MartialArts/InternalEssencePyreStyle

Internal Essence Pyre Style

Celestial Level (1st Ed.)

No Weapons or Armor

"The Internal Essence Pyre Stylist is to be feared! He attacks with explosive force, and leaves naught but destruction in his wake!"

Themes: Essence control, explosions (all types), force

Note: All essence attacks reflect the anima of the wielder: solars tend to be gold, lunars silver/blue, Dragonblooded have elemental attacks (no extra bonuses), etc.

Essence Soul Strike

Cost: 4m Type: Simple Duration: Instant MA 3, Ess 2 No Pre-reqs

The first thing an Internal Essence Pyre stylist must learn is how to focus his essence... and how to hurt people with it. The IEP Stylist focuses a ball of raw essence in the palm of his hand, then hits his target with it. This adds the stylist's Permanent Essence in dice to the damage of the attack, and to the difficulty to resist knockback of the same attack. The maximum number of customizations that can be bought for this charm is the user's Permanent Essence.

This Charm may be enhanced with the purchase of Techniques. Each one costs 3 Bonus Points or 6 Experience Points. Some examples follow.

Lethal Damage

The Charm inflicts Lethal damage instead of Bashing.

Piercing

The Charm's damage is Piercing.

Flurry of Force Kata

Cost: 5m, 1w Type: Extra Action Duration: Instant MA 3, Ess 2 No Pre-reqs

Another basic lesson the Internal Essence Pyre stylist must learn is how to explosively use his own Essence. The stylist uses a burst of Essence to speed his attacks, allowing him a number of extra attacks equal to his Permanent Essence Rating.

Internal Essence Pyre Form

Cost: 10m Type: Simple Duration: Scene MA 4, Ess 3 Pre-req: Essence Soul Strike, Flurry of Force Kata

Internalizing and expanding on the lessons taught previously, the Internal Essence Pyre Stylist unleashes his own Essence in an explosive, yet stable form. The stylist's anima blazes out, as if it had been activated at the 10+ mote stage. Until the form is dropped, the anima will remain lit. The form provides these benefits: adds Permanent Essence dice in damage for hand to hand attacks; grants the stylist a number of -0 health levels equal to his Permanent Essence; and adds the stylist's Martial Arts to his bashing and lethal soak. If the form is dropped while there is damage on the extra health levels, they are not transferred to the martial artist.

This is a form charm, and obeys all the normal rules of form charms.

Essence Pyre Understanding

Cost: N/A Type: Permanent MA 4, Ess 4 Pre-req: Internal Essence Pyre Form

As a greater understanding of one's Essence flows is attained, greater power may be unlocked. Upon mastering Essence Pyre Understanding, the stylist gains (Willpower + Essence) in peripheral Essence motes. This is a permanent upgrading of the stylist's abilities. This extra pool of peripheral essence can only be recharged through stunting or the charm Essence Pyre Absorption.

Essence Pyre Absorption

Cost: 1w Type: Simple Duration: Special MA 5, Ess 4 Pre-req: Essence Pyre Understanding

By focusing his will, the Internal Essence Pyre stylist can refill his reserves of essence. His anima blazing at the 10+ mote level, the stylist focuses and contains the essence around himself for future use. To use this charm, the stylist must concentrate - he may take no other actions while using this charm - and roll Martial Arts (by itself). Each success is a mote regained, and 10s do count as two successes on the roll. For each turn the martial artist is in this stance, he may roll again. The martial artist may maintain the stance as long as he wishes, and only has to pay the willpower upon each activation of the stance.

Focused Essence Explosion Technique

Cost: 1 mote / 3L Type: Simple Duration: Instant/Special MA 5, Ess 4 Pre-reqs: Internal Essence Pyre Form

Focused Essence Explosion Technique allows the martial artist to use his essence to attack at range. The martial artist focuses his essence into a ball, then expels it as a beam towards his opponents. This attack rolls Dex+MA, with Permanent Essence accuracy, a range of Permanent Essence X 50 yards, and a blast radius of Permanent Essence yards. Damage equals 3L per mote spent, with a cap of Permanent Essence in motes (a turn, see below). Successes add to damage. As with Essence Pyre Absorption, the act of charging the attack can be maintained, though only up to the martial artist's Permanent Essence in rounds. Each round the martial artist can spend up to his Permanent Essence in motes to charge the attack. All motes spent charging are committed until the attack is unleashed. The maximum number of customizations that can be bought for this charm is the user's Permanent Essence.

This charm can also be personalized in the same manner as Essence Soul Strike. Possible customizations:

Piercing Beam

This technique drops the damage to 2L per mote, but makes the attack piercing.

Long Distance

This increases the range of the charm to Line-of-Sight

Controlled

This technique turns the beam into a sphere that can be directed. This technique costs 1 Willpower to use, and adds the artists Permanent Essence X 2 as automatic successes on the attack. The sphere can be maintained as long as martial artist concentrates on it.

Essence Compatability: Thrown

This technique allows this Charm to combo cross abilities with Thrown charms. If this technique is taken, the archery variation cannot be. This technique costs either 6 Bonus Points or 12 experience.

Essence Compatability: Archery

This technique allows this Charm to combo with charms from the Archery ability. This technique is not compatible with Essence Compatability: Thrown. This technique costs either 6 Bonus Points or 12 experience.

Anima Flux

This technique allows the user's anima to affect the beam. Some potential bonuses include:

Fire damage and igniting of burning materials for a Fire Aspect.

Knockback for an Earth Aspect.

Aggravated Damage to creatures of Darkness (such as zombies and Abyssal Exalts) for a Solar.

Other Technique possibilities may exist, and are subject to Storyteller approval.

Essence Shackling Method

Cost: 6m Type: Supplemental Duration: Instant MA 5, Ess 4 Pre-reqs: Internal Essence Pyre Form

Essence Shackling Method allows the martial artist to slow or paralyze his opponents with an injection of his own Essence through his opponent's pressure points. This attack does not do damage. However, each success rolled takes away from the victim's Dexterity. If the victim is reduced to 0 Dexterity, they are paralyzed for a scene. Extras are automatically paralyzed, however Exalts (and other Essence users) can roll their own Permanent Essence to reduce successes from the attack.

Deadly Explosion Attitude

Cost: 12m Type: Supplemental Duration: Scene MA 5, Ess 5 Pre-reqs: Essence Shackling Method, Focused Essence Explosion Technique, Essence Pyre Absorption

The ultimate charm in the Internal Essence Pyre style. The martial artist has learned how to use his essence to a myriad of deadly effects. Now, he has learned to cause explosions within his opponents, typically within his victim's head. Anyone hit by this attack takes the martial artist's Permanent Essence in Lethal damage. This damage ignores all natural soak and armor soak. It can be negated through magical means, however. After this charm is activated, it supplements the martial artist's attacks for the rest of the scene, or until the charm is dropped. Extras are assumed to be killed with a single hit, their heads exploding in a wave of gore.

Comments

Okay - I updated the form charm, since Soak makes more sense. I also weakened the Ultimate Charm a tiny bit, and allowed two of the charms to be personalized. It should now be possible to make almost any kind of beam attack you wish, depending on how much experience you're willing to spend. Oh, and any comments are welcome and appreciated... even bad ones :)

---

Legion