MartialArts/EvenBladeFifthStyle

Even Blade Style

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Background

The Even Blade style is detailed in the Exalted Second Edition supplement Scroll of the Monk. It is a style focusing on swordsmanship and fighting prowess directly, not primarily through an elemental lens as most Terrestrial Martial Arts do. Yet a scholar and Sorceror well versed in the ways of Essence can easily see that the variants of this style are in fact rooted in elemental Essence. The five charms following the form each correspond to an aspect, and which four aspects a student learns determines which variant of the style she may ultimately pursue.

The elemental correspondences:

• Firey Garda Force Attack - Fire.
• Flashing Zephyr Speed Stance - Air.
• Floating Nymph Evasion Technique - Water.
• Gruesome Wood King Smile - Wood.
• Stubborn Jokun Defensive Posture - Earth.

The variant styles:

• Master Azure Crane excludes Earth.
• Master Chaowin Registrophe excludes Wood.
• Master Zu Rat Te excludes Water.
• Resolute Brigada accidentally excluded Fire.
• Therefore, the fifth variant must exclude Air.

This much is already discussed in Scroll of the Monk, but in considering my variant, I have made another observation: the two charms of each variant combine two of the elements the variant teaches in each charm, and there are no repeated combinations.

• Azure Crane's first charm combines water and wood with a parry and counterattack, and combines fire and air by making sword or sheath float aloft in the second charm.

• Chaowin Registrophe's first charm combines fire and earth with a powerful direct attack, and combines air and water when the opponent's blood is ripped out into the air by the second charm.

• Zu Rat Te combines wood and fire in the stinging insult of his first charm, and his second charm stealthily slips between earth and air.

• Resolute Brigada brings water together with earth to mire an opponent's weapon first, then combines wood and air to surround enemies all by herself.

• Therefore, the only combinations left for the last variant are wood + earth, and fire + water.

Charms

Root-Breaking Parry

Cost: 3m
Minimums: Melee 4, Martial Arts 5, Essence 3
Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Fiery Garda, Floating Nymph, Gruesome Wood, Stubborn Jokun

Activating this charm in step 2 when parrying an attack adds Essence to Parry DV, and if the parry is successful, the opponent must roll (Sta or Dex) + Athletics, difficulty Essence, or be knocked prone.

Slashing Steam Blade

Cost: 2m, 1wp
Minimums: Melee 5, Martial Arts 5, Essence 3
Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Root-Breaking Parry

This strike trails hazy Essence, seeming for the purpose of obscuring the opponent's view, but in fact the trail of Essence-charged steam the blade leaves will help deflect enemy attacks and parries. This attack inflicts no DV penalty because of this. Opponents must either spend a willpower point or use a defensive charm to parry this attack as the haze impedes their vision and movement of their weapons. A successful attack with this charm adds Essence to damage, due to the heat of the blade and the steam.