerequisite Charms: Pursuing the Unique Design

Watching the blossom fall

To a practitioner of White Veiled Gardener style, death is the progenitor of life as much as life is the progenitor of death. As she plucks the souls of those about her, she does so knowing that she is creating a beautiful pattern of life in their wake. For the remainder of the scene, the Exalt regains a point of Willpower for every hostile creature she kills.

Abandoning the Menial Obligation

• Cost: 6 motes
• Duration: Instant
• Type: Supplemental
• Minimum Martial Arts: 5
• Minimum Essence: 4
• Prerequisite Charms: Observing the Joyous Devastation

In her idleness, she reached out and caught one

With a gentle shrug, the Exalt unburdens herself from causality. The act of attacking is unnecessary, undesirable; she simply has attacked instead. Attacks supplemented by this Charm are unblockable and undodgeable; this is not a perfect effect.

Uprooting the Biting Weed

• Cost:
• Duration: Instant
• Type: Supplemental
• Minimum Martial Arts:
• Minimum Essence:
• Prerequisite Charms: Observing the Joyous Devastation

Smothering it

The Exalt reaches into the body of another, and her grasp moves through them to the Loom of Destiny itself, binding the cords together that divine that person’s future and crushing them. Should an attack enhanced by this Charm deal at least one level of damage, the subject must succeed on an Essence roll or cease to exist in Creation, immediately and completely. All that remain are fragments of drifting essence and memories in the minds of others.

White Veiled Gardener Form

• Cost: 12 motes
• Duration: One scene
• Type: Simple
• Minimum Martial Arts: 5
• Minimum Essence: 5
• Prerequisite Charms: Uprooting the Biting Weed, Abandoning the Menial Obligation

She no longer laid amidst the snowdrops

The Exalt winds destiny about her body, coalescing intent and fate together into one harmonic whole. Her actions are the actions of reality, surpassing mere probability: all martial arts attacks, martial arts parries and dodges made by her have a number of successes equal to her permanent Essence, unless the rolled total would be higher.

Highlighting the Jarred Pattern

• Cost: 12 motes, 1 Willpower
• Duration: Instant
• Type: Reflexive
• Minimum Martial Arts: 6
• Minimum Essence: 6
• Prerequisite Charms: White Veiled Gardener Form

Master’s Sutra: For one petal was broken

As she maims her foe, the Exalt inscribes an annotation on their destiny, marking them as broken. The world refuses them, as individuals and as a whole, lest it be marred in turn. This Charm may be activated immediately after striking someone with an unarmed attack; that person is shirked from destiny, and finds people, animals, objects and events alike take an uncanny dislike to their touch. All actions they attempt thereafter are at a penalty equal to the martial artist’s Essence. This is considered an astrological effect.

Regarding the Shadowed Vermin

• Cost:
• Duration: Instant
• Type: Simple
• Minimum Martial Arts: 6
• Minimum Essence: 6
• Prerequisite Charms: White Veiled Gardener Form

So

To further their certainty in pursuing their own goals, the Exalts learn to look beyond a person’s physical form to their influence in all things. Upon activation of this Charm, the Exalt indicates a person and something they believe them to be (“the murderer of Fractured Sapphire”, “an obstacle to my progress”, and “an Exalt” are all valid examples of this). She immediately knows whether this is the case or not. If it is the case, she must attempt to destroy them as soon as possible; if not actively pursuing their destruction, the Exalt is at a penalty equal to her Essence to all actions. If actively pursuing their destruction, any dice she receives from channelling Virtues are considered automatic successes.

Pruning the Undesirable Element

• Cost: 8 motes, 1 Willpower
• Duration: One turn
• Type: Reflexive
• Minimum Martial Arts: 6
• Minimum Essence: 6
• Prerequisite Charms: Highlighting the Jarred Pattern, Regarding the Shadowed Vermin

She rose

The Exalt catches an event between her fingers and pinches them together, severing it from Creation. Activated immediately after a roll, this Charm ensures it no consequence. This may be used on the actions of others within the Exalt’s perceptions (a sorcerer guiding a hail of butterflies sends them literally nowhere, or a demagogue’s speech goes unheard), or on the Exalt’s own actions (an attempt to hang on to a cliffedge fails but the Exalt does not fall, or the Exalt responds poorly to a venom but does not suffer from it), or on simple circumstance. This is a perfect effect. In the case of continuous effects such as environmental damage, this Charm staves off their consequences for a single turn when activated.

Beckoning the Deserved Despair

• Cost: None
• Duration: Permanent
• Type: Special
• Minimum Martial Arts: 6
• Minimum Essence: 6
• Prerequisite Charms: Pruning the Undesirable Element

And in her sorrow

Upon learning this Charm, the Exalt takes the crushing truth of Creation’s inherent imperfection and twines it into her heart; every passing moment, she knows her actions are ultimately in vein and that her successes are always partial. There is no greater torment of spirit, and all others pale in comparison; whenever the Exalt rolls dice from a Virtue, she may decide whether each comes up as a success or failure.

Discarding the Heavenly Shears

• Cost: 6 motes, 2 Willpower
• Duration: One turn
• Type: Simple
• Minimum Martial Arts: 6
• Minimum Essence: 6
• Prerequisite Charms: Beckoning the Deserved Despair

She trampled them

With total understanding of the flow of destiny comes the right to forsake it entirely. When this Charm is activated, the Exalt forces her expertise from her body, exorcising the techniques she has learnt. She may apply the supplemental Charms of this Style to all her attacks and activate any reflexive Charms freely, at no additional cost. If she is not already under the effect of Observing the Joyous Devastation, she is for the remainder of the turn. When the Charm concludes, the practitioner loses all knowledge of the White Veiled Gardener Style, and may no longer use its Charms. It is possible to recall them at a later point, spending a month in meditation for each Charm to be regained. This process can be accelerated by spending the full experience to learn them again.

Feedback

As nobody seems too keen, I've stepped in and priced the Charms in what seems a fairly reasonable fashion. Suggestions on the values I've given are, as ever, extremely welcome...DeathBySurfeit